The sexy groove of song "Honey" by producer 9th Wonder gets paired with Erykah Badu at her finest theatrics in the video co-directed with creative veteran Chris Robinson (aka Mr. Roboto). As she strolls through a record store, she pulls out LPs and unabashedly has her lip-syncing image inserted on every cover. For DJ's in the analog era, this used to be the way music was chosen, and often flipping through the stacks or running into another DJ with a fresh purchase would be the only way you would come across something new to your ears. The album artwork was as much a representation of the music as the artists on the album, and would entice you to take it home for immediate listening.

For the music trivia-happy, as you watch Badu's costume changes you wonder if you can name all of the albums she covers (the ones I know off the bat are: Eric B. & Rakim - Paid in Full, De La Soul - 3 Feet High and Rising, Grace Jones - Nightclubbing, Nas - Illmatic, Ohio Players - Honey , Funkadelic - Maggot Brain, The Beatles - Let It Be, and Olivia Newton-John - Physical). Campy and comedic, Erykah holds nothing back in her impersonation of ex-beau Andre 3000 in a funny clip of Hey Ya! as the song makes a quick change in beat

The video story is so throwback that it gives more credence to the (seemingly) lost art and past time of crate-digging, with "support your local record store" as a tagline at the end. What a sweet ending it is when Erykah pays in cash, lets the store keep the change, and purchases a copy of Rolling Stones magazine showing herself alongside another chameleon and champion of soul - Prince. The especially quirky ending of Domo Arigato! (which means Thank You in Japanese) could possibly be the director naming himself, since this is also the catchphrase in the song Mr. Roboto by Styx. Even though it has been five years since she has released an album, this video proves she hasn't lost touch with her funk and soul-loving fanbase.

View "Honey"