“Lord Badu is an artist, a minister, a father, [and] a servant.”
Growing up, Lord Badu (his given name) loved listening to hip-hop and sought to emulate the culture. “The way I dress, the way I talk, there’s a lot of hip-hop lingo. There’s a lot of hip-hop culture.”
Last week Badu decided to release a Christmas-themed EP called This Christmas. “I had a few beats that I had on my computer. The way the beats sounded, I was like, ‘Man, these sound very happy. These sound very joyful.'”
This Christmas was recorded in the first week of December.
“I felt like Christmas was the best time to do something with these beats.”
One of Lord Badu’s favorite Christmas memories was receiving gifts from his teachers at school. “I just always found that cool. I was always looking forward to it. I tried to be a good student in class so that my teachers would bless me with some gifts.” Besides going to church and sharing gifts, his family did not have any extra Christmas traditions.
“I’m trying to implement [traditions] with my family now that I have a daughter and a wife.”
This Christmas starts off with “The REASON,” reminding listeners that “Jesus is the reason for the season.” Though sharing gifts is a wonderful part of Christmas celebrations, Badu wants people to know that,
“the real gift that we receive is Jesus and what Jesus had to bring, which is eternal life.”
“The REASON” features Scribe Music. Though they hadn’t gotten to know each other before collaborating on this song, Badu describes Scribe Music as his long-lost brother. “He’s very genuine. You can see his heart for the Lord, and he’s a dope artist.”
“For me, the beat always tells me the story.” Once Badu hears a beat, he can start writing. In the case of “Holy Night,” after hearing the beat, he decided to send the track to his friend and fellow artist Quinten Coblentz, telling him, “all I want… is a Christ-centered Christmas jingle that we can remix.”
Coblentz sent Badu the beat with his hook recorded on it within a matter of hours.
“He built the framework, and then I just put the toppings on it.”
“What A Time” is the third and final song on This Christmas. The song has a dual meaning. The first is considering the incredible time of Jesus’ birth and the people who were present, such as the Three Wisemen and the shepherds. Badu believes that people who witnessed it though something like, “what a time we’re in to see God in the flesh.”
Listeners are also encouraged to reflect on the present through the song’s second meaning. “We’re experiencing the fullness of God’s Word. We can hold God’s Word and read it and experience Jesus, encounter Jesus in a new way that they didn’t get to.”
The song features rapper Kojo Dave. “He’s my brother from like a million years ago.” They met at a church camp in high school. “We just started building a relationship, a brotherhood once again. There were a couple of us that used to rap and he was one of them.”
Besides being a great friend, Badu loves Kojo Dave’s musical skills.
“I would put him on every record if I could… He’s another artist you guys have gotta look out for.”
Lord Badu fans “should always be expecting new music” in 2019.
“I’m on a quest to try to release at least one song a month.”
Follow Lord Badu on Facebook and Instagram.
Get or stream This Christmas here.
