Free online radio at AOL Radio offers over 350 Internet radio stations with song skipping and includes music, news, sports and talk.

Erykah Badu

Erykah Badu's Genre:

Neo-Soul, Contemporary R&B, R&B, Adult Contemporary R&B, Alternative R&B

Biography

She grew up listening to '70s soul and '80s hip-hop, but Erykah Badu drew more comparisons to Billie Holiday upon her breakout in 1997, after the release of her first album, Baduizm. The grooves and production on the album are bass-heavy R&B, but Badu's languorous, occasionally tortured vocals and delicate phrasing immediately removed her from the legion of cookie-cutter female R&B singers. A singer/songwriter responsible for all but one of the songs on Baduizm, she found a number 12 hit with her first single, "On & On," which pushed the album to number two on the charts.

Born Erica Wright in Dallas in 1971, Badu attended a school of the arts and was working as a teacher and part-time singer in her hometown when she opened for D'Angelo at a 1994 show. D'Angelo's manager, Kedar Massenburg, was impressed with the performance and hooked her up with the singer to record a cover of the Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terrell duet "Precious Love." He also signed Badu to his recently formed Kedar Entertainment label, and served as producer for Baduizm, which also starred bassist Ron Carter and members of hip-hop avatars the Roots on several tracks. The first single, "On & On," became a number one R&B hit in early 1997, and Baduizm followed it to the top of the R&B album charts by March. Opening for R&B acts as well as rap's Wu-Tang Clan, Erykah Badu stopped just short of number one on the pop album charts in April. Her Live album followed later in the year.

In 2000 she returned with her highly anticipated second studio album, Mama's Gun, which was co-produced by Badu, James Poyser, Bilal, and Jay Dee and contained the hit single "Bag Lady." Worldwide Underground, a loose affair billed as an EP despite being longer than many full-lengths, was released in 2003. Her next step, 2008's New Amerykah, Pt. 1: 4th World War, was a heavy and abstract release featuring collaborations with the members of Sa-Ra and Georgia Anne Muldrow; it reached number two on the Billboard 200 and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. New Amerykah, Pt. 2: Return of the Ankh, looser and more playful than Pt. 1, followed in 2010. ~ John Bush

AOL Radio Stations Erykah Badu is Featured on (7)

R&B

Slacker R&B is built upon a vast library of sexy music for sexy people, centering on the past 15 years of hits. You'll hear the biggest songs of today, as well as the tunes you've been grooving to since the mid-nineties--with a bit of old school flavor and a lot of surprises.

Karmin Showcase

This is the Karmin Artist Showcase station on Slacker Radio. Tune in to hear a station built entirely by the members of Kamrin including music hand-picked by Amy and Nick as well as commentary by each about the songs that influenced their music and their lives.

ZZ Ward Showcase

This is the ZZ Ward Showcase station on Slacker Radio. Tune in to hear a station built entirely by ZZ Ward including music hand-picked by her as well as commentary about the songs that influenced her music and her life.

Patrick Stump Showcase

This is the Patrick Stump Artist Showcase station on Slacker Radio. Tune-in to hear music hand-picked by Patrick as well as commentary about the songs that influenced his music and his life.

Slow Jamz

Dim the lights and enjoy the most romantic artists of all time, from Marvin Gaye and Barry White to Maxwell and Alicia Keys. Your very own "quiet storm" is right here, on Slacker Slow Jamz...so chill the champagne and groove!

Alternative Chill

Alternative Chill on Slacker Radio is the ultimate "Easy Listening for Hipsters." The station is a hybrid of Electronic Chill artists, singer/songwriters and Indie rock songs that dip into the ethereal. You can expect to hear Jeff Buckley, Thievery Corporation, Radiohead, Sigur Ros, Nada Surf, Massive Attack, Air, Nick Drake, Portishead, Everything But the Girl and even some surprises like Billie Holiday or Pink Floyd! It's the perfect station to kick back and unwind, so, open a bottle of wine, light some candles and relax.

Erykah Badu

This station plays the best music from and music from related artists like Jill Scott, Musiq Soulchild, Anthony Hamilton, Lauryn Hill, India.Arie, Maxwell, Jaheim, Floetry, John Legend, D'Angelo and more.

All Stations

Erykah Badu's Selected Discography (19)

New Amerykah, Pt. 2: Return of the Ankh Album Cover

Artists Related to Erykah Badu (50)

