Three decades in, Erykah Badu still knows how to keep a crowd guessing.
Back in 1997, Erykah Badu arrived with Baduizm, a headwrap, a voice like no one else’s and absolutely no interest in fitting neatly into R&B.
That is still a big part of why people love her. She is funny, unpredictable, effortlessly stylish, and just as comfortable stretching a song out onstage as she is landing a sharp one-liner.
‘On & On’ remains her signature hit – the song that introduced Badu to the world and won her a Grammy – but this Tokyo set showed how deep the catalogue runs, from ‘Bag Lady’ and ‘Window Seat’ to the forever-great ‘Tyrone’.
At SGC Hall Ariake in Tokyo on July 4, Badu moved through a career-spanning set built around Baduizm, Mama’s Gun and New Amerykah, opening with the slow-burning ‘Green Eyes’ and closing with the endlessly quotable ‘Tyrone’.
Along the way came ‘On & On’, ‘Bag Lady’, ‘Window Seat’ and a brief nod to The Notorious B.I.G.’s ‘Warning’ for the Tokyo crowd.
Erykah Badu Live Tour setlist
Green Eyes
Otherside of the Game
On & On
.. & On
Appletree
Time’s a Wastin
Love of My Life (An Ode to Hip Hop)’
Warning – The Notorious B.I.G. cover
Sometimes
I Want You – with ‘Don’t Stop the Music’ outro
Window Seat
Next Lifetime
Bag Lady
Didn’t Cha Know
If You Believe – Charlie Smalls cover
Encore
Tyrone
Badu has more shows lined up across the UK and the US in August, followed by a run through the US and Canada in September and an intimate Amsterdam date in October.
For the full list of dates and ticket information, head to Erykah Badu’s website.
