Beyoncé's Influence: Addressing Social Issues through Music

1000 Words2 Pages
bulb-icon

Recommended: Music and society

Beyoncé is a very influential person in today’s society having over 87 million followers on Instagram, selling out 49 shows on her 2016 tour and playing the 50th Super Bowl this past year. Beyoncé released her song Formation in February a few days before the 50th Super bowl which she would perform as a half time show. With this major platform she takes the opportunity to discuss unjust problems that today’s society is facing such as police brutality, gender roles and beauty standards through this song. By using her music to convey these problems she is able to expose people to these problems they may not be socially aware of. The songs starts out by sampling a video by a man named Messy Mya. Messy Mya is quoted saying “What happened after …show more content…

Beyoncé implies that she is the dominant and more powerful one, Beyoncé has discussed her sex life on previous songs stating that girls are taught that they can not enjoy sex or be sexual beings in the way that boys are. By talking about her sex life she allows other girls to realize that it’s something they should not be ashamed of. Beyoncé later goes on to say “Drop him off at the mall, let him by some J’s” implying that she is not like other rappers wives who are simply just trophy wives, Beyoncé works extremely hard to make her own money having a net worth of 265 million dollars. Not only in popular culture is this the norm but also in many cultures around the world. Males are thought of as being the dominant and controlling one over his wife and family. In western society Women stayed at home to cook, clean and take care of the children, if a woman had a job she was frowned upon. This was normal until World War Two when the Men went off to war, in order to keep business’ going they hired women who proved that they could do it …show more content…

Society tells you what beautiful looks like, if you aren’t what they deem beautiful you may face low self-esteem and mental health issues. When women of colour are shown in the media it is most common with a weave because this is what society has made them insecure to wear their normal hairstyles. Beyoncé has been critiqued in the media multiple times for letting her daughter wear her natural hair. Beyoncé tells women of colour to embrace their features by stating “I love my baby, with baby hairs and afro”. Even if you are not a women of colour she is telling you to embrace who you are and to be proud of your family’s culture and

Show More
Related

  • Analysis Of Lil Wayne 's ' Georgia Bush '

    1128 Words  | 3 Pages

    ... song entitled “Formation”. The filming took place in Los Angeles, but features references to Hurricane Katrina, with Beyoncé on top of a police car in a flooded street and later cuts to a man holding a newspaper with Martin Luther King Jr.’s face on it with the title “The Truth”. Later a young hooded boy dances in front of a line of police officers with their hands up before the video cuts to a graffitied wall with the words “stop shooting us “ tagged on it, at the end of the video the police car sunk with her on top. Not only did this song, bring awareness to the 10th anniversary of hurricane Katrina it also brought awareness to police brutality, racism, and the “black lives matter movement”. I stand with Lil Wayne, Beyoncé, the people of New Orleans and the countless others who are pushing for a change in the way minorities and the lower class citizen are treated.

    Read More

  • Messy Mya

    517 Words  | 2 Pages

    Being aired at the beginning of February, Beyoncé’s hit single Formation served as the 2016 Black History month anthem for numerous reasons. Beyoncé being a long standing musical, entertainment, and fashion icon, her shocking release of this hit shocked the world when she unapologetically portrayed her blackness through the representation of Southern roots. She begins this musical call to action by asking the question of what happened after New Orleans. Foreshadowing a socio-political tone, she begins by paying homage to a New Orleans YouTube activist, Messy Mya who was killed in 2010 and those affected by Hurricane Katrina. In this music video that last approximately five minutes Beyoncé evolves into her self-identified role of a Feminist by exhibiting her call to expressive womanhood and activism by calling discussing the government’s response to Hurricane Katrina, Black aesthetics, family lineage, and the culture of the American South.

    Read More

  • African-American Women: Understanding The Problems of Gender and Race

    2077 Words  | 5 Pages

    Instead of being allowed to embrace their unique and personal beauty African-American women have been reared in a society that edifies all things non-black. Light skin and long flowing hair are exalted and as a result many African-American women have bought into this. Oftentimes African American women resort to the use of skin bleachers, wearing colored contacts, hair weaves and using chemicals that contain lye to alter the texture of their hair.