	Jill Scott	A mature R&B vocalist who excelled most with slower, sensual material ("Slowly, Surely," "I'm Not Afraid," "My Love") and was versatile enough to pack plenty of punch with anthems of pride and self-empowerment ("Golden," "Family Reunion," "Hate on Me"), Jill Scott grew up in north Philadelphia and began her performing career reading her own poetry.
	Musiq Soulchild	Philadelphia-born Taalib Johnson, aka R&B artist Musiq (Soulchild), grew up the oldest of nine children.
	Anthony Hamilton	A soul singer who drew comparisons to such classic vocalists as Bill Withers and Bobby Womack, Anthony Hamilton struggled for the better part of the 1990s as two of his albums went unreleased.
	Lauryn Hill	Call Lauryn Hill the mother of hip-hop invention; with her 1998 solo debut The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, the Fugees' most vocal member not only established herself as creative force on her own, but also broke new ground by successfully integrating rap, soul, reggae, and R&B into her own sound.
	India.Arie	One of a handful of neo-classic soul artists to emerge following the late-'90s success of artists like D'Angelo and Lauryn Hill, Atlanta's India.
	Maxwell	Along with fellow founders D'Angelo and Erykah Badu, Maxwell was enormously important in defining and shaping the neo-soul movement that rose to prominence over the latter half of the '90s.
	Jaheim	A multi-talented artist, Jaheim is most famous for his R&B vocals, although he has also rapped, modeled, and acted, and appeared in Source and other hip-hop publications.
	Floetry	Marsha Ambrosius and Natalie Stewart are the funky divas behind the neo-soul duo Floetry. Ambrosius and Stewart emerged in the mid-'90s as songwriters in demand.
	John Legend	Neo-soul singer and pianist John Legend combined the raw fervor of contemporaries Cody ChesnuTT and the burning precision of D'Angelo.
	D'Angelo	D'Angelo was one of the founding fathers and leading lights of the neo-soul movement of the mid- to late '90s, which aimed to bring the organic flavor of classic R&B back to the hip-hop age.
	Tyrese	R&B singer and actor Tyrese Gibson -- referred to as Tyrese -- began his career at the age of 14, performing in local talent shows around his home in Los Angeles' Watts section; his big break came when he starred in a commercial for Coca-Cola, followed shortly in 1998 by his self-titled debut album for RCA.
	Angie Stone	A singer, MC, self-taught keyboardist, and prolific songwriter, Angie Stone's first claim to fame was her membership in the Sequence, an all-female trio that recorded for pioneering hip-hop label Sugar Hill, beginning with the 1979 single "Funk You Up.
	Avant	Hailed as the "new voice of ghetto soul" and the first act signed to basketball great Magic Johnson's Magic Johnson Music, Cleveland native Avant (born Myron Avant) debuted in 1998 with the song "Separated," released on Payton Entertainment -- the label operated by his manager, Eric Payton.
	Robin Thicke	Singer/songwriter Robin Thicke was one of the few to define the new millennium's blue-eyed soul movement.
	Mary J. Blige	When her debut album, What's the 411?, hit the street in 1992, critics and fans alike were floored by its powerful combination of modern R&B with an edgy rap sound that glanced off of the pain and grit of Mary J.
	Fantasia	Fantasia Barrino may have won the third season of American Idol with "I Believe," but it was her passionate take on George Gershwin's "Summertime" that had everyone talking for weeks.
	Aaliyah	A star in the R&B world before she was even out of her teens, Aaliyah's promising career was tragically cut short by her death in a plane crash at age 22.
	Joe	Joe is an accomplished vocalist of smooth and sultry R&B productions with occasional hip-hop beats, and his extensive background in gospel music has allowed him to produce his albums as well as sing on them.
	Monica	Atlanta R&B vocalist Monica debuted in 1995 with the platinum Top Ten singles "Don't Take It Personal (Just One of Dem Days)" and "Before You Walk Out of My Life.
	Donell Jones	Beginning with his 1996 album My Heart, singer/songwriter/producer Donell Jones recorded a jazzy and soulful style of urban pop for LaFace Records and scored a few modest singles in the process.
	Jazmine Sullivan	Contemporary R&B star Jazmine Sullivan spent several years learning the ropes of the recording industry before signing to J Records and making her solo recording debut in 2008 with the number one R&B single "Need U Bad.
	Chrisette Michele	In a very short span of time, R&B singer/songwriter Chrisette Michele shot from small-time performer up to one of Def Jam's most promising talents, purely based on her unique instrument -- a gorgeous and effortlessly versatile singing voice colored with Billie Holiday-esque inflections of vocal pop and jazz.
	Faith Evans	In spite of the fact that Faith Evans carved out a lengthy recording career in her own right, her name will forever remain linked in the minds of many to her late husband, the Notorious B.
	Kelly Price	R&B singer Kelly Price spent her early years in the music business behind the scenes, lending backing vocals to records from stars including Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Faith Evans, and Brian McKnight.
	Tamia	A native of Canada, contemporary R&B singer and songwriter Tamia got an early start in the music industry, singing on the Rod Temperton-penned "You Put a Move on My Heart," the first single from Quincy Jones' 1994 hit album Q's Jook Joint, when she was only a teenager.
