Beyoncé, Dec. 9, 2016
**** THREE EXCERPTS FROM ONLINE WEBSITES ABOUT BEYONCE'S "FORMATION" SONG/VIDEO
Beyoncé - "Formation"
...Written By Slim Jxmmi, Pluss, Jordan Frost, Mike WiLL Made-It, Swae Lee & Beyoncé
Release date- Feb. 6, 2016
Genius Annotation
[9 contributors]
"Formation” is a Black Power anthem, a fitting contribution to Black History Month and an important conversation piece in the Black Lives Matter movement. The song was released one day after what would have been Trayvon Martin’s 21st birthday and one day before what would have been Sandra Bland’s 29th birthday. Martin and Bland’s deaths are focal points of Black Lives Matter.
Continuing the trend commonly attributed to her surprise 2013 album release, “Formation” was surprise-released alongside an unlisted music video the day before her appearance as part of the Super Bowl 50 halftime show, where she performed this track. After her performance, she announced The Formation World Tour. “Formation” was later included as the closer for Beyoncé’s sixth album, LEMONADE, which was surprise-released on April 23, 2016.
New Orleans bounce musician Big Freedia, who appears on the interlude, noted the song and video showcase Bey “paying homage to her roots.” Bounce music originated in New Orleans and is a faster paced style of hip-hop music.
Shots from the music video come directly from Chris Black and Abteen Bagheri’s 2012 That B.E.A.T., a bounce music documentary filmed in New Orleans. After some initial controversy, a rep for Beyoncé confirmed proper credit and compensation had been attributed to the film makers. Watch That B.E.A.T. below. "...
Ask us a question about this song
"What have the artists said about the song?"
Verified Commentary
Swae Lee via Fader:
"When I made that Beyoncé hook I was thinking nothing about it. I make a lot of songs, so I’m just thinking that this is another song. A couple months later, Mike tells me that Beyoncé wants it. I couldn’t imagine!"
[…]
What has the media said about the song?
Genius Answer
[contributed by the breakup:
"In 2018, NPR ranked this as the #19 greatest song by a female or nonbinary artist in the 21st century, saying:
Beyoncé’s two great obsessions — love and power — combine on her personal-is-political masterpiece, 2016’s Lemonade. Like the album itself, ‘Formation’ is a defiant celebration of black womanhood and the singer’s Southern heritage. Though it finds her croon flawless, the song shines when she shifts to a raspy rap and deploys a series of lethal one-liners, culminating in a masterful parting shot: ‘You know you that bitch when you cause all this conversation.’ It’s a brilliant single, but Bey transcended the sonic realm with her self-titled album in 2013, and every track she’s recorded since is inseparable from the imagery rolled out to accompany it. In this case, that meant a music video dense with references to Hurricane Katrina, racist policing and the resilience of black communities, followed a day later by dancers in Black Panther berets flanking Beyoncé at a Super Bowl performance. Released early in a year when overt racism and misogyny bum-rushed American politics, ‘Formation’ remains the radical apex of a sui generis career." "
****
EXCERPT #2
From https://www.theguardian.com/music/musicblog/2016/feb/08/beyonce-formation-review-super-bowl-rallying-cry-black-consciousness Beyoncé's Formation review – a rallying cry that couldn't be more timely
Beyoncé’s Super Bowl surprise single was the perfect way to follow her shock album from two years ago: she’s made a black consciousness masterpiece
Alex Macpherson, 8 Feb 2016 EST
"Fully realising a masterpiece can be a double-edged sword. In the two years since Beyoncé “changed the game with that digital drop”, I’ve frequently wondered just how she could possibly follow it.
If Beyoncé herself has been beset by such concerns, it doesn’t show. On Formation, she doesn’t just answer that question, but savours every delicious moment of making her statement. Just listen to her voice – or rather, voices; hanging out with Nicki Minaj (and indeed co-writer Swae Lee, one half of rap scamps Rae Sremmurd) has clearly had an effect. There’s the amused drawl of “y’all haters corny with that Illuminati mess”, the barely suppressed giggle about keeping hot sauce in her bag, the sudden giddy exclamation as she lands on the word “chaser” in the chorus. It’s one of Beyoncé’s most playful performances to date: she treats the Mike Will Made It-produced beat the same way a cat treats a ball of wool. With its rubbery springing steps giving way to horns, clattering martial tattoos and the kind of heavy bass that goes straight to your hips, there’s plenty for her to toy with; its loose approach to structure makes it more akin to a freeform dance routine than a conventional pop song.
[…]
Formation’s declarations of identity are carefully chosen for political weight and layers of meaning. “I like my negro nose with Jackson 5 nostrils,” she declaims in the half-rapped, half-sung cadence that’s served her so well ever since she haughtily flipped In Da Club in 2003. It’s radical self-love, of course, but the metaphor is a flashing reminder of the troubled alternative that has faced black stars before now.
The video, meanwhile, opens with the singer crouched on a New Orleans police car, half-submerged in a flood – and closes with her lying back as the water engulfs both her and the vehicle. In between, footage of the city post-Katrina is interspersed with grainy shots of dancers shot from above, as though from a police helicopter; opulent gothic mansions straight out of the antebellum South, now owned by Beyoncé and her band of black women in vintage lace. Most effective of all is an extended shot of a child dancing in front of a row of riot police, who raise their hands in response to his moves before the camera cuts to graffiti reading “STOP SHOOTING US”.
[…]
As with her hyper-specific lyrics, it feels notable that she seems increasingly uninterested in universality; Formation’s references are designed for maximum resonance – or perhaps alienation, depending on where you stand. It’s a song ostensibly about Beyoncé’s identity that forces the listener to acknowledge their own identity – a bold move from the world’s biggest pop star, who over her career has been no stranger to the kind of song written so vaguely as to apply to anyone and anything. The presence of New Orleans bounce rapper Big Freedia works in a similar fashion; Formation may be Beyoncé’s blackest song yet, but thanks to Freedia and a healthy dose of exhortations to slay, it’s also her most gay.
