Here’s the deal: Erykah Badu is available for a phone interview, but she only has a slim 10 minutes to talk. Might one of the most visionary and empathetic singers cohabiting our space-time have anything enlightening to say about life on Earth inside that tiny chitchat window? Let’s find out.
But first, know that Badu is scheduled to headline Sunday’s Summer Spirit Festival, a concert whose history runs even deeper than its 15 years. The annual funk-soul-rap-go-go revue — returning to Merriweather Post Pavilion after going quiet for two pandemic years — is the brainchild of Darryll Brooks and Carol Kirkendall, the storied D.C. concert promoters who are celebrating 50 years of collaboration. They presented Stevie Wonder on the National Mall in 1975, they brought Prince to Gallaudet University in 1984 and they launched Summer Spirit back in 2008 with Badu as their headliner. Badu has returned many times since, and for her last few appearances, she’s even designed the concert posters.
