Monday, May 11, 2015

Didn't Cha Include Badu in Your Afrofuturism Playlist?


Erykah Badu’s “Didn’t Cha Know” was the second single off her sophomore album Mama’s Gun. The song speaks to the lost soul. Badu sings of being lost, not knowing which way to turn in life. In the music video Badu appears to have crash landed and is roaming around lost in the desert. The videos imagery helps to illustrate the lyrics, as she tries to figure out “which way to go”.  The video ends with her ultimately being led by a lizard to a watering hole below the earth’s surface. The image of her getting to the water coincides with her lyrics as she sings that “there will be a brighter day”. Badu's lyrics tells the listener that only when one can free their mind (awaken), they can find their way to a better future not only for themselves but for the world. She sings that it is “time to save the world” and with love come life and with life comes freedom for all. With this song, Badu exemplifies the music of Afrofuturism as she attempts to uplift the souls of the listener. She uses her lyrics to envision a better future, and one cannot help but include this song on their Afrofuturism playlist.

No comments:

Post a Comment