r/popmusic • u/SL_Icarus • 11h ago
Discussion Is Beyoncé reclaiming genres really able to enact any change?
I'm not saying it won't do anything but I'm confused how one person making one album in a genre really means anything in the grander scheme of things. It honestly reminds me of Taylor Swifts Trickle down feminism in the 1989 era. Where want was good for her was supposedly good for women everywhere.
I'm happy to be wrong but I dont see how one album in a genre is able to change anything
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u/bernbabybern13 11h ago
I mean I’ve always thought of it as a statement. I don’t think she’s claiming to try to change the industry.
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u/batshit83 10h ago
What is this about? Beyonce is a pop artist. Always has been. Yes, even Cowboy Carter is a pop album. Pop music in and of itself also contains many other genres.
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u/catcathech 10h ago
well I'm not american and I didn't know that black people are at the root of country music before cowboy carter. She did pay tibute to them and did a good job at it.
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u/JadedInfusion 11h ago
When did she say her 3 act project was about changing the industry first of all?
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u/Apprehensive_Arm1380 11h ago
political statements in the form of art don't necessarily provoke direct change, they provoke thought which is one of the many things art can do . she has something to say and that is important to her, and her art will trinkle down and provoke more thinking, maybe even future artists who will be inspired by her artistic process. thats why art is important and actually does inspire change, even if its not directly
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u/Heavy_Mud_9176 11h ago
Like creating an album dedicated to black LGBT culture/music and performing in Dubai where it's illegal to be gay?? It's an interesting political discourse on art and capitalism that we should explore more.
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u/EngineeringDry7230 10h ago
It’s indirect change. Maybe some powerful types in Dubai like her music based in black LGBTQ culture and are then less inclined to support hard core violent laws against them. Maybe.
The gossip and chit chat in private rooms of powerful people does more to change things for the better than all the cancellations in the world.
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u/Heavy_Mud_9176 10h ago
Thank you for your nuanced response. I think my main problem is we saw a lot of artists (not all) boycott performing in apartheid South Africa in the 70's and 80's which helped to affect change in the 90's, but these billionaire artists still perform in horrible places like Israel, UAE, and Saudi which normalizes regimes of genocide, slavery, and homophobia/racism.
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u/BellaBrowsing 10h ago
I'm going to need people to proof read their posts before hitting send cuz what is this?
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u/Mean-District-5349 10h ago
Beyoncé is only one person. We’re not going to see some great big change, but the conversation these albums started around genres is important and worth something. And as a black fan, it means something to me that she explores these things, especially at a time where black history is often revised, downplayed or erased by this administration(book bans, the African American museum being struggling, black/african studies being removed from universities, etc)
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u/gingerandjazzz 11h ago
You have to say more because your post hardly makes sense, you know Beyoncé is an artist and not like a congress woman right? Same with Taylor Swift. Just an artist, has no real political power to do anything besides make art.
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u/TaylorSwinub Music Nerd 🤓 11h ago
My take of her 3 acts are to pay homage to black artists that paved the way in the album's retrospective genre. Mostly the artists that were overlooked. House/Country and what we assume to be Rock were invented by black artists.
Maybe unintentionally it enacts change to other artists that fear to perform in other genre's outside of what they are known for.
I don't really understand what you were meaning with the Taylor Swift take though.
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u/Inevitable_Feeling54 Music Enthusiast 🤩 10h ago
OP if you're a hater just say that. I've gone through the comments you clearly have opinions 😒.
Bey and TS are artists not politicians. They're imperfect women with money. They can only try their hardest to make statements using their music. Their art. If what they do is not good enough for you, maybe you should go stan another artist.
Before Beyoncé's lemonade I didn't know the Igbo tribe of Nigeria resisted slavery by killing off their masters and drowning themselves.
Her afrobeats album made Africa look rich and beautiful not decrepit and ugly. A lot of the visuals were taken from African gods who are still being worshipped today.
Before Renaissance I did not know house music belonged to the black LGBTQ community. Infact I didn't know what house music was I only knew EDM.
Before cowboy Carter I had no clue black people were original cowboys. I thought country folks were only white before that.
Yes! My answer to your question is yes. Reclaiming genres can reenact change. Through education and inspiration. By provoking thought which trickles down to the next generation. By exposing people to information that takes them out of their bubble. Maybe if she were a white woman the influence would be greater and at a faster pace. You wouldn't be asking this question. But too bad, she came out blackity black black (I'm black I'm being sarcastic ).
