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The enigmatic Dallas artist Erykah Badu recently revealed that she’ll be releasing a new album, her first since 2010. If it drops this year, it will end a 15-year recording hiatus for the singer. For this long-awaited project, she’s teaming up with hip-hop producer The Alchemist. While we can’t wait to hear her fresh sound, we’re just as excited to witness her live magic and her commanding, fashion-forward presence on stage once again.
As Badu told Billboard, “That’s what I do. I’m a performance artist. I’m not a recording artist.” She elaborated on why performing is everything to her.
© Pascal Le Segretain“It’s the immediate reaction between you and the audience… the moment you become one living, breathing organism. That’s what I live for. It’s my therapy, and theirs, too. We’re in it together. And I love that it happens only once.”
From day one, Badu has been more than a singer. She’s a cultural storyteller who has turned fashion into an extension of her art. Trends don’t guide her; she sets them. Her public appearances are deliberate affirmations and statements of history, identity, and resistance.
During a month when the Met Gala and the Cannes Festival red carpet are sparking a global conversation about fashion, Badu reminds us that true style isn’t flash, it’s legacy. With her iconic turbans, offbeat silhouettes, and deep connection to her roots, she keeps redefining what it means to be genuine in body, voice, and vision.
© Getty ImagesSo what makes her style so bold?
One of the most overused phrases in fashion is: “fashion should feel a little uncomfortable.” However, a lot of trends feel shallow and commercial. Badu’s look is the opposite; her avant-garde style has served as a symbol for the aesthetic and vindication of African and Afro-descendant roots.
© Jim DysonIn her wardrobe, Badu mixes old and new textiles: kente, mudcloth (bogolán) in organic cotton paired with linens, and recycled metals and plastics, creating a unique universe enriched by a discourse that blends history and tradition with innovative combinations. Nothing is accidental: towering turbans, layered capes, tunics, and nontraditional jewelry each carry symbolism.
© Jeff Kravitz
© Ethan Miller/BETEvery piece tells a story. The headwraps are a spiritual symbol representing the power of ideas (in the head) that rise to heaven. Printed fabrics represent strength, resilience, and ancestral wisdom. In this way, Badu redefines the power of fashion, which is not merely aesthetic, but, when used consciously, is a highly effective communication tool.
© Paras GriffinErykah, also known as the queen of neo-soul, has a prominent place in the fashion world. Since her beginnings, the singer has strived to convey her message through her image and music. Her afrofuturist looks and daring shapes push us to question narrow beauty standards and celebrate memory, spirituality, and cultural autonomy.
Her philosophy of life profoundly influences her signature style. Mysticism, astrology, and Afrocentrism flow through each outfit, reclaiming symbols once suppressed or exoticized.
© Ethan MillerAnd the fashion industry is paying attention. In 2024, the Council of Fashion Designers of America honored Badu with its Fashion Icon Award at New York’s American Museum of Natural History. An accolade that places her in the rarified company of Rihanna, Zendaya, and Beyoncé.
Staying true to her signature style, the singer wore a unique gem-studded hat and a Thom Browne ensemble that made her radiate a level of elegance and uniqueness rarely seen nowadays.
© TheStewartofNYDuring the gala, the artist joked that she had been waiting for this award since she was young, and stated that for her, fashion is a form of therapy, part of who she is and defines her daily life.
"This is sport for me. I don’t feel right if I don’t leave the house and my s**t’s not together. It’s something I need to do, want to do. It’s my therapy, it’s my workout, it’s my husband — no offense.”
The artist spoke about her deep connection with fashion when it comes to representing herself to the world. “It means a lot to be celebrated as a fashion icon because I expressed myself most clearly through the way I dress."
© Pascal Le Segretain
© JP Yim"The way I approach life has a lot to do with what I’ve chosen to wear or how I’ve chosen to show up. Yeah. And that expression is sometimes very contagious to others.”
Since her debut in 1997 with her Grammy-winning album, Baduizm, she has captivated audiences with her voice and music and through her powerful fashion.
With a new album on the horizon and her style game as fearless as ever, Erykah Badu isn’t just making a comeback; she’s rewriting the rules in real time.
