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Rating: Sensuality and sophistication.
This small great masterpiece was released in 2003 after a 'songwriting block' admitted by the singer herself following the release of her first three albums: the grand "Baduizm" of 1997, the sequel "Baduizm LIVE" and the more recent "Mama's Gun".
"Worldwide Underground" was conceived as a concept album, indeed it was initially conceived as an EP, though it cannot be considered as such given the proportions of the project (11 tracks for almost an hour of music). With this album, Erykah Badu reaffirms herself as the most solid, concrete, and innovative reality in contemporary black music, with a style that is difficult to define and often suffers from comparisons that are misplaced or somewhat daring (Billie Holiday, Lauryn Hill...). The main theme of the album is FREEDOM, understood and treated in all its forms. For example, in Back in the Day (with a well-shaped Lenny Kravitz on guitar), the theme of creative communication is addressed, without time limits or any kind of censorship (the track clearly opposes the 4-minute duration ideologically imposed by the manual of the good songwriter and performer), while in I Want You the inner freedom, typically feminine, is described, which is experienced when experimenting with or undertaking a new relationship, a new 'affair of love' as the singer herself defines it. Another theme addressed by Badu in this project is the dynamics of the creative process, as we can see in Bump It where she describes its sensuality, or in Woo where she narrates its full spontaneity.
When this beautiful, talented woman released her first album, it was immediately thought that the word "Baduizm" contained tons of "egotrip". By this fourth record effort, we can affirm that it was definitely true, but above all, besides a very personal singing style, Baduism also corresponds to a lifestyle. The entire album, as well as the distinctive booklet, is filled with the soul and the unmistakable existential style for which the queen of nu-soul has always been famous. This detail is obviously noticeable mainly in certain tracks such as I Want You, a track of incredible length, where one can notice a sort of climax with increasing density, a strongly syncopated start that matures into a typical nu-soul manifestation before fading into a good dose of psychedelia with electric guitars and captivating riffs. Also excellent are the 'dark' atmospheres of Danger and the black power of Love of My Life Worldwide, composed together with legends of the caliber of Queen Latifah and Angie Stone. The intro and especially the delicate OUTRO of the album are also of very high level, and the Raphael Saadiq version of "Love of My Life" featuring Common is also appreciable.
Erykah Badu is undeniably immersed to the core in hip-hop culture, but by constantly contaminating it in codes and language, she always manages to achieve an extraordinary mix of style and originality.
In short... not up to the level of Baduizm, but an absolute must-have.
Tracklist Lyrics and Videos
05 Woo (03:14)
[Hook:]
Woooooooo
(Yeah, y'all know it? Come on, Come on, everybody feelin'it, come on)
Woooooooo
(Uh, uh, uh, So if ya feel it in your body say...)
Woooooooo
(Uh, uh, uh, now, to make the rain come down, come on)
Woooooooo
(Yeah, uh, ah yeah, uh B-boys and B-Girls now say...)
Woooooooo
(Ah yeah, uh, one time for your mind behind, now now)
Woooooooo
(Uh, yeah, Sophisticated gangsterism, uh pimpism say...)
Woooooooo
(Hey, Little Badu and Little Pimpin', come on)
Woooooooo
(Hey, Whatsup Tita come on, Brother Beat, come on say...)
Woooooooo
(Yeah, I see you on the right, we can jam all night, come on)
Woooooooo
(Yeah, wait, uh watch this, watch this, watch this)
Well, I came to your show
I respect your flow
Now I wanna know if you wanna go
To the studio, bust a rhyme or two
Uh, what ya wannna do, Uh what ya wanna do
Bring a sack
But I'm cool wit that
I got the paper stack
And the pimped-out track
Got the song and it's on, it's on
Got the studio locked down all night long
[Hook:]
Woooooooo
(Ha ha, yeah uh, come on, come on, come on)
Woooooooo
(Hey, come on, see don't be scared cuz its just a little something called...)
Woooooooo
(Hey, lay back, come on, everybody give me something now)
Woooooooo
(Hey fellas, come on, don't make me mad, come on
Woooooooo
(Yeah yeah, one more, one more, say it wit me now)
Woooooooo
(Woo, hold on watch this, watch this, watch this, watch this)
Well I'ma sing you a song
So play that track
With the crickets in the back
It's so abstract
(piccolo plays a tune)
[Hook:]
Woooooooo
(Yeah, ha ha, now see I like it like that, come on)
Woooooooo
(Uh, so all the B-boys and all the B-girls, come on)
Woooooooo
(Hey, back door spit wit ya, so come on, come on)
Woooooooo
(Hey South Dallas, East side, Westside, come on)
Woooooooo
(One time, One time,Where's Dallas at?)
Woooooooo
(Norla Park all the way to the B-K-L, come on)
Woooooooo
(Hey, A train, C train, number one and two, come on)
Woooooooo
(Uh, yeah, Westside, Whassup Stoop? Come on, hey)
Woooooooo
(Uh, Downtown Dallas...)
Woooooooo
(Uh, uh, thank you, thank you, thank you, one more)
Woooooooo
(That's great)
fade
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By kosmogabri
Worldwide Underground is a warm and enveloping fire, a rejuvenating balm for your chilly winter evenings.
A concentrate of free-soul and blaxploitation, Motown style of the hippie era.
