Neo-soul goddess Erykah Badu was born and raised in Texas, but she's got a few good ties to the Triangle -- most notably two folks from NC Central University. Central alumnus Yahzarah broke in as Badu's backup singer before going solo, while ex-Little Brother deejay 9th Wonder (Pat Douthit) is one of her regular producers.

"He was very humble," Badu said of Wonder in a recent interview. "Very pleasant. Works well with others. The things he does as a producer and as a DJ, he has no problem with showing or teaching. Some people are kind of funny about that, but he was very open. He's nice. Has a good heart."

It should come as no surprise that Wonder is a good teacher, because he comes by that honestly. And for more on Badu and her show in Durham, see the preview in Friday's paper.

Patrick "9th Wonder" Douthit is a producer by trade, but he wears lots of hats. He oversees the hip-hop initiative at his alma mater, Durham's NC Central University, and also runs two independent labels -- on top of staying busy in the studio producing tracks for Ludacris, Eryka Badu and others. And now he has a fancy new title: the NAACP's new National Ambassador For Hip-Hop Relations and Popular Culture. It began with the NAACP approaching Wonder to put together a mixtape for the organization, which he agreed to do.

"But then I told them, 'Let's try to do something better than that,'" Douthit says. "We talked about them sending me around to schools to talk to kids about hip-hop history, and I asked if the NAACP has ever had a national spokesperson for hip-hop relations. The president of the NAACP, Benjamin Todd Jealous, is 36. So he's my generation and he knows how important hip-hop and the message it used to carry is -- about inspiring youth instead of bringing negativity. He's the one who changed the title from 'spokesperson' to 'ambassador.'"

Douthit is working on assembling a board of directors, in between recording sessions with David Banner and actor Idris Elba (best-known as Stringer Bell from the HBO series "The Wire"). Along with overseeing panel discussions at schools across the country, Douthit hopes to put together a big benefit concert for next spring.

"We'll try to be the voice the NAACP has never had," he says. "The goal is to usher in a new way of thinking. Barack Obama has got a lot of people thinking about things in new ways, getting more involved."

This year has seen a ton of fantastic local records perfect for gift-giving -- just check the tags on this post for a few suggestions on acts to look for. And for further specifics, click here.

Meanwhile, the annual "alternative" musical gift guide is coming on Dec. 14. Check previous years' installments here.

Fresh off his success with Erykah Badu, our man 9th Wonder has been in the studio lately working with Ludacris. And they've been putting samples of and interviews about what they're doing online as they go. Check out the latest installment, about the probable album-closing track "Do the Right Thing."