When Beyoncé revealed the trailer for Lemonade about a week before its release, we were already thirsty for more. She filled our cups on Saturday, April 23, giving us what many had predicted, and so much more.
Beyoncé is more than an artist, but she is using her platform to perform the poetry of pain and pleasure. This was no dance album full of simple songs that would top the radio plays for weeks. This was not an album dreamt up and executed in a day.
This is the poetry of the human being. She captures the human spirit in all its glories and pitfalls in just under an hour.
So many are trying to decode the shots thrown throughout the album and missing something hidden in plain sight. This album is for us; it is more than just a woman supposedly airing out her marriage.
But who is us?
The Black Woman
Beyoncé has had no problem reminding us that she is unapologetically black and continues to with an album of black woman empowerment. From the visuals of a mainly black female cast to Serena Williams’ cameo to a Malcolm X quote, the album was celebrating us. We are daughters, lovers, mothers, but most importantly, women.
The vulnerability of the black woman is on full display for an hour. We experience the euphoria and the dejection of love. We are too often thought of having no other emotions than anger and others always find other illogical excuses when we display any other human emotion. But we too go through the same wave of emotions that everyone else rides, because we too, are human.
Anyone who is experiencing/has experienced heartbreak
She named the stages of a victim of infidelity, which we can relate to universally. Whether you are in denial, filled with rage, hopeful or redeeming yourself, we can all relate to a stage on this album. We have all fallen in love with something. It doesn’t always have to be the warmth of another human being. You can love yourself, a certain aspect of yourself. We have been elated and then depressed, placed blame and then searched for answers, apologized and sought redemption.
Love is a fragile emotion to share and can be scary to experience. It is the foundation of the human experience. You extend the most vulnerable fragment of yourself in order to complete your being, and sometimes it doesn’t work out with everyone. You take the heartbreak, soak and bandage your battle scars from this war of love and mold and love yourself until the next opportunity comes again.
The artist
It doesn’t matter if you write poetry or prose, paint or draw, we can all draw reference from this visual and sensory masterpiece. From the words of the Somali-British poet extraordinaire Warsan Shire to the creative freedom detailed in each video, there is inspiration in everything you hear and see. With just the opening song “Pray You Catch Me,” I found myself repeating the words that had struck me the most even after the visual album had ended.
Within a few short days, I’ve already seen artwork created. I’m sure there are others re-watching and repeating the same scenes and songs until they find that exact moment of revelation. I have already found the inspiration to write this piece and I’m sure something more creative will come to me from her work in the later weeks.
Lemonade is a love letter to those who are lost, no matter how far away you are from whatever you are seeking. I believe with the album, you will find your way.