Erykah 'Badoula' Wants To Be A Midwife Too

Would you like Erykah Badu to be present at your birth? It could happen — she’s already a doula, and now has said she wants to be a midwife.

In case you’re not up on what the roles mean, a doula supports a woman and her family during childbirth (and sometimes other times), but isn’t necessarily a trained medical professional, whereas a midwife is, in the U.S. at least, licensed and trained in maternity and well-woman care.

She became a doula after being present at a friend’s birth. “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,” she told People. “When I saw the baby, I cried. I knew what I was supposed to do with my life.”

Badu apparently performs massages and Reiki during birth now, and she offers her services for free. She says her patients call her “Erykah Badoula.” She’s also a spokeswoman for the International Center for Traditional Childbearing. Now she wants to take it to the next level to open birthing centers in underserved areas.

Incidentally, the United States has the highest infant mortality rate among developed nations, and the African-American infant mortality rate is more than twice that of white infants.