How does the new album, New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh), compare to its predecessor?
EB: Both albums were written in pretty much the same period of time. A CD is 72 minutes long, so I decided to separate them sonically. Part One is more melodic, and Part Two is more sinister. The left part of my brain related to a more sinister beat and the right part of my brain related to a more melodic beat, so I separated them. I want them to be a project and not just a collection of songs. This is the more emotional side of me.
I know you have a special relationship with ?uestlove from the Roots, who features on the album. Tell me a little more about that ...
EB: I met ?uestlove, well, I know him as Amir, in 1995. During the later stages of recording my album Baduizm, I realised it was incomplete. I went to the label before it was finished and, when I got the budget, I put the Roots on there. I went to Philly and met James Poyser, and we wrote Green Eyes and Otherside of the Game.
So are you a big Roots fan?
EB: Oh yeah, I was in the front row every time, I'm still a big fan. At that time no one really knew them in the mainstream but I knew that they were magnificent. They were the first hip-hop band ever.
You also collaborated with Lil Wayne on a bonus track. Who else would you like to collaborate with?
EB: There are so many people! I'm good friends with Estelle. The song Jump Up in the Air is actually from nine different vocalists, and I invited her to be a part of that. I'm also a big Omar fan, he has one of the most distinctive voices.
Who else are you listening to?
EB: A lot of funk music ... Bootsy Collins, Funkadelic. Also, King Crimson, Jay Electronica, all the greats. I like listening to beats a lot, I'm impressed by craftsmanship.
Many would say that you've paved the way for female artists in the music industry. Do you see yourself as a feminist?
EB: I don't see myself as feminist, I see myself as humanist. I try to be as honest as I can and encourage that quality in my art. The things that people feel, the things people connect with, that is true honesty in art. I encourage all women to be honest. I consider myself a spiritual being first, a human being second, a woman third, and fourth is pretty ... or ugly!
Which female artists do you respect?
EB: Oh gosh, so many! Lauryn Hill, Mary J Blige, Jill Scott, Whitney Houston, Diana Ross, Angie Stone and Joni Mitchell.
Does this album reflect your life right now?
EB: Yes it does to an extent, because it is my voice of experience. In my voice, in my body, in the millions of atoms in my body, with my children I share all those voices and that music, and through it we become more than what we seem to be, we become vessels of music, and I love that.
New Amerykah Part Two (Return of the Ankh) is out on Monday 29 March
