Erykah Badu has compared her work as an end-of-life doula to “art”.
Erykah Badu has opened up about her work as an end-of-life doula
The 55-year-old singer started working as a birthing doula in 2011 and she has since been helping others who are facing death and she believes she is providing a much-needed service which is similar to performing in front of an audience at her concerts.
She told the Guardian newspaper: “[I am] at the bedsides of people who are passing, going the other way – I want to provide the exact same peace [as a birthing doula] …
“It’s another art for me. I feel the same way when I’m servicing people on stage, singing. That’s doula work, too. I have the same thing in mind – I want the room to become one living, breathing organism.”
Erykah also explained she became a birthing doula by accident after agreeing to stay with a friend while she went through labour and it lasted several days.
She said: “I didn’t know her labour was going to be 52 hours – she soldiered through this thing, and after the 52nd hour, I realised I had not been to sleep.
“I felt fine. I was the support system, I was the restaurant, and I didn’t have any fear. That’s when I realised, I am the welcoming committee – my contract was with that baby.”
Erykah acted as a doula for her friend Teyana Taylor and the One Battle After Another star later credited the singer with helping her through a very difficult pregnancy when she was expecting her second child.
Teyana told Entertainment Tonight: “I think it was dope to let everybody know what the plan was because her energy is just everything. Because I’m so heavy on meditation, she’s been so supportive … So it’s just like, it’s amazing.”
Erykah previously told Pitchfork she doesn’t charge for her doula services and she was exploring training to become a certified midwife. She said: “It just kind of happens.
“I don’t plan how many people I work with. I don’t charge anything. It’s for my own learning, and I just enjoy being the welcoming committee …
“I started studying to be a doula and got my certification in 2011 and now I’m in training to become a midwife. I’m almost there and before I know it I’ll be able to open my own practice, if that’s what I desire.”
