Why 'Lemonade' Is Everything I Needed and More
Originally published on www.kesifelton.com
April 30, 2016
Still shot from Beyoncé’s visual album ‘Lemonade’ (Parkwood Entertainment)
I have had Lemonade on repeat for the past week and am currently watching the HBO visual album for the eighth time, a fact of which I am not at all ashamed.
Since its premiere, I’ve come across more essays and articles and think pieces on Lemonade than I’ve been able to keep up with. It’s interesting to see each of the different takes on Beyoncé’s new project, and I wanted to add my own without the politics and speculations about Beyoncé’s personal life. I wanted to write this just as a Black girl (yet again) in awe of Queen Bey's excellence.
Every time I watch Lemonade, I fall more and more in love with it and respect Beyoncé’s artistic genius. Not only does it have dope visuals from start to finish, but it also evokes an entire spectrum of emotions conveyed through and supported with very calculated innuendos.
At its surface, Lemonade (obviously) is centered around infidelity in a relationship, but when looked at objectively, is easily applicable to any hardships one may face in life. Lemonade easily shows the vulnerability and transparency you must have to be able to get through difficult situations. The visual album illustrates how to allow yourself to unapologetically experience all of your emotions, even if that means smashing car windows with a baseball bat, going to club with your girls, being vulnerable to the fullest extent of the word, forgiving, and finally finding hope. I love how Lemonade says to all of us Black girls, “it is completely okay to not be okay, to find and embrace the source of your emotions, to build yourself back up from your lowest moments, and to come out victorious.”
The references to African culture.
Breaking it down further, I admire the many visual references to African culture and the various cameos throughout Lemonade. Beyoncé’s (possible) reference to Oshun, Yoruba water goddess of love, sensuality, and fertility, in the video for “Hold Up”, was a very clever (yet less direct) introduction to the references she makes later on; such as the Ori face paintings in “Sorry”, a sacred practice in the Yoruba culture. Speaking of “Sorry”, I’m still not over Serena Williams’s appearance in the video (not gonna lie, I screamed with excitement when I saw her *insert moon emoji*). Beyoncé’s recreation of Williams’s Sports Illustrated cover and the overall meaning behind the song is the perfect anthem for carefree Black girls. The visuals at the end of “Sorry” (aka the part where she mentions the now-infamous Becky with the good hair) had my favorite editing of any of the videos, as well as Beyoncé's likeness to Egyptian queen Nefertiti.
It shows how dope being a Black girl is.
The imagery of unity between Black women shown specifically in “Sorry,” “Freedom,” and “Love Drought” are inspiring visuals in and of themselves. Featuring some of the media’s favorite Black girls at the moment, Zendaya, Amandla Stenberg, Quvenzhané Wallis, Winnie Harlow, and Chloe x Halle. There are also appearances by Sybrina Fulton, Lesley McFadden, and Gwen Carr, the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Eric Garner (respectively). And, since we’re here, I don’t see that as “exploitation” as Piers Morgan put it in his recent Daily Mail column. Beyoncé is a Black artist in 2016, and the only way I know that artists effectively make their voice heard, or even amplify that of the movement itself, is through their art, which is exactly what she is doing.
The album is just really good.
Aside from the songs I’ve already mentioned, some of my favorites on the album include “Pray You Catch Me,” “Don’t Hurt Yourself” (especially that first verse), “Love Drought,” “Sandcastles,” and “All Night.” I don’t really care for “6 Inch” or “Daddy Lessons” musically, but they do tell amazing stories of independent women who demand respect and the relationship between a girl and her father, respectively. With the exception of “Don’t Hurt Yourself,” these songs are the most vulnerable on the album as it pertains to love and relationships and illustrate that long road to forgiveness after betrayal. “All Night” especially is a breath of fresh air at the end, a sign of hope and a newfound positive outlook on the future. As for “Formation,” I’m glad Beyoncé released when she did, I don’t think it would’ve fit Lemonade’s overall theme of dealing with infidelity.
"If we're gonna heal, let it be glorious."
Aside from the fact that if Beyoncé were to release a recording of her signing the alphabet (yes, signing...as in sign language), she would get my coins and edges, Lemonade really does mean a lot to me and has made me really love being a Black girl more than ever. Being able to stan over an hour-long visual album that’s filled with references to Black culture with your Black girlfriends is a really dope experience and, honestly, nobody but Beyoncé would have allowed that to happen for me. Thanks, Beyoncé.
–kf
If you’re crazy and still haven’t bought Lemonade:
My other sources and some Lemonade-related Links you should have:
