BEYONCE
After watching Lemonade by Beyonce, I couldn’t believe that I hadn’t seen it before. I think everyone should watch/listen to that piece of work because it is beautiful. There are so many positive energies that come out of this video and so many audiences that Beyonce reaches with this art. Lemonade is incredibly inspiring, supporting, and beautiful; it grows on the progress for females and African Americans, but also helps anyone identify with her struggles she opens up about.
As a white man, there are a lot of themes in Lemonade that I cannot personally connect with or feel comfortable talking about on a deep level. However, there is a lot that I took away from this video album for myself – the biggest thing being the way Beyonce treats herself. It is inspirational to observe the self-care and self-value that Beyonce bestows upon herself. Everyone has heard the saying about loving themselves before loving another person. I think Lemonade is a great example of this, because as she goes through the trauma with her husband, she clearly places a lot of emphasis on her own beauty and how amazing she is as a person. It is also admirable how she lets herself be angry and experience whatever emotions come her way.
Another reason everyone should watch this is because she provides a great example on how to go through struggles in a relationship. It is inspiring that she felt comfortable sharing this situation with the world, especially for someone who has a relatively private life. This speaks to her star persona as well. Most of the time she puts herself out in the media or releases new art, it is powerful and serves a purpose.
Clearly, there are huge images of feminism in this film, my favorite being her smashing the cars with a baseball bat. While Bell Hooks attacks Beyonce for the use of violence in Lemonade on her blog, I think it is arrogant to do so because Beyonce is simply creating a sense of empowerment and beauty all in the same image. While this does raise questions if one were to compare this image to her definition of feminism, I think she deserves respect for this work of art and the way it helps women. Bell Hooks calls for more tangible action but she needs to remember that Beyonce is not a politician or a legislative person… she is simply an artist that speaks to issues.
Lastly, the film brings up race very frequently. The sinking police car at the end during formation along with the black child dancing in front of the police are both insanely powerful images. The use of Malcom X speaking about the black woman in America is also very moving. Once again, I do not feel like I can connect with this as a white man, but I do know that Beyonce is doing a lot for the black community by using her platform in this way. Anytime someone gathering millions of views on a piece of art is drawing the conversation of the world to racial injustice, it brings the issue into progression.
I commend Beyonce for this piece of work. I believe it is beautiful and powerful, and that anyone should watch it should they have the chance.
