I wasn’t going to say something, but I’ve seen enough things being Said that I kind of had to say something, which I hate, because it puts me in the category of people who have said stuff. But here goes, and I’m sorry.
White people writing analyses and critiques of “Formation”: “Formation” isn’t about us, for us, or at us. At all.
It isn’t an attempt to educate us about black culture, or what it means to be a black woman, or what it means to be a black woman in the South, or #BlackGirlMagic. It’s not a cry for cross-racial unity. “Formation” is an unapologetic celebration of something that isn’t ours, for the black women who saw it for the first time and instantly (or even gradually) found themselves and reveled in it.
It isn’t about us. (Yeah, that’s what that feels like.)
It is great to love it, feel moved by it, and even be changed by it. But when it comes to talking about it, what we should be doing is listening. Not trying to fit it into the context of our own lives, and not judging things that we don’t understand because they haven’t been tailored especially for us. Actively listening. Seeking to listen. So I’m going to stop talking now, WPWAACOF. Join me.
Listen:
Danielle C. Belton at The Root: Beyoncé Drops ‘Formation’ for the People, the Black People
Evette Dion at Bustle: Beyonce’s “Formation” Video Is A Call To Arms For Black Women
Margaret E. Jacobsen at Romper: Beyonce’s “Formation” Lyrics Are A Reminder Of My Own #BlackGirlMagic
Aliya S. King at Essence: Beyonce and the ‘Formation’ of Black Girl Feminism (When the Hot Sauce Isn’t Enough)
Tiffany Lee at Black Girl Dangerous: If You Ain’t Got In-“Formation”
Nicki McGloster at Elite Daily: Beyoncé’s ‘Formation’ Spells Out What It Means To Be A Black Feminist
Jenee Osterheldt at the Kansas City Star: Super Bowl’s biggest winner? Beyoncé’s celebration of blackness
Red Clay Scholar: Getting in Line: Working Through Beyonce’s “Formation”
Dr. Zandria F. Robinson at New South Negress: We Slay, Part 1
And on the Daily Show, Jessica Williams verbally dismembers critics of Beyonce’s spectacular Super Bowl halftime performance, which was rife with historical significance and political messaging and thus deemed too scandalous for the delicate sensibilities of middle America, who apparently can’t handle being reminded that black lives matter.