By Jamil Oakford/editor-in-chief
So Beyonce did a thing — well, a few things. It started on an unassuming Saturday. Without any warning, she dropped a new song with an accompanying video that not only caused a Red Lobster trend on Twitter, but it also sparked some interesting conversation.
Not usually known for being upfront about her political affiliations, she took a huge step in this video. With imagery that spoke to Southern black culture and that painted vivid pictures of police brutality, the song became an instant anthem for black pride and for some, the Black Lives Matter movement.
Then came the Super Bowl. With what was arguably a boring beginning to the halftime show, the main course was obviously Beyonce. She took the field and, donning a military-inspired outfit, her dancers bore fluffy afros that could barely be contained by the Black Panther-inspired berets. She performed her new song “Formation.” To no one’s surprise, she’s currently receiving backlash for such an action.
While not officially a part of the Beyhive and definitely not rushing to give her the label of “black feminist icon,” I suppose some props are due to Beyonce’s unique and stylistic approach to her new song. Surely, she knew a song with her personal provocative brand, paired with a strongly political video would send a powerful message.
“Formation” is not so much an anti-white or even anti-cop anthem like former New York mayor Rudolph Giuliani suggested. It’s not even about trying to draw visible or distinguished lines between races. It’s a song that tells girls with “Negro noses” and “Jackson 5 nostrils” that they’re beautiful.
It’s a song that definitely was directed at young women who proudly wear their afros, carry hot sauce in their bags, love that cornbread and those collard greens or have any of the characteristics that society has told them for decades was deemed undesirable.
This is Beyonce giving us all her “cocky fresh” to take on those “corny haters” who look for anything to delegitimize hard work or progress.