[…]
The central tension in Formation is between its playfulness and the anger underpinning it; often, there’s a disconnect between Beyoncé’s carefree voice and the powerful images on screen. As it goes on, though, the significance of the dance becomes clearer. If Beyoncé’s self-titled album was a fundamentally personal statement, the painstaking work of a woman engaged in deep analysis of herself, her desires and her place in the world, Formation finds her turning her attention outwards. Ultimately, it is a rallying cry, and it couldn’t be more timely; when Beyoncé begins to exhort her ladies to get in formation, it’s the sound of a militia being prepared for battles ahead."
****
EXCERPT #3
From https://www.teenvogue.com/gallery/beyonce-formation-music-video
7 Reasons Beyoncé's "Formation" Music Video Is a Powerful Statement
During Black History Month
This was no coincidence.
BY INDIA HILL, FEBRUARY 6, 2016
… "ASIDE FROM the video obviously showing off Bey’s killer
moves — because this is a Beyoncé music video, after all — and her adorable
daughter, Blue Ivy, the video dives deep into the issues that the black
community is currently facing, from police brutality to unrealistic standards
of beauty. The timing is perfect, considering it is Black History Month. And if
you know Beyoncé, you know that nothing she does is a coincidence. She’s got
something to say, and she’s going to make sure you hear her loud and clear. IT
IS a literal ode to black culture, and it makes no apologies for that. People
who say that they “don’t get” this video or that it’s not “speaking to them”
need not apply: it’s not for the entire world to approve of, or even consume.
Beyoncé does not need the world’s approval — she has her own. In a time where
we have to remind others that black lives do matter, in a time where the parts
of our culture that we were previously ridiculed for are currently being
appropriated and made into the mainstream by our white counterparts, it’s
absolutely refreshing to see Beyoncé stand up in her blackness,
unapologetically, and make a statement. SHE HAS created her own lane and is
using it to take a stand, while simultaneously SLAYING in every way
possible...and here’s how:
1/7
She’s going on record to take a stand against police
brutality.
[…]
2/7
It may have seemed like the government forgot New Orleans
in the wake of Hurricane Katrina, but she hasn’t.
[...]
3/7
She unapologetically references multiple aspects of black
culture...and wants you to remember where they come from.
Black culture has been becoming increasingly popular, and is
more often than not appropriated by the mainstream culture that likes to
pretend they “discovered” it. (For the record, Miley Cyrus did not invent
twerking.) Beyoncé wants you to know that she is not here for your Columbusing.
She's been nodding to her Creole heritage ever since the “Deja Vu” video, and
her Texas roots have been evident since “No Angel," but "Formation"
is a blend of everything and more. The references in the song range from her
choice of soul food — “I like cornbread and collard greens, b*tch, best to
believe it” — to the livelihood of a black marching band, worshipping in a
small, black church, and even the voodoo magic that is still very much a part
of Creole culture. Bey has not forgotten her roots: “Earned all this money but
they never take the country off me,” she says. She is not in the business of
shying away from her blackness to appease anyone, but rather embraces it and
everything that comes along with it. And her presence demands that you believe
her.
4/7
Black children matter.
If it’s wasn’t enough that Blue Ivy is already slaying in
music videos at the age of 4, she — along with all of Beyoncé’s dancers — are
donning afros. This is not an unconscious choice on Beyoncé’s part. Blue’s hair
has long been the topic of unsolicited critique, even though she’s a toddler
who shouldn’t be subjected to complete strangers’ scrutiny about her
appearance. Blue and the rest of the squad serve as a reminder that natural
hair is beautiful. And in case you wondered, Beyoncé says she “like my baby
hair, with baby hair and afros.” Any more questions?
5/7
She's flipping the script on “Hands up, don’t shoot.”
One of the most powerful scenes in the entire video is that
of a small child dancing in a hoodie in front of a line of officers in full
combat gear — a scene reminiscent of police officers seen in Ferguson,
Missouri, the town where Mike Brown was shot — before they put their hands up
and surrender to him….
6/7
Not only is Beyoncé black, but she’s a black woman.
In a world where things are tough for people of color and
women, being a woman of color is an extra hurdle. The singer isn’t going to
apologize for either her blackness or her womanhood; instead, she embraces
every aspect of her identity. Hair is and has always been a way for black women
to bond with each other, express themselves, and make a statement. Bey and her
dancers rock multiple hairstyles in the video: she hangs her long, golden
braids out of her car window, and women with blue and purple extensions stand
defiantly in the beauty supply store….
7/7
She's proud of what she's accomplished...and is telling
her girls to "get in formation" and run the world right alongside
her. ..."
-snip-
The bold font is used in this article.
Regarding 4/7, here's information about what African Americans mean when we refer to "baby hair" (also called "edges") from https://www.allure.com/story/how-to-style-baby-hairs-2016-06 ; 12 Inspirational Ways to Style Your Baby Hairs by Andrea Arterbery, June 28, 2016
"Baby hairs are those small, very fine, wispy hairs located around the edges of your hair. They can be long, short, or even curly, depending on your hair type and texture. Typically found on children (hence the word "baby"), they can also follow you into adulthood.”...
Click https://pancocojams.blogspot.com/2021/06/videos-and-article-excerpts-about-doing.html for the 2021 pancocojams post entitled "Videos And Article Excerpts About "Doing Your Baby Hairs" ("Laying Your Edges")"
****
Thanks for visiting pancocojams.
Visitor comments are welcome.
