Erykah Badu "New Amerykah : Part One (4th World War)" (Universal Motown, 2008) (REDO)

Erykah Badu's latest album "New Amerykah: Part One" presents the first of an installment of a series of albums to come. It breaks the conventional boundaries of R&B and hip-hop, with production by Madlib, Karriem Riggins, and 9th Wonder. Badu displays she is unafraid to experiment with her music by presenting funky-electro beats and jazzy horns, which compliment Badu's eclectic style. Unlike most other R&B artists who only sing the same old love songs over and over again, Badu tackles social issues such as poverty, corruption, and religion within her songs. The title "New Amerykah: Part One (4th World War)" integrates Badu's first name with America referring to an internal struggle between herself and society. New Amerykah qualifies as one of Badu's most personal and politically charged albums to date.

Badu challenges the idea that hip-hop is dead through her second track, "The Healer/Hip Hop" claiming that "It's bigger than religion," the people, and the government. With its melodic chants and chimes the track calls out to its audience, "We aint dead yet," bringing back the true roots of hip-hop. Rather than making a generic track about the death of hip-hop Badu resurrects the original notions of free form expression present in hip-hop.

The next track on the album "Me," gets personal, revealing some of Badu's insecurities. She does this in away that allows her to liberate herself of those faults, and delivers a message which celebrates individuality. Much of the album flows like a train of though or a doodle of the subconscious mind, lacking much structure. Most of the tracks contain repetitive chants allowing the listener to lose themselves within the music and their own subconscious. The listener experiences a form of religious or spiritual experience by listening to "New Amerykah: Part One," because of the various layers and forms. Within the track "Me" Badu relates herself to the National Representative of the Nation of Islam and critic to American society, Louis Farrakahan. "New Amerykah: Part One" also makes many bold critiques in a similar manner as Farrakahan.
With tracks such as "The Cell" Erykah speaks on issues of drugs, poverty, and corruption. She attempts to make the listener aware of these issues while trying to promote a change in society.

The sound of "New Amerykah: Part One" also differs from Erykah's previous work. Her use of electro-beats gives the album a fresh futuristic feel. She also experiments with some Eastern hip-hop sounds on tracks such as "The Healer/Hip Hop."

The final track on the album, "Honey" presents Erykah's only single of the album. "Honey" does not exactly fit with the rest of the album. Just as the title suggests "Honey" displays a sweet love song, lacking any personal or political references.

"New Amerykah: Part One" displays an evolved Erykah Badu. Much of the album flows like a dream, but each with underlying deeper meanings. The album speaks on many socio-political issues while remaining personal and even a little sweet. The album offers many fresh sounds and continues to remind us why Erykah Badu is a leading pioneer in the world of hip-hop.