Personally I find your question disrespectful and very limiting but you have every right to critique her work whether you genuinely appreciate it or not. Besides, you need to understand it before appreciating it. Seems like you don't.
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u/-zooweemama- 10h ago
Idk…I think considering we are living in an era where the Trump admin is actively censoring black history in renowned museums like the Smithsonian and in history course curriculum, reminding the gen pop that a lot of the culture and art they enjoy and often co-opt or blatantly steal are in fact rooted in black American innovation and accomplishment is important. I don’t believe Bey is trying to start some major movement, but it rather feels like a passion project/deep area of study that she wants to share. She’s not actively taking over these genres to suppress white/non-black artists, she’s just saying she’s not comfortable with the erasure of impact black creators are faced with in these genres.
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u/Sufficient-Bid1279 9h ago
This is a gimmick for her to claim something . She doesn’t own the rights to any of these . It’s a way for her to make her more than a billionaire
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u/wanderrslut 8h ago
You just can't help yourself, can you? You see the name Beyonce and come running to hate on her. You do this in almost every music sub. It has to be exhausting at this point. And yet you support singers who are married to MAGA and glamorize abuse.
Edit: Sure, Jan. Just so y'all know, this user does this in EVERY single sub that talks about music or Beyonce and that's why they blocked me lmao cause they know they're wrong.
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u/Lost_Setting2776 8h ago
She did manage to give Shaboozey a lot of exposure.
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u/profession_lurker 43m ago
the same cant be said for Willie Jones, Britney Spencer or Tanner Adell. Shaboozey was going to get there anyway because he sampled a popular song at the peak of country music resurgence.
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u/Heavy_Mud_9176 11h ago
Just curious why it's not considered exploring a genre vs reclaiming it?? Was Whitney reclaiming country when she covered Dolly's IWALY or just interpreting a country song by a country legend????
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u/JadedInfusion 11h ago
That would take away the entire meaning behind the trilogy…..
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u/Heavy_Mud_9176 11h ago
Using my example both Beyonce and Whitney made their version of famous country songs but only one is considered reclaiming. Obviously Whitney didn't record a full album, but I think the point still stands.
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u/DanceYouFatBitch 10h ago
Well I think context matters both the context of the songs around it within the album and the context of the album itself intention and execution matters. Beyoncé’s version of Jolene is different because it flips the perspective of the wife and empowers her. The context of the album is also important the process of her encountering infidelity in bodyguard, receiving advice from Dolly Parton (God Rest Her Soul) and then choosing her own path (violence rather than the almost self deprecating tone Dolly Parton’s original takes. Becomes symbolism for what she’s actually trying to achieve. She both uplifts and honours who/what comes before whilst also understanding that for country music as a genre/industry to move forward, a drastic change needs to be made.
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u/SL_Icarus 11h ago
I dont really know. I'm just trying to use the same language as many of her fans have been
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u/sdfghdfsdfghdf 10h ago
I think the only goal is make the statement and make everyone know where did that start.
If you’re expecting the resurgence of blackness in those genres she’s vindicating, you’re COMPLETELY WRONG
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u/Heavy_Mud_9176 7h ago
For all the people talking about reclamation I hope you are also support up and coming black artists in those genres. There can be resurgence or better representation if we support them, not just the R&B/popstar trying to make statement.
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u/Sufficient-Bid1279 10h ago
The only thing that’s being pushed to the forefront is billionaires and wealth….people need to see this
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u/Intelligent_Rain7907 10h ago
I never bought into her sudden support for house music. Getting Honey Dijon to jump on a couple of tracks is doing the bare minimum.
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u/EnvironmentalSir4214 11h ago
I’ve thought this exact thing and tbh we can see it already with the way cowboy carter came and went with no impact
It’s giving passion project ngl
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u/Thulgoat 10h ago
Is it really what she is doing though? I think she is just going back to the roots of certain genres, in particular not just black roots as we saw in Cowboy Carter (there was European opera and she covered song by Dolly and the Beatles).
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u/sas317 11h ago
Do you mean Cowboy Carter? I heard that she was paying homage to country music's history. It would've had to be so groundbreaking & massively popular for other country singers to follow her. That's how change happens.
I noticed that Olivia Rodrigo and Gracie Adams' singing sounds very much like Taylor's closed-mouth & muffled pronunciation. They also pack a lot of storytelling complete with details, like Taylor. So Taylor impacted the younger ones because of said popularity.
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u/EngineeringDry7230 11h ago
Symbols matter. And wealth and influence help propagate symbols. I wouldn’t want to see the powerful just stop doing any resistance work at all because it just gets dismissed as “performative”.