    Read More

  • Personal Narrative: I Am A Black Girl

    797 Words  | 2 Pages

    Black women have been the essence of style, originality all while receiving nothing but bad response from critics who secretly envy them. Natural hair tends to be another widespread trend. I think that some do the natural so they can connect with their African roots while I think others just like the look, or maybe it’s easier. No matter what grade of hair society has one marked term for black hair which is “nappy”. Besides pertaining to actions, the word ghetto is used to describe just about every aspect of a black girl's life. "Girl your hair look ghetto" and "You talk/sound ghetto" are two common phrases used around school. Colored hair, weaves, extensions, dyes and relaxers/perms are all things black girls have encountered. If your hair looks "too" nice, it's assumed that you're wearing weave or that you've gotten a fresh

    Read More

  • Stuart Hall's What Is This Black In Black Popular Culture?

    1124 Words  | 3 Pages

    As it opens with imagery reminiscent of the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina in New Orleans, an event that devastated the black communities in the areas affected. The delayed assistance in New Orleans by the U.S. government stirred some controversy that led many to question how much America really cares about its black communities. Nonetheless, Beyoncé’s video is full of imagery that is associated with black culture, including historical references to black communities in the south. But what is really important about “Formation” are the lyrics. With lyrics like “My daddy Alabama, Momma Louisiana, You mix that negro with that Creole make a Texas Bama” and “I like my baby hair with baby hair and afros, I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils,” Beyoncé is undoubtedly declaring her pride for her blackness as well as defending her child Blue Ivy who has always been scrutinized for the way her hair looked. Thus, this song is obviously geared toward the Black community which is obvious due to the lyrics and the imagery in the music video. To put it plainly, this song is a proclamation of Black pride and shouldn’t be thought of in any other way. However, after performing it at the Super Bowl people of other ethnicities became aware of the song and became offended by her performance as well as the lyrics. Controversy arose as people pointed out her backup dancers were dressed similarly to the Black Panther

    Read More

  • The Characteristics Of Leadership: Beyoncé's Impact As A Leader

    1486 Words  | 3 Pages

    Motivation provides the driving force for direction and persistence toward a defined goal. Beyoncé has a high need for achievement that motivates her to keep working on new material. In an interview with MTV Beyoncé said, “I am a workaholic and I don’t believe in no. I don’t believe in I need to sleep” (Lepore, 2011). She has earned many awards, honors, and accolades because of her determination to be one of the greatest performers. In the last five years, Beyoncé has used empowerment as an essential motivational key to continuously progress in her craft. In 2011, Beyoncé fired her manager of fifteen years and she began to take full responsibility for her creative and financial obligations. From this experience she has become self-determined and has a high influence on her career path (Lepore,

    Read More

  • Prejudice and Racism - A Fair and Just Society is Still Only a Dream

    3052 Words  | 7 Pages

    This Critical Essay Builds Upon the Concepts of Rawls and King to Examine the Potential for Justice in America

    Read More

  • Black Women´s Hair Throughout History and their Identity

    1828 Words  | 4 Pages

    There have been musicals, documentaries, researches, panel discussions and even talk shows about hair, hair qualities and hairstyles, even Oprah Gail Winfrey chose hair for the magazine's September 2013 theme. According to Adlman (2013), Oprah Winfrey in a video interview said, Women, we have issues with our hair, [Black women's] hair represents the first thing anyone sees of them, or of ourselves, and so we identify with what our hair looks like. The History of Black Hair: Hair Story by Ayana Byrd and Lori Tharps (2002) is an entertaining, concise survey that follows a mostly sequential path which begins in Africa and ends in America. It details the roots of black hair care in America, from centuries ago to the modern day, outlining how much hair truly signifies much of African culture. “Ever since African civilisations bloomed, hairstyles have been used to indicate a person’s marital status, age, religion, ethnic identity, wealth and rank within the community” (2002:3)

    Read More

  • The Exploitation and Objectification of Women in Rap

    1182 Words  | 3 Pages

    Women have consistently been perceived as second-class citizens. Even now, in times when a social conscience is present in most individuals, in an era where an atmosphere of gender equality 'supposedly' exists, it is blatantly apparent that the objectification and marginalization of women is still a major social issue. In reality, progression in terms of reducing female exploitation has been stagnant at best. Not only is the degradation of women a major problem that to date has not been eradicated, but it is actually being endorsed by some music celebrities. There are a growing number of people who purchase rap albums that support the fallacy that women are mere objects and should be treated as such. As the popularity of rap continues to climb at unprecedented rates, so too does its influence on the perception of women. In the vast majority of hip-hop songs, the depiction of women as sexual objects, the extreme violence directed towards them and the overall negative influence these lyrics have on the average adolescent's perception of women make rap the absolute epitome of female exploitation.

