Dallas doesn't get to call itself home to tons of living legends, but nowhere else in the world has the privilege of calling itself the home of Erykah Badu. As one of the most influential figures in modern R&B and one of the most interesting people alive, Badu is almost as famous for her antics as she is for her music.
Ahead of Erykah Badu's performance at the WinStar Casino in bustling Thackerville, Oklahoma this weekend, we've compiled this handy list of the Badu-iest stunts from Erkyah Badu. Who knows, maybe if we're lucky we'll have a new entry for the list come Saturday night.
1. Walking naked through Dealey Plaza Dealey Plaza is one of Dallas' few points of historical and cultural interest for the rest of the world, so of course Erkyah Badu made her mark on the space. In filming the video for "Window Seat," Badu stripped naked and took a stroll through the city's most iconic landmark. Dallas City Hall wasn't happy about Erykah's artistic expression in the middle of Downtown, and the video was released to mixed response from Badu's fan base, and she eventually paid a $500 fine for disorderly conduct.
2. Performing for dictators. Most terrible dictators across the world are fans of American culture. Kim Jong Un hung out with Dennis Rodman, Muammar Gaddafi enjoyed the sweet squeaking of Mariah Carey and the king of Swaziland is a big Erykah Badu lover. Unfortunately for Badu, King Mswati III has presided over some truly harrowing conditions in Swaziland, like the worst AIDS epidemic in Africa, government corruption and torture. After human rights groups criticized Badu for performing for the dictator, she claimed on Twitter that she had no clue what the real climate in Swaziland is like, and later told the Dallas Morning News that she donated her paycheck from the performance to the servants living in her host's home.
3. Crashing a NYC reporter's live shot with a kiss. Badu's mission has always been about spreading love and sometimes she means that quite literally. Mario Diaz, a reporter for New York City's PIX11 found himself having to stiff-arm an adoring fan who just wanted a little kiss in the middle of a live segment he was filming about actor Shia LeBoeuf's recent arrest for disorderly conduct. That fan, of course, wa Badu trying to have a little fun. Before leaning in for the kiss, she was disorderly in her own way, while wearing a truly ridiculous big white hat.
4. E-blasting a hater on Twitter Talking to celebrities on Twitter is one of the things that makes it really exciting, unless you're planning to talk mad shit about Erykah Badu. In response to being called "phony," "fat" and "having 20 baby daddies," Badu went for one Twitter hater's head -- literally. "Sit yo window seat ass head down," responded Badu, along with some other brilliant slams about the woman's head size, including "ol lolly pop head ass," which is easily one of the best insults of all time.
5. Fighting with The Flaming Lips Wayne Coyne is weird and Erykah Badu thinks he's an asshole. Ignoring the 140 characters rule on Twitter, Badu issued a searing statement to Coyne after he released a video for "The First Time I Ever Saw Your Face," a song she recorded a guest-spot on. Charging that Coyne had never given her a chance to review the footage before it was released, Badu said "That is equivalent to putting out a security camera's images of me changing in the fitting room. I never would have approved that tasteless, meaningless, shock motivated video." Coyne responded in his own silly, stupid way, and then replaced Badu's vocals and nude scenes with a new version recorded by Amanda Palmer.
ERYKAH BADU performs at 8 p.m. Saturday, July 12, at Winstar World Casino, 777 Casino Ave., Thackerville, Oklahoma, 1-800-622-6317 or winstarworldcasino.com $45-$75
