Bag Lady


"Bag Lady" is the first single from singer Erykah Badu's 2000 album Mama's Gun. The song is about a woman who is trying to begin a new relationship but has too much emotional "baggage" and can't get close to people. The message of the song is to "pack light" and have hope for the future. The song peaked at number six on the Billboard Hot 100 and topped the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart for seven weeks.
To date, this is the last single released by Motown Records to reach number one on the R&B chart under the original banner of the label before merging with Universal. It earned Badu two nominations at the 43rd Grammy Awards: Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song.

Music video

The music video, which was directed by Badu and designed by visual artist and designer Ron Norsworthy, uses the Cheeba Sac remix of the song which samples Dr. Dre's "Xxplosive" from his 1999 album 2001, which was based on the song Bumpy's Lament from the soundtrack to the movie Shaft. In a segment during the music video, Erykah and her "bag ladies" dance to an excerpt of Johnny Hammond's "Gambler's Life". The video was shot on Mini DV digital video — an unusual choice for a mainstream music video production, which gave it an appearance comparable to a home movie.

CD single track list

  1. Bag Lady
  2. Bag Lady
  3. Bag Lady
  4. On & On
  5. Bag Lady

    12" single track list

  6. Bag Lady
  7. Bag Lady
  8. Bag Lady
  9. Bag Lady
  10. Bag Lady
  11. Bag Lady

    Release history

Charts

Chart Peak
position