Erykah Badu brought the funk and neo-soul with last year’s epic album, New Amerykah, Part I: 4th World War. Now the epic is set to continue with New Amerykah, Part II: Return of the Ankh, due on February 23 of next year (Universal Motown). In the same vein as Part I, this album is reported to feature production from 9th Wonder, James Poyser, and Madlib, and it will also include production from the late (and great) J Dilla.
Pitchfork has listened to the album, and they report that Part II is “more lighthearted” than its predecessor.
The album is said to feature ?uestlove (from The Roots) and nine MCs. Among those MCs could be Lil Wayne and Andre 3000 on a song called “Jump in the Air.” However, according to a brief interview with Billboard, Badu is unsure if the song will make the final cut due to an early leak of the song. In fact, she’s unsure if the album will get released at all if it leaks to the internet before the release date.
“If anything leaks,” she says, “I won’t put out this album. I worked too hard for that to happen. Let a bitch make some money some kind of way.”
Let’s sincerely hope that it doesn’t. In the meantime, here’s the [tentative] tracklist:
New Amerykah, Part II: Return of the Ankh:
1. 20 Feet Tall
2. Window Seat
3. Agitation
4. Get Money
5. Don’t Be Long
6. Love
7. Umm Hmm
8. Fall in Love
9. Incense
10. Out My Mind Just in Time (Part 1) (Undercover Over-Lover)
11. Out My Mind Just in Time (Part 2)
