Erykah Badu and The Alchemist have revealed full details of their joint album, Before the World Blows: The Abi and Alan Experiment, due digitally on 28th August 2026.
The co-produced record was made over 18 months between Dallas and Los Angeles. Its announcement followed a series of cryptic posters in Sydney, Melbourne, London, Paris and New York, alongside a website challenging fans to decode clues revealing the album’s title. The campaign has since expanded with the “Badu Burner Phone”, an interactive experience allowing fans who complete a series of challenges to unlock a phone number and potentially connect with Badu directly via video call.
The 16-track album features contributions from DJ Creole Princess, Westside Gunn, Joi, DRAM, Steve Lacy, Thundercat, Earl Sweatshirt and Kamasi Washington, across tracks including “Crossfade”, “Valentine”, “To The Moon (Plan C)”, “They Ain’t You”, “No I.D.” and “I Know That Man”.
The album’s latest single, “Witch Doctor”, arrived with a music video directed by and starring Badu, shot by Ayinde Anderson. It premiered via a special screening paired with Badu’s 2010 short film “Window Seat”, with Badu returning to the same stretch of road 16 years on for a video exploring what remains once the world has taken everything it can from an artist.
Pre-save and pre-order the album here.