Celebrating Erykah Badu’s 53rd Birthday

Source: Omar Vega / Getty

Erykah Badu, one of the most influential and beloved women in the music industry, turns 53 today! To celebrate her, we put together a gallery showcasing her timeless beauty and undeniable style!

Erica Abi Wright was born in Dallas, Texas. Under the guidance of her godmother and uncle, Badu got her first taste of show business at just four years old, singing and dancing at the Dallas Theater Center and The Black Academy of Arts and Letters (TBAAL). Badu was freestyling for local radio stations by the time she was 14. Badu went on to study theater at Grambling State University after graduating from Booker T. Washington High School for the Performing and Visual Arts. She eventually left the university in 1993 to focus fully on music. In the time that followed, she worked multiple minimum-wage jobs to take care of herself, including teaching drama and dance to children at the South Dallas Cultural Center. Around this time, she also worked and toured with her cousin Robert “Free” Bradford to record Country Cousins, a 19-song demo that got the attention of Kedar Massenburg. After setting Badu up with D’Angelo to record the duet “Your Precious Love,” Massenburg signed her to Universal Records.

Not too long after in early 1997, Badu’s debut album, Baduizm was released. The album was a huge critical and commercial success as it debuted at number two on the Billboard charts. The greatness of the album was recognized at the 40th Grammy Awards the following year where Badu won Best R&B Album and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for the song “On & On”. Baduizm‘s success helped establish Badu as one of the leading artists in the neo-soul genre. It also is one of the albums credited with contributing to the genre’s mainstream visibility at the time. Badu has since released four studio albums (Mama’s Gun, Worldwide Underground, New Amerykah Part One (4th World War), New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh)), a live album (Live), a commpilation album and a mixtape (But You Caint Use My Phone).

Although she hasn’t released any music since 2015, the Queen of Neo-Soul’s impact and influence still shines bright when looking at current artists such as Summer Walker, Solange, Jhené Aiko, Ari Lennox and many more. Erykah Badu continues to be a role model for women around the world and proves that it’s best to unapologetically be your authentic self. To celebrate her birthday and legacy, we put together a gallery of some of her most beautiful and fly photos over the years. HAPPY 53RD BIRTHDAY TO THEE ERYKAH BADU!!!