Lemonade is a lyrical masterpiece that delves into the depths of Beyoncé’s soul. More than that, it tells the secrets of so many hearts that know first hand all the emotions Bey gives us in her tell all visual album. Below are some highlights from it that you’ll love as much as I do.
I watched it three times back to back. Yes, I was that captivated. I listened to the rhythm of the songs because Bey is always giving me something to groove too. But this time around, it was about more than just the beat and the catchy word play. No, Lemonade tells her love story, as twisted as it is. And she does so from the beginning to the end. Or what seems to be the end. I’ll get to that later.
She is so raw in this, and I’d go as far to say that she has never been this raw. Bey doesn’t hold back and in all honesty, it leaves me somewhat confused. Not confused so much by what she is communicating to us (again, I’ll get to that in a few), but confused by the fact that she is indeed talking about her relationship, something that she famously never does. You know how they are? Beyoncé and Jay Z don’t comment on what’s going on in their marriage directly. But all things considered, she has ALWAYS talked about her relationship. If you go back and listen to her songs, especially Resentment, you can gather from the lyrics that shit is complicated. Boy is it complicated.
Lemonade no doubt is giving a lot of people the courage to face things in their personal lives. All the cheated on, tired-of-the-bullshit women around the world had a collective epiphany when they realized the extent to which Queen Bey has dealt with an unfaithful man. Among the other things, this visual album is an ode to black girl magic. From Serena “Bad Ass” Williams to Amandla Stenberg and little Quvenzhané Wallis, it is “black girls rock” at its finest. Beyoncé also pays tribute to the loss of black lives that continues to happen at the hand of police in this country. Eric Garner’s mother, Travon Martin’s mother, Mike Brown’s mother and a host of others are a part of the experience, and it is beyond powerful.
Beyoncé’s visual album is a continuation of the “black power” proclamation she hit us with back in January when she released Formation. It is a symbol of womanhood and forgiveness and craziness and not taking any shit. But of all the many, many things it is, a goodbye to her marriage is the greatest message it sends.
Or at least that is how I interpret it. Every song deals with her love/hate relationship with Jay Z, and there is no denying that. People might argue otherwise, but Beyoncé gives too many references to him for us to think it’s not. From saying “boy bye” to asking if it’s better to be crazy or jealous to saying, “he wanted me to call him God,” there is no doubt in my mind that she is talking about her husband.
She takes us on a journey of self-realization, self-love, regret and anger, denial and more. Who would have ever thought Beyoncé contemplated suicide or felt she was inadequate or questioned her power because of a man? It’s amazing the stuff she went through and dealt with all in the name of love. Which brings me to the song on the album that is a dead giveaway that her marriage may be close to ending.
Sandcastles is a song in which she details scratching out faces in pictures, smashing dishes on the counter from their “last encounter” and breaking promises. “Every promise doesn’t work out that way… your heart is broken because I walked away.” Hearing this song, listening carefully to the lyrics and seeing the video in which Jay is the leading man had me thinking, “She’s saying goodbye, oh shit is she saying goodbye?”
The other source of controversy, and there is A LOT, is about who Beyoncé refers to when she says in her song Sorry, “You better call Becky with the good hair.” The Internet erupted with talk that she’s talking about Rachel Roy, Damon Dash’s ex. Roy, who has hilariously been mistaken for Rachel Ray, didn’t help the situation when she posted a picture with the caption, “Good hair don’t care.” Then there is Rita Ora, who posted a photo of herself in a bikini top with lemon nipple covers and a necklace with what looks to be a J emblem. Both of these women have been around Jay and Rita is signed to Roc Nation. It is so bold for Beyoncé to call out a particular kind of chick in Sorry and for these women to make their posts after Lemonade’s HBO premiere can’t be a coincidence. I mean right before our very eyes is a love triangle of sorts that is so much darker than any social media post can tell.
Out of respect for my girl, I rarely ever speak about her relationship status. There are too few couples that I actually care about in the first place. But it’s hard not to comment on her marriage when she puts something so revealing out for the whole world to see. Remember, Beyoncé is an artist. She sings about the things she’s experienced. There’s no way you can convince me she’s not talking about her life.
Lemonade has left me more in love with Beyoncé (as if that were possible). Her energy is contagious, her light bright and her confidence is through the roof. All those years before when we thought Bey was “doing it” was only the tip of the iceberg.
Now, she is revealing just why she is one of the greatest to every do the damn thing.