The singer’s latest offering features production by acclaimed underground Hip Hop producer The Alchemist, who lends his signature hazy, hypnotic instrumental style to the single.
“Next To You” creates a spacey soundscape with staccato string plucks, vinyl crackle, and a cosmic bass line, providing a mesmerizing backdrop for Badu’s expressive vocals. The track cleverly incorporates a sample from Mobb Deep featuring Kool G Rap’s “The Realest,” further cementing its Hip Hop influences.
Badu, who has maintained a sporadic presence in music through occasional features and her 2015 mixtape “But You Caint Use My Phone,” brings her distinctive vocal approach to the collaboration.
Her performance on “Next To You” includes multi-layered vocal effects and soaring ad-libs, with lyrics exploring themes of love and connection through lines like “You’re the only that’s on my mind” and “Follow me and we gon break the rules.”
The collaboration between Badu and The Alchemist represents a fusion of her soulful neo-soul roots with raw Hip Hop production aesthetics. This new single finally breaks her fifteen-year album hiatus since the release of New Amerykah Part Two in 2010.
Erykah Badu’s ethereal vocals meet The Alchemist’s gritty soundscapes in a genre-blending musical collision that defies categorization.
This partnership will extend beyond the studio as the duo prepares for “The Abi & Alan Japan Tour,” with performances scheduled in Osaka, Tokyo, and Yokohama in late June 2025. Additionally, Badu is slated to perform at the 2025 Essence Festival in New Orleans during the July 4th weekend.
This musical return signifies an important evolution in Badu’s artistic journey, which began with her influential 1997 debut “Baduizm.”
The upcoming album reflects Badu’s commitment to musical experimentation and her willingness to push beyond mainstream trends while honoring her connections to Hip Hop culture dating back to her early career shift from Dallas to Brooklyn. Fans can stream “Next to You” alongside “Echos 19 (mix 122)” as part of Amazon Music’s celebration of Black Music Month.