Reclusive Anita Baker Will Have Few Shows This Summer

Where’s Anita Baker?

Since ending her musical hiatus in September of 2004 with a new CD called My Everything, her first in 10 years, 48-year-old Anita Baker has remained mostly out of the spotlight and her official website was only briefly functional before being taken offline more than a year ago.

It turns out that Anita is planning a few shows this summer, but there probably won't be too many. They'll be the first since just a handful of shows last summer, some of which featured Babyface as the opening act. In addition, a spokeswoman for Baker’s record label, Blue Note, says that an announcement is expected soon on more touring dates and possibly a new CD.

Baker's My Everything has been certified Gold, with more than 500,000 copies sold, but that’s far less than her previous album, 1994’s Rhythm of Love, which sold more than 2 million copies. Baker's best-selling album to date is her classic Rapture with more than 5 million sold.

In addition to declining sales, another reason for the inactivity is that music just isn't the overiding force in Baker's life that it was in the past. She is a wife and mother to two young boys, Walter Jr. and Eddie Bridgforth, both of whom are attending exclusive Grosse Pointe Academy in Grosse Pointe, Michigan, where Anita and husband Walter Bridgforth live.