    Read More

  • Music Video Analysis: If I Were A Boy

    1150 Words  | 3 Pages

    It has been played in many other countries and is listed in many major hit charts in those countries. It became one of her best-selling singles. Beyoncé has been singing about women’s independence since she was in the hit group “Destiny’s Child”. Many of her songs support women’s lifestyle and keep cheering up girls with her powerful and expressive vocals (Armstrong). In addition to her songs and lyrics, her beautiful appearance fascinates many female audiences and influences from teenagers to grown-ups as if she was a role model. A negative side of the video is that the video gives the impression that men are always to be blamed and women are always “victims” of the relationships, which is not

    Read More

  • African American Hair: The History Of African American Hair

    1157 Words  | 3 Pages

    “Hollywood is an industry that gravitates toward trends, but the natural hair movement has gone unnoticed and unaddressed on small screens all across the country” (Gordon, 2015, para. 4). Recently, the shows that are rated high, black women are wearing weaves and wigs instead of their natural, unprocessed hair. When analyzing Olivia Pope from scandal or Gabrielle Union from Being Mary Jane we all see that they obviously wear weaves and wigs. Even though natural hair is missing from hit TV shows, some stars, such as Lupita Nyong’o, the 12 Years a Slave star has strutted the red carpet with their natural hair on display. Only time will tell when more roles will feature women like Tracee Ellis Ross; starring in ABC’s new comedy Black–ish, sporting the big natural hairstyles that more and more Black women have been embracing. I believe actresses have fear of being limited by their natural hairstyles and that’s why weaves and wigs continue to dominate the

    Read More

  • Hair Discrimination Essay

    1800 Words  | 4 Pages

    Almost 250 years of slavery and anti-blackness within the United States has created a divide in what type of hair is acceptable. According to Cynthia L. Robinson, “Black hair texture is graded” (Robinson 2011). Precisely, this means that a Black woman has either good hair or bad hair. Good hair has a resemblance of European hair texture, meaning straight and wavy curls. Good hair also diminishes the look of African ancestry. Bad is the complete opposite. The texture is kinky, coiled, and thick, giving the appearance of short hair (Robinson 2011). Hair that bears a resemblance to Eurocentric beauty standards is more beautiful and makes the individual with that hair type more beautiful as well (Robinson

    Read More

  • Racism And Injustice

    124 Words  | 1 Pages

    A lot of people cannot understand that racism is a kind of injustice. Race is an artificial classification made by ignorant people as it is not a natural or a genetic distinction. God has created all human beings equal but sometimes people fail to understand that for many reasons like their ignorance of the history, culture and belief of the other race. Racism has destructive consequences and it prevents the development of society. It leads to division of society and harmful conflicts. Moreover, it can lead to enslavement and even wars and colonization. So, people have to understand its causes that make it still existed to stop it and develop the society as there are no innovations, inventions and developments in a racist

    Read More

  • Beyonce Fan Culture

    1233 Words  | 3 Pages

    The well-known Beyoncé also known as yonce, Bee, Sasha fierce, Mrs. Carter is famous for being named Queen B by her fans, the Beyhive. Being one of the most powerful women in the music industry, Beyonce creates her own type of identity which most of her fans relate to. Beyonce expresses freedom of sexuality, equality of races and gender, the power of a mother and the power of love in all her music. (Johnson, 2014). Beyonce has developed a very unique yet famous fan culture, she is known as the Queen and her fans are known as “Beyhive”. This fan culture is very unique according to rolling stones magazine because they constantly support Beyoncé, attacking other celebrities who are against her or any accusations against

    Read More

  • Racial Injustice In America

    1022 Words  | 3 Pages

    The United States of America grants there citizens civil liberties. Civil liberties give these citizens the rights to speak, believe, and act as the chose. The Constitution as well grants the people the right to express themselves freely without being penalized.

    Read More

More about Beyoncé's Influence: Addressing Social Issues through Music

Open Document