If Erykah Badu is neo-soul’s breathless visionary, recording difficult, sprawling albums with fierce ties to hip-hop, then India.Arie is neo-soul’s friendly public face, the John Mellencamp-collaborating, adult-contemporary-friendly Grammy favorite who prefers her albums go down as easily as possible for as broad an audience as possible. That’s not to say India.Arie can’t stretch out a bit, however. Though her new Testimony: Vol. 2, Love & Politics isn’t nearly as mercurial as Badu’s sprawling New Amerykah Part One, it finds time for some unlikely guests, including rapper MC Lyte, Afro-pop singer Dobet Gnahore and reggae crooner Gramps Morgan.
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