	Jon B.	Songwriter, producer, vocalist, and instrumentalist Jon B. brought a distinctive focus on smooth melodies to contemporary R&B.
	R. Kelly	R&B producer/vocalist/multi-instrumentalist/songwriter R. Kelly and his supporting band Public Announcement began recording in 1992 at the tail-end of the new jack swing era, yet he was able to keep much of its sound alive while remaining commercially successful.
	Eric Benet	Eric Benét is a contemporary R&B singer with mild hip-hop and strong adult contemporary influences. As a teenager, he performed in a family vocal group (appropriately named Benét) with his sister and cousin.
	Mint Condition	Formed in the early '80s in Minneapolis/St. Paul, Mint Condition began as lead singer Stokley Williams, guitarist Homer O'Dell, keyboardist Larry Waddell, keyboardist/saxophonist Jeff Allen, keyboardist/guitarist Keri Lewis, and guitarist/bassist Rick Kinchen.
	Brian McKnight	One of the most consistent and versatile adult contemporary R&B artists, Brian McKnight placed seven albums across 15 years -- from the early '90s through the first decade of the 2000s -- within the Top Ten of Billboard's R&B albums chart.
	Xscape	The female R&B quartet Xscape debuted singing at producer Jermaine Dupri's birthday party in 1991, and were the recipients of a platinum album just two years later.
	SWV	With their 1992 debut, It's About Time, the all-female new jack swing trio SWV scored a string of Top Ten R&B hits that established them as one of the most popular urban R&B groups of the '90s.
	Dru Hill	High-school friends Larry "Jazz" Anthony, Mark "Sisqó" Andrews, Tamir "Nokio" Ruffin, and James "Woody Rock" Green formed Dru Hill in 1992, named in honor of their Baltimore neighborhood, Druid Hill Park.
	Lyfe Jennings	Not that he'd wish it on anyone, but it was during his ten-year sentence in prison that Lyfe Jennings developed his honest sound, thanks to isolation and Erykah Badu.
	Raheem DeVaughn	The son of jazz cellist Abdul Wadud, Maryland-based R&B vocalist Raheem DeVaughn kicked his career into gear after initiating a series of independent releases, aided in part by the cash reward earned from winning a talent contest.
	Tony! Toni! Toné!	Brothers Dwayne and Raphael Wiggins and cousin Timothy Christian have proven themselves durable guardians of the soul and funk tradition, while also infusing their music with enough contemporary devices to remain popular.
	Jagged Edge	Rough-but-smooth male vocal quartet Jagged Edge formed in Atlanta, Georgia, consisting of identical twin brothers Brandon "Case Dinero" Casey and Brian "Brasco" Casey, who had moved from their native Hartford, Connecticut; Kyle Norman (aka "Quick"), whom they'd met through church activities; and Richard Wingo (aka "Wingo Dollar"), a late addition to the group suggested by Xscape's Kandi Burruss, who took their demo to superproducer Jermaine Dupri.
	Ledisi	Ledisi Young (her given name meaning "to bring forth" in Nigerian) was born in the Big Easy, where she sang with the New Orleans Symphony Orchestra when she was eight years old and spent many adolescent hours watching her mother perform with a local R&B band, often in a nearby park.
	Jodeci	If Boyz II Men are portrayed as a clean-cut, wholesome R&B vocal group, then Jodeci's wild, sexual, bad-boy image represents the other side of the coin.
	Jamie Foxx	A major star on television (In Living Color, The Jamie Foxx Show), the big screen (Any Given Sunday, Collateral, Ray, Miami Vice, Dreamgirls), and radio (his second album, Unpredictable, featured two Top Ten R&B singles), Jamie Foxx -- born Eric Morlon Bishop, Jr.
	Kem	A Nashville-born, Detroit-based singer, songwriter, musician, and producer, Kem (born Kim Owens) overcame homelessness and addiction to become one of the most popular adult contemporary R&B artists of the 2000s.
	Silk	This '90s R&B vocal group should not be confused with the late-'70s Philadelphia band, which was a funk-oriented unit, or the vocal trio Silk from Los Angeles.
	Heather Headley	R&B vocalist Heather Headley was born in Trinidad in the mid-'70s. At an early age, this daughter of a pastor was surrounded by music and performance art.
	Deborah Cox	A native of Toronto, Deborah Cox began singing for TV commercials at age 12, also entering various talent shows with her mother's help.
	Case	A native New Yorker, Case got his start in the music biz in the '90s, singing backup on albums by several renowned R&B artists (such as Usher).
	K-Ci & JoJo	Cedric and Joel Hailey comprise the romantic R&B duo K-Ci & JoJo, who were one of two pairs of brothers that made up the chart-topping '90s group Jodeci.
	Keyshia Cole	One of the more genuine urban songstresses to emerge in the 2000s, Keyshia Cole worked her way up the industry ladder diligently yet quickly, making her major-label debut in 2004 at age 21.
	Charlie Wilson	As lead singer for the Gap Band, Charlie Wilson sang on four number one R&B hits: "Burn Rubber (Why You Wanna Hurt Me)," "Early in the Morning," "Outstanding," and "Addicted to Your Love" -- as well as the classics "You Dropped a Bomb on Me," "Yearning for Your Love," "Party Train," and "Big Fun.
	Dave Hollister	Onetime R&B session vocalist Dave Hollister first appeared on the soundtrack of Boyz N the Hood, but got his big break as an original member of Teddy Riley's Blackstreet, performing on their 1994 debut album.
	Carl Thomas	A gifted R&B singer whose cool but passionate style is a solid match for his flexible vocal abilities, Carl Thomas was born in Aurora, Illinois (a suburb of Chicago) on June 15, 1972.