DIR Return Create A Forum - Home
---------------------------------------------------------
1WorldForum
HTML https://1worldforum.createaforum.com
---------------------------------------------------------
*****************************************************
DIR Return to: Music/Entertainment/Celebrities
*****************************************************
#Post#: 17--------------------------------------------------
What You need to Know About Beyoncé's new album: why is it
called Lemonade, what do the lyrics mean,
DIR By: urBAE
Date: September 6, 2016, 1:45 pm
---------------------------------------------------------
Everything you need to know about Beyoncé’s surprise new visual
album (you can read our review of Lemonade here)
Why is it called Lemonade?
At one point on the album, during a spoken-word segment, Beyoncé
merges the well-known maxim “if life gives you lemons, make
lemonade” with a moving story about her grandmother, delivering
the below speech:
“Take one pint of water, add a half pound of sugar, the juice of
eight lemons, the zest of half lemon. Pour the water into one,
then to another several times. Strain through a clean napkin.
Grandmother. The alchemist. You spun gold out of this hard life.
Conjured beauty from the things left behind. Found healing where
it did not live. Discovered the antidote in your own kitchen.
Broke the curse with your own two hands. You past these
instructions down to your daughter, who then passed them down to
her daughter.”
Elsewhere, the album references both the singer’s personal
struggles, and some of the wider issue faced by black women
today and throughout history. It therefore isn’t too much of a
stretch to assume that the collection’s title is a celebration
of metaphorical lemonade-making: an ode to overcoming hardship,
turning things around, and triumphing over adversity. (That
said, the fact she handily included a recipe hints that Queen
Bey is probably also a fan of homemade lemonade).
The lyrics, which refer to passing lemonade-making down from
daughter to daughter, may be a reference to Beyoncé’s
grandmother on her mother’s side: a seamstress named Agnez
Dereon, who was born in French-speaking Louisiana.
Although she died before the singer was born, Beyoncé has
previously shown pride in her maternal grandparents, sharing
photographs of Agnez and her husband Lumis on her Tumblr account
and naming her 2006 fashion line House of Deréon.
Beyoncé's maternal grandmother Agnez
Beyoncé's maternal grandmother Agnez CREDIT: BEYONCÉ'S TUMBLR
ACCOUNT, VIA DAILMAIL.CO.UK
The album also includes video of Jay Z’s grandmother Hattie at
her 90th birthday, sharing memories and stating “I was given
lemons and I made lemonade”.
Jay Z's grandmother Hattie in Lemonade
Jay Z's grandmother Hattie in footage used in Lemonade
What do the lyrics and album reveal about Beyoncé's personal
life ?
Rumours that Beyonce’s husband Jay-Z has been unfaithful have
been circulating for years now – and came to a head after the
singer’s sister Solange was filmed attacking her brother-in-law
in a lift at a a Met Gala after-party in 2014.
Beyonce and Jay-Z in Lemonade
Beyonce and Jay-Z in Lemonade
Many have suggested that the lyrics featured in Lemonade all but
confirm the cheating stories – as do some of the visuals, in
which an incandescent, outraged singer is seen smashing a car
window with a baseball bat.
“Who the f___ do you think I am? You ain’t married to no average
bitch, boy, You can watch my fat ass twist, boy, as I bounce to
the next d___ boy,” B fiercely declares during one song.
Elsewhere, during a spoken-word segment, she talks about: “still
coiled deep the need to know, are you cheating on me?”
Paranoia and anger aren’t the only emotions addressed, however:
elsewhere, the theme seems to be more about redemption – and a
section titled “Forgiveness”, which features shots of Beyoncé
embracing her husband, suggests that the most powerful musical
couple in the world won’t be splitting up any time soon.
beyonce
Screengrab from Lemonade
What does Lemonade reveal about Beyoncé's political beliefs ?
The video for Beyonce’s’s single Formation – not to mention her
February 2016 performance of the song during the Superbowl
halftime show – were passionately, unashamedly political,
visually recalling the Black power movement and historical
clashes between black protestors and the police.
Lemonade is packed with the same powerful imagery, and showcases
Beyonce’s determination to stand up for black rights and speak
out against police brutality and institutional racism.
At one point, she features an audio clip of Malcolm X uttering
the words “'The most disrespected woman in America is the Black
woman”.
The videos also feature cameos from mothers whose sons have
been killed as result of police brutality or race-fuelled crime,
including Trayvon Martin’s mother Sybrina Fulton, who is
pictured holding photograph of her son.
Martin, who was unarmed was shot and killed in 2012 at the age
of 17. After his killer was acquitted of murder, his death
sparked the Black Lives Matter protest.
Sybrina Fulton, holding a photograph of her son in Lemonade
Sybrina Fulton, holding a photograph of her son in Lemonade
Who else cameos in the videos?
The Lemonade videos feature appearances from a number of
established and up-and-coming sportswomen and female artists,
including tennis champion Serena Williams, actress Halle Berry,
singer Zendaya, Beasts Of The Southern Wild actress Quvenzhané
Wallis, singers Chloe and Halle Bailey, twins Lisa-Kaindé and
Naomi Diaz (aka Ibeyi), ballerina Michaela DePrince, model
Winnie Harlow and actress and activist Amandla Stenberg.
Jay Z and Beyonce’s daughter Blue Ivy appear in home video
footage at one point, as does Jay Z’s grandmother, Hattie (as
previously mentioned), and Beyoncé’s mother Tina, who is shown
with her second husband Richard Lawler on their wedding day in
2015.
*****************************************************
Page 1 of 1