With 'Homecoming,' Beyoncé Again Proves She Is Incomparable
She's not called Queen B for nothing.
In true Beyoncé fashion, fans had almost no time to prepare themselves for the Netflix "Homecoming" documentary. "Homecoming," if you've been under a rock, was all about Beyoncé's iconic Coachella performance — dubbed "Beychella," back in 2018.
This documentary showed the visions, the creative processes, the struggles and the artistry behind the very meaningful Coachella performance. Beyoncé was the first black woman to headline the festival, and it was known to not only the crowd but viewers worldwide who were able to watch it live. Beyoncé says in the documentary that instead of wearing a flower crown to headline Coachella, she wanted to be a representation of her race. And that she did.
All of the tributes to Black culture were impressive from dressing as B.C. Egyptian queen Nefertiti to honoring the Divine Nine. The Divine Nine is the Greek letter organizations that were usually founded at Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCU's). Beyoncé also sings what is commonly referred to as the Black National Anthem, "Lift Every Voice" and includes many HBCU signatures like stepping and drumlines.
In "Homecoming," Beyoncé speaks on the importance HBCU's had to her seeing as grew up in Houston, Texas. She said that going to Battle of the Bands was something she'll never forget. Reason one that Beyoncé is incomparable is not just that she is the first black woman to headline Coachella, but that she brought a unique aspect that had never been done before and that paid tribute to her culture. Beyoncé and her team's creative processes were also very unique. For a festival show, the stage presence was much different. With over 200 people on stage, from an orchestra to dancers to back up vocals, Coachella had never seen a headliner like this.
Throughout the documentary, we see time changes from Coachella weekend one and Coachella weekend two, and yet Beyoncé's dance routines switch seamlessly. Her choreography with other dancers and performers is perfectly the same an entire week apart. Beyoncé mentions in the documentary that she was trying to fit "22 years of (her) career in a two-hour performance," so the audience hears songs from the '90s in her girl group Destiny's Child to her most recent album at the time in 2016.
Despite the significant time jumps, Beyoncé flawlessly blends the music together and creates a set list that played into fans' nostalgia and the trending music. Her ability to captivate a stage is reason two why she is incomparable to any other artist or any other performance done.
Some of the more emotional parts of the documentary come from Beyoncé's vulnerability with the audience, to speak with the troubles she had with her second pregnancy. Beyoncé was scheduled to headline Coachella in 2017 but became pregnant so she had to cancel. Beyoncé opens up about she developed preeclampsia and had to get an emergency C-section.
Beyoncé then speaks on how hard it was to perform at her best when she had gained weight after the C-section. She revealed she pushed herself too far to reach her goal weight and says she will never push herself that far ever again. Beyoncé says she did Soul Cycle and had her intense rehearsals, and on top of that she was on a very strict diet of no bread, no sugar, no dairy, no alcohol, no fish and no meat. With all of that, Beyoncé still wanted more saying she hoped to get to a place where she could do the stairs as well.
Reason number three Beyoncé is incomparable is because of the limits she pushed herself through in order to deliver the show she wanted to see inspire so many people, who often do not get to see themselves fairly represented. Throughout the documentary, the audience can see so much work and effort the entire team put in, in order to succeed. The woman behind the vision was successful in bringing together so many different people with different talents to highlight her community and her culture. Beyoncé says in "Homecoming" that she wanted this performance to feel like a call for unity, and she "wanted everyone who has been dismissed because of the way they look to feel like they were on that stage."
And that's why Beyoncé is, without a doubt, incomparable.
