gjdogfather Review of Lemonade

Lemonade (2016 TV Special)

Beyonce: Lemonade

[12 October 2017]

Back in April of 2016, Beyoncé changed the music game yet again with her highly anticipated sixth studio album, "Lemonade". The album was accompanied with a film of the same name that premiered on HBO. In this film, Beyoncé renders infidelity and reconciliation with a cinematic vividness as well as a tribute to the Black Lives Matter Movement. The "Lemonade" film has 11 different chapters. The chapters are broken down and each of them have a particular theme and song that tie into each other, thus, using the spatial mode in the film. The "Lemonade" film uses vivid imagery to create visual mode. The film contains visuals of the multifaceted nature of Black women and how different experiences can be captured into one woman. She uses this film to tell the viewers her story as a mother, wife, daughter, black women, and celebrity. Beyoncé starts off the film with "Intuition." In this chapter, she speaks from the perspective of a woman questioning not only the trustworthiness of her partner, but men in general. She then moves on to the next chapter, "Denial", where Beyoncé speaks about the sacrifices she's made and the lies she told herself in a relationship. She follows up with "Anger", which is the next chapter of the "Lemonade" film. She not only talks about a relationship, but also addresses an even bigger statement by adding audio from a Malcolm X speech: "The most disrespected person in America is the Black Woman." This is where aural mode is present due to the different voice-overs she uses, from not just Malcolm X but the actors in the film as well, such as her daughter Blue Ivy and famous tennis player and friend Serena Williams. Beyoncé then goes on to the next chapter, "Apathy." Although you can feel the emotion in her voice throughout the film, the linguistic mode really stands out here. With this chapter, she calls out an unfaithful partner and tells him how the "sidechicks" could never be her. She says, "So what are you gonna say at my funeral, now that you've killed me? Here lies the body of the love of my life, whose heart I broke without a gun to my head …" She goes to the next chapter, "Emptiness", where Beyoncé references a woman who works very hard for her money but at the end of the day still wants her man to acknowledge her presence. Here, her role as a celebrity clashes with her role as a wife, and highlights the difficulties of working while trying to maintain a marriage. "Accountability" is the next chapter and here, Beyoncé talks about how black women are treated by men in general. From deadbeat fathers to deadbeat husbands, it's a cycle that Beyoncé ties back into how women can be accepting of this type of behavior. Beyoncé is referencing her relationship with her father and reliving her mother's trauma by being in her mother's position as a victim of infidelity. The theme of the album starts to shift with the next chapter, "Reformation." Here, Beyoncé creates a theme of baptism and renewal. She's leading a group of black women through the river and encouraging them to not only empower themselves but each other. This chapter highlights black women celebrating one another despite the struggles they face. So now that Beyoncé has given all these emotions throughout this film, she then goes on to the next chapter, "Forgiveness." Beyoncé sings about trying to move past the hurt and anger that a loved one has caused her and how she has reached a place where she can forgive. The next chapter, "Resurrection", is where her reference to the Black Lives Matter Movement is definitely the strongest. Beyoncé brings together the mothers of Trayvon Martin, Mike Brown and Eric Garner, who have lost their sons due to police brutality. Here she shines a light in remembrance to these young men. The next chapter, "Hope", is where there is an exit of sadness. This chapter highlights Beyoncé's role as a wife and makes the decision to forgive her partner after all the hurt he has caused her. Beyoncé then moves on to the last chapter of the film, "Redemption." She talks about her journey to forgiveness and although the road wasn't easy, she says, "Nothing real can be threatened." Here, she also uses the aural mode because the scene goes silent before she starts to pick the sound back up with her poetry and then music. With this chapter, it ties back into everything Beyoncé uses in the film to tell her story as a mother, wife, daughter, black woman and celebrity. I felt that the film was great because, with this album Beyoncé proved to the world that she is so much more than just a pop-star. "Lemonade" was so monumental with its various music genres: pop, rock, country, reggae, R&B, and blues. As well as the impressive visuals that are displayed which corresponds to each of the different chapters and its songs. "Lemonade" contains some of Beyoncé's strongest work to date and she constantly outdoes herself.

The "Lemonade" film appeals to the Beyhive community because we love everything that deals with Beyoncé. From her new music, to music videos, to Instagram posts and also workout clothes, the Beyhive loves everything Beyoncé. This film also relates to people in general that have dealt with infidelity in their relationships. This record was completely different from her previous albums and it showed because with each one of her records, she shows growth in her music. She usually keeps her life private and every true member of the Beyhive knows this and with an album like "Lemonade" she not only addresses infidelity rumors, but false pregnancy rumors as well. This film really gave insight into a look in Beyoncé's personal life and the Beyhive simply loved it.