This past Sunday was a lucky day indeed, as Beyoncé delivered an extended trailer for Lemonade to us mere mortals, which will air on HBO on April 23rd. We all wake up with eye masks on, but when we put our heads on the pillow, our lives are forever changed. In typical Beyoncé style, the trailer is a masterclass in occult imagery. Additionally, sources claim Lemonade is actually a "lengthy concept video." What does this all mean? How can we, a ragtag group of devoted followers, unravel the web that Beyoncé has spun before April 23rd? What can we glean from the trailer? What will we find after collection?
Beyoncé is no stranger to a) surprising her fans and b) raising our awareness through music videos. The last time she released an album - please let Lemonade be a new album, Queen Bey - was more than two years ago. It’s Frank’s ocean-level fringe behavior that makes us restless. It was an iconic moment not only in her career, but in the music industry. She eschewed the traditional album release model and suddenly rocked our world. If that wasn't enough, she's also given us a full visual album, with each video more stunning than the last. The videos for "Haunted," "Grown Woman" and "Pretty Hurts" are beautifully shot, packed with informative imagery (something she further capitalizes on on "Formation," released in January).
Which brings us to lemonade . The trailer shows us intense shots: thunder rolling across a prairie, a child peeking through wooden slats, black women sitting in formation with face paint, and most importantly, Beyoncé in various a state of brooding and anger (one particularly jarring image shows her angrily destroying CCTV footage):
If "Formation" is a discussion of contemporary black identity in the United States, then "Lemonade", as a longer concept video, may be an exploration of Beyoncé's personal definition of black identity. Beyoncé is a notoriously guarded public figure, which means we get a deeper look into her own psyche as she blends the personal with the political and artistic. The trailer for Lemonade suggests through its imagery and fragmented phrases that while there may be an identity crisis, Beyoncé is maturing into a woman deeply connected to her physical and emotional self.
The trailer addresses her deep love for her family and the way she's been affected by her environment (something she alluded to in the Ivy Park trailer); these ideas will soon become central to the new phase of her career theme. Given that her fans have been eager to get closer to Queen Bey, it could be very exciting to unpack these themes in a larger concept video.
Whatever "Lemonade" actually is, it certainly heralds another incredibly iconic phase in Beyoncé's already extensive and successful career. Isn’t April 23rd here yet?
Image: HBO/YouTube
