Wednesday, February 09, 2022

Retro Video of the Week: "On & On" by Erykah Badu

Friday marks the 25th anniversary of the release of Erykah Badu's debut album, Baduizm.  Badu, with her smooth neo soul and R&B style, was pretty much an instant success.  The album went to #2 on the Billboard album chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B album chart, and it has gone triple platinum in the U.S.  It also won the Grammy for Best R&B Album, and the song "On & On" won the Grammy for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

"On & On" was Badu's debut single, and it went to #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #1 on the Billboard R&B singles chart.  The video -- which was loosely based on The Color Purple -- shows Badu as a maid for a rural black family who falls face-first into some mud, but then becomes a singer in a makeshift juke joint, so it all seems to work out.  It was nominated for two VMAs (Best Female Video and Best R&B Video), but came up short in both.

No comments: