HΘMΣCΘMING, Beyoncé & Some Words.

Bzzz Bzzz Bih.

HΘMΣCΘMING. You must have been living on Mars to not have heard of Beyoncé’s new documentary with Netflix. An in-depth look at the behind the scenes of Beyoncé’s brilliant Coachella 2018 debut. An inspiring body of work that beautifully portrays Queen Bey’s human side and shows the serious amount of work that goes behind the scenes in showbusiness 

The first ever black woman to headline Coachella, a mother, a wife, a sister, a daughter. Whether you like her or not – There is something hugely impressive about Beyoncé and the way she handles her business, from her unflappable work ethic, her dedication to the culture, and her warmth simmering strength. Seeing a black woman at the absolute top of her game – with no competition is something I find very stirring. A black woman who is seemingly aware of the privileges being a lighter skinned and of a more worldly size brings her but using her platform to bring in other marginalised men and women. More often than not in other contexts I’m forever searching for representation, someone who looks a little more like me, who would have grown up with particular cultural formalities, who I suppose understands what it’s like, and obviously Beyoncé’s life is very different to mine, I’m a twenty-something British born Nigerian (very) working-class woman, the daughter of immigrants. But seeing a woman who I can identify with, more or less everywhere is wholly transformative. I feel ‘seen’, I feel acknowledged, I feel filled with the warmth of all the black female ancestors who have paved the way before me. Maya Angelou’s voice at the beginning of the documentary tacitly murmurs, “What I really want to do is be a representative of my race, of the human race. I have a chance to show how kind we can be, how intelligent and generous we can be. I have a chance to teach and to love and to laugh. I know that when I finish doing what I’m sent here to do, I will be called home. And I will go home without any fear, trepidations, wondering what’s gonna happen”. A soft reminder of everything I am, I do, I strive for with the little time I have with my earthly body. 

One of the parts of the documentary that really hit me was when we all realised that Beyoncé gruellingly prepared for a two-hour Coachella set for 8 months. It blows my mind and that type of hard work, dedication and preparation simply must be acknowledged. Before anyone chimes in with ‘she has help – I can’t relate’ – regardless, let me remind you that this woman had just given birth to twins via c-section, one of the most arduous tasks a woman can put herself through, her body, her mind, her emotional well-being everything not quite back to normality but B battled on, she showed up to her rehearsals and you can physically see her exhausted, sweating but still moving onwards and upwards – a true testament to black womanhood throughout the years. 

One simply cannot deny this woman’s influence. I promptly booked myself in for five gym classes after watching the documentary with my girlfriends. I set out my pressing goals for the month as well as things I need to tidy up. I sent out my CV and portfolio for another review to see if it’s hindering my job search in any way. I tidied my bedroom and pushed myself to sit down and write this post – Of course with a gin and tonic in hand. 

As I round up this piece, I’m listening to the great black thinkers Mrs Carter references throughout the documentary, Audre Lorde’s “Without community, there can be no liberation” gently ripples on the surface of my heart and my mind, a sharp reminder that the good fight cannot be fought by being a bystander and apathetic laziness simply isn’t cool anymore.

Have you watched HΘMΣCΘMING? If so, what did you think?

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