Queen Bey never ceases to surprise with her album releases, but her most recent work titled "Lemonade" has stirred up some controversy. Not only does it feature celebrities like Serena Williams and Zendaya, but the visual album is potentially the most exposed and real we have seen the singer to date. It portrays a different side to Beyoncè that many are reacting to in different ways.
The 57-minute movie is divided into poems and songs from the album that, from my interpretation, take you through the various phases that someone in a relationship experiences when being cheated on. For example, each of the songs is titled after a different stage, such as anger or forgiveness. If you dislike poetry, this is not the video to spend nearly an hour watching, but it is Beyoncè.
The internet has exploded with how occurrences in the last year, such as Solange Knowles throwing punches at Jay-Z in an elevator, now make sense. Beyoncè loyalists have stuck a name to the “Becky with the good hair” that is called out in the "apathy" portion of the movie. Based on the titles of each song and poem, it is fair to assume the album is about Queen Bey getting cheated on by husband Jay-Z. After doing a little digging, it seems like the side chick may have been designer Rachel Roy, who is also the former wife of Damon Dash, Jay-Z’s old partner.
Let’s fast forward to May 6, when Roy instagrammed a photo in what could very possibly be a response to Beyonce’s film. The caption reads, “Good hair don’t care, but we will take good lighting, for selfies, or self truths, always. Live in light #nodramaqueens.”
Roy ended up getting so many hate comments that she was forced to set her Instagram account to private.
Although the amount of work and thought that went into producing Lemonade must have been immense, some feel that it directly opposes everything the Queen Bey has stood for in the past. Beyoncè has supported women empowerment, shown through songs like "Run The World (Girls)" and even back in the Destiny’s Child days with "Independent Women, Pt. 1." But her latest work has some feeling like she is passive aggressively shaming “Becky,” aka Rachel Roy, when Jay-Z is also to blame. On the other hand, members of the Beyhive, as Beyoncè lovers are known, might say that she didn’t mention anyone's name and is merely expressing her personal experience through the medium of music, poetry and visuals. Personally, I find it to be the latter, but I understand why others don’t see it that way.
No matter which way you view "Lemonade," Beyoncè has done it again and has started a conversation. My guess is that she doesn’t care how you interpret it but is relieved that she could express her reality while doing something she loves.
