Erykah Badu's no stranger to the silver screen. Going back to 1998's Blues Brothers 2000, Dallas' Queen of Neo-Soul has periodically made time to squeeze in films — when she isn't crashing high school cafeterias or conducting sociological Twitter debates, of course.
This year, Badu has a new project, and she's taking a leading role in it. The film is called The Land, an indie drama directed by Steve Caple Jr. and executive produced by fellow rapper Nas. The film features music from both artists, as well as Kanye West, Pusha T, Jeremih and Nosaj Thing. It debuted in February at the Sundance Film Festival, but now the rest of the world can get a first glimpse of the action thanks to a newly released trailer.
Badu's portrayed Stagecoach Annie in her last feature film, the 2013 Western They Die By Dawn. This time she plays Tortoise, the mother of a troubled teenager in Cleveland with a passion for skateboarding who gets caught up in a local drug ring. Badu stars in the film alongside Michael K. Williams, of The Wire fame.
The trailer only gives a glimpse of Badu as she walks down the street at night, but based on the 90-second clip and soulful score it promises to be dark, gritty stuff. The Land sees wider release starting July 29.