Erykah Badu makes up for lost time

Iconic neo-soul songstress Erykah Badu had quite a pair of days at the Dell.

Problem was, she wasn't there for one of them.

She didn't make it to the Dell Music Center on Thursday, to the disappointment of about 6,000 fans. The reason: flight difficulties. Patty Jackson of WDAS, making the announcement, called Badu's absence "dumb" and "disrespectful."

For her part, Badu tweeted: "215 ILLADELPHI I've never missed a show in 18 years. I know how you guys must feel. . . . Send prayers. I will be there tomorrow. Forgive me."

Recreation Commissioner Susan Slawson said Badu had agreed to the Friday show and a meet-and-greet afterward with 50 fans, to be selected by lottery. "That's her way of saying, 'Philly, I love you, I'm sorry about the flight issue, but this is how I'm going to make it up.' "

On Friday, near the 8 p.m. start time, many seats weren't filled, sending a clear message: Badu was now on Philly's time. She entered after 9 p.m. in a poncho with "Gil Scott-Heron" on the back and "the revolution will not be televised" on the front. Long, pigtailed locks skimmed her ankles. The crowd screamed; she smiled and sipped her tea.

She launched into "20 Feet Tall," from her album New Amerykah, Part Two. Next was "Out My Mind, Just in Time" - but she stopped the band mid-song to say to the crowd: "Thank you so much for coming back." Cheers.

More tea (what was in that tea, exactly?), more Baduizm, more goofy commentary. "I never said I was an incense-and-candle woman," she laughed. "Y'all said that."

A remix of Aaliyah's "Rock the Boat" preceded Badu's own "Love of My Life (An Ode To Hip Hop)." That was when she took us down a hip-hop memory lane, with quotes from "Friends" by Whodini; Slick Rick and Doug E. Fresh's "La Di Da Di"; and NWA's "Gangsta Gangsta."

After almost two hours, Badu jested: "I'm about to get out of here. I ain't scared of y'all." But then she kept going, with "Green Eyes," "Didn't Cha Know," and "Believe in Yourself."

Afterward, near the end of the meet-and-greet, Badu apologized again about Thursday. "If I told y'all why I wasn't here," she joked, "I'd go to jail."

By the end, even Jackson was mollified, posting a selfie with Badu.

215-854-5054@sofiyaballin