Erykah Badu ‘Violated’ by NSFW Bathtub Video, Ignites Feud With Wayne Coyne
Two of music’s quirkiest and most unapologetic artists, Erykah Badu and Wayne Coyne, are mired in what is either a bizarre feud or a masterful ruse in a Twitter debate about a racy Flaming Lips video featuring the Grammy Award-winning neo soul singer.
The video, for the band’s cover or “The first Time Ever I saw your Face,” features a mixture of scenes with either Badu or her sister Nayrok Udab in a bathtub. The latter is completely naked and alternately covered in glitter and viscous red and white substances. It’s NSFW.
after Coyne released it earlier this week (later taking it down, though it lives on here), Badu seemed unsure of what to think of the video and asked fans on Twitter for their take. “How does it make u feel?” she asked on Monday. “Astetically (sic), what does it make u fear? anger? Joy? Freedom? Disgust?”
While most of the fan reactions she retweeted were positive (if not pleasantly confused/aroused), by Wednesday she had formulated her opinion and posted a lengthy statement charging Coyne with releasing the video without her permission and doing so for “self serving” reasons.
“That is equivalent to putting out a security camera’s images of me changing in the fitting room,” she wrote. “I never would have approved that tasteless, meaningless, shock motivated video.”
She says Coyne agreed to show her the edits of the video and that he ultimately misrepresented what would be in it. Badu also goes on to slam the song itself, with its “crappy rough vocals by me.”
“Our art is a reflection of who we are. I have no connection to those images shot in their raw version. I was interested in seeing an amazing edit that would perhaps change or alter my thoughts. never happened,” she says. “You also did the same thing with the song itself which displays crappy ‘rough’ vocals by me. I let it go, perhaps I was missing something, I thought.”
She ends by burning Coyne, saying, “As your fellow artist I am uninspired. as a woman I feel violated and underestimated. Hope it works out for ya, Wayne.” she also tells him to “kiss my glittery ass” which led to Coyne sending her a pic of his mouth covered in glitter. “I did it,” he said.
For his part, Coyne appears to be delighted by Badu’s reaction, which all came after the “She Don’t Use Jelly” rocker warned fans that his band takes “full responsibility” for the content of the “controversial” video. “The video was intended for mature audiences and is NOT an Erykah Badu statement… It is a Flaming Lips video!”
He also wrote approvingly on Twitter of the uptick of views the video had received since Badu aired her disapproval.
“Dang!!!!! @fatbellybella you really know how to do it!!!!” he said. “You hatin on me has gotten the video 100,000 more views !!!LOVE LOVE LOVE”
Badu snarkily responded, “Again, you’re welcomed. You enjoy it. People need to see the greed up close. AAAAnd you DO NOT have the ass of 26 year old.”
For her part, Nayrok Udab, an artist, does not appear to share her sister’s negative opinion, only saying “no apologies here…” for the video in a message to the feuding pair on Twitter on Wednesday morning.
Erykah Badu ‘Violated’ by NSFW Bathtub Video, Ignites Feud With Wayne Coyne
