Erykah Badu Mama's Gun

A rich assembly of soul, funk, and organic hip-hop textures, 2000's Mama's Gun is the classic second studio album from neo-soul singer Erykah Badu and follow-up to her groundbreaking 1997 debut Baduizm. The album achieved platinum status and topped the R&B charts for seven weeks bolstered by the Grammy-nominated lead single “Bag Lady.”

The song’s video paid homage to Ntozake Shange’s award-winning play, For Colored Girls Who Have Considered Suicide When The Rainbow Is Enuf, with Badu presenting a “choreopoem” performed by herself and four other dancers. Mama's Gun also marked the beginning of her collaborations with the late J Dilla, who produced the Grammy-nominated “Didn’t Cha Know” and “Kiss Me On My Neck (Hesi).”

Rolling Stone magazine proclaimed that Badu had "taken her art to the next level," and applauded the singer for taking "chances the way Stevie Wonder or Nina Simone did in their prime." Entertainment Weekly called Mama's Gun a "70s soul homage featuring live musicians and a smooth-funk sound that wouldn't be out of place on a CTI record."