ERYKAH BADU - "WINDOW SEAT"



"EB - It was filmed Saturday (March 13) before St. Patrick’s Day. It was a pretty spontaneous thing. The song 'Window Seat' is about liberating yourself from layers and layers of skin or demons that are a hindrance to your growth or freedom, or evolution. I wanted to do something that said just that, so I started to think about shedding, nudity, taking things off in a very artful way. I am from the theater, and this is just a part of expression to us, a part of art. And I saw a video by a group called Matt and Kim, and it was filmed in Times Square. And I thought it was the bravest, most liberating thing I’ve ever seen two people do. And I wanted to dedicate this contagious act of liberation and freedom to them. I hoped it would become something contagious that people would want to do in some way or another.

Q: And what was the thinking on the location and the Kennedy element to it?

EB: Times Square is the most monumental place in New York, and when I was thinking of monumental places, the grassy knoll was the most monumental place in Dallas I could think of. I tied it in a way that compared that assassination to the character assassination one would go through after showing his or her self completely. That’s exactly the action that I wanted to display.

Q: And I take it you knew that there would be a similar real-life reaction when the video was released?

EB: Yeah. I knew that would happen, so as soon as the thought came to my mind, I decided to assassinate myself as a gesture. Because it was going to happen anyway. The video is a prediction of what is happening now.

Q: Tell me about the logistics of filming. Was it really nudity, or was there trickery involved?

EB: Oh no, it was straight guerilla cam. I got out of the car and I went for it. A day before, I took the same path alone to see where I was going and to see where the “x” spot was. And we only had one shot to get it right, and I decided to go at 3:30 p.m. on Saturday. I told the cameraman that I would meet him there, and when he saw me pull up, he started. We had to speed the music up because we wanted the effect to be slow-motion". (daqui)

edit (03.03.10): Neosoul singer Erykah Badu faces a disorderly conduct charge for her nude music video shoot in downtown Dallas' Dealey Plaza, officials announced Friday.

(2010)