Picture this: it’s 6:30 in the morning in Bali, Indonesia. You’re wide awake and ready to start your day with a mindfulness practice that’s led by none other than Erykah Badu — the High Priestess of Neo Soul, a certified doula and one of music’s most notable holistic healers. This time of the day is what she almost refers to as “God hours,” as it’s “when we are most open, they say, to receive.”

These morning ceremonies, which can start even earlier at 5:30 a.m., are the practices she’s looking forward to the most while at Merasa in Desa Potato Head. Co-curated by Badu herself, the wellness program takes place across seven days and features over 30 other practitioners who guide various experiences that blend both traditional and innovative practices. She joins forces with Potato Head and Wellness Director Kim Herben to review and introduce the practitioners that utilize different modalities, crafting a dynamic lineup that integrates music, performances, discussions, yoga, mindfulness, breathwork, film, rituals and more. “‘Merasa’ means ‘to feel’ in Indonesian. To me, this means making yourself available for nature,” she tells Hypebeast.

“Similar to Bruce Lee, I have created my own martial art when it comes to my practice….I am going to encourage others to find their own practices…to dig inside themselves to find that part that needs watering.”

Badu’s rising ritual is described as a “transformative morning practice.” There’s power in sharing and releasing energy with the elements during sunrise, and practicing this ceremony in a place like Bali, which she describes as “a special place,” is an experience like no other. “You can feel it in the air and see it in people’s eyes,” she says of the famous Indonesian province. “There is something very different here.” Her 6:30 a.m. ceremony taps into meditation, movement and frequencies, and while this isn’t the first time she’s mixed music with her healing work, her curation for Merasa is her first at this scale.

“Music is frequency and vibrations, and everything is frequency and vibration. Everything is moving all the time. Music is where our memories are stored. Through music, all emotions on earth are expressed. Through music, we become aligned with the planets. Music is the thread that connects everything together. Through sound and the absorption of it, we can be healed and restored.”

“We are all on a journey somehow,” Badu affirms, “and perhaps Merasa is where all the roads meet.”

Hypebeast: How do you think wellness and self-care practices have changed over the past two decades?

Erykah Badu: Wellness is not yoga, or dance, or drumming. Those are practices. Wellness is the migration towards these things; wellness is the “what” makes you closer to those things. You can tell your mind is well when it is focused on getting closer to those practices.

Do you have a favorite wellness practice?

I like to generally play it by ear; I kind of freestyle every morning, but I do have certain practices that I regularly do. For example, I always light a candle, make sure there is a fresh glass of water, include an earth element like a stick, flower or rock, and burn incense to represent the wind. Over time, I’ve made up my own thing by adapting different practices from different walks of life and the different teachers that I’ve had.

Similar to Bruce Lee, I have created my own martial art when it comes to my practice. That’s what I am going to share — a combination of things that have helped me. I am going to encourage others to find their own practices, not to follow my instructions or directives, but to dig inside themselves to find that part that needs watering.

Can you talk about one of the most profound impacts your wellness journey has had on your life, both on a personal level and as an artist?

It has been such a long journey with several pivotal moments for me. I’m sharing this one instance because it is really important to me.

I went to Cuba in the very early 2000s, when it was still illegal, but I was able to go because a friend was putting on an event, and they were allowing artists to come in with special documentation and permits. I wanted to get a Santeria reading, which is a spirit-based philosophy. I was sitting outside in Habana, wearing my all-white long dress and my hair wrapped up — it was my thing, I wanted to wear that, as it made me feel very special and important, and I thought it was the right thing to do for this special moment.

As I was waiting my turn, two men were sitting to my left and right. One had on some super tight jean shorts and sneakers, both well-worn. These people did not care about what they wore. These guys passed a beer and a cigarette over me with my nice white dress and I thought, “This is my white dress, this is my reading; it needs to be aesthetically right, the way I envisioned it.”

When it was my turn, the lady came out and I went inside. I remember a few aesthetic things: there were lots of flies, there was no roof in the house, there was a clothesline — this is how these people lived there. I had a translator named Pablo and he was going to explain everything because they didn’t speak English. At that point, the door opened and a girl came in to get something from the clothesline. I was thinking, “I paid money for this reading; I kind of don’t like this, this is sacred to me.” I told Pablo, he said okay and the girl left. Then the door opened again and the man with the tight shorts came in. I told Pablo, “Hey, he’s gotta go. I’m gonna have to ask for privacy,” and Pablo said, “He is the priest.”

It made me understand that he didn’t have to look a certain way. He came from a long line of healers; he smoked cigarettes and had dirty fingernails, but it was his gift. It was who he was, no matter how I felt or said. And I didn’t wear my hair up after that day.

“Music is the thread that connects everything together. Through sound and the absorption of it, we can be healed and restored.”

Do you believe that wellness is a lifelong journey?

No matter what you are about, practice is the way. Practice will take you to the next level.

How can one start their wellness journey?

I encourage everyone to check with the five doctors daily.

Doctor 1 is the Sun, that gives us the vitamin D and nutrients we need. Mini doses of the sun medicine really change your constitution. Number 2 is Doctor Nutrition, where we eat to live for the body. It is not the same for everyone, but I encourage everyone to search for their own path. Number 3 is Doctor Exercise: 15 minutes a day of doing something, stretching your body and moving it really helps you feel good during the day, emotionally and energetically. The better you feel, the less you have to lean on other people and borrow their energy. Number 4 is Doctor Sleep — getting the proper amount of sleep which is the most difficult for us. I tell my daughter that if she goes to sleep a couple of hours after sundown, she has a great opportunity to benefit from the release of melatonin. It helps you look the same from day to day with the release of those hormones into the skin. Doctor 5 is Meditation, which we practice in very different ways. Some people are very still, some people work with their breath, but we need at least 15 minutes a day to deliberately focus on it.