Erykah Badoula – Singer Close To Becoming a Midwife

Grammy award-winning Neo-soul artist Erykah Badu plans on adding another profession to her resume: certified midwife. A natural birth advocate and mother of 3, Badu has been moonlighting as a certified doula for years, and is studying to become a certified midwife.

Badu discovered her passion back in 2001, while helping a friend through childbirth. She told People Magazine, “I’ve always had a mothering nature. But I didn’t plan on becoming a doula. I just wanted to care for my family and friends.” Her breakthrough came once the friend’s child was delivered. “When I saw the baby, I cried. I knew what I was supposed to do with my life.”

Badoula, as her patients call her, offers her services for free, including massages, relaxation techniques such as Reiki, and calming the mothers down during delivery. Her plan after obtaining her midwife certification is to open up birthing centers in inner-city neighborhoods. She has become a spokeswoman for the International Center for Traditional Childbearing, and is taking her studies very seriously, often taking to Twitter to express her love for natural birth, and even live tweeting.

Wouldn’t you like Erykah Badu to help you deliver your baby?