Supplemental Post 7 - Clayton Vozzella

Here, I write about Beyoncé for the last time... this semester.

Over the weekend, Beyoncé headlined at Coachella, the first black woman to do so in the festival's history. And let me tell you, my Queen did not disappoint.

Her performance centered around black excellence and higher education for black folks. During her performance, she sang "Lift Every Voice and Sing," known as the black national anthem, quoted Malcolm X, and celebrated black marching bands, a cornerstone of black culture and Historically Black Colleges and Universities. She also sampled Nina Simone's "Lilac Wine," which segued into her own "Drunk in Love" with her husband Jay-Z. You thought that was it?

The Queen also brought out her sister Solange for a dance duo, and reunited with her original girl band, Destiny's Child.

She also wore some incredible costumes, including a cape with Nefertiti embellished on the back, a yellow sweatshirt with Beyoncé's "black woman sorority" on it, and a top with her name, Nefertiti, and a black panther on a shield.

Beyoncé received a lot of criticism for agreeing to perform at Coachella, mainly because the owner of the festival has been outed as a extreme right wing conservative. But, Beyoncé totally subverted that, and brought her black A-game. What's most interesting is that Coachella's audience is primarily well-off young white people. In an Instagram post following Beyoncé's performance, her mother expressed her concern over Beyoncé delivering this show to a crowd of white folks who may not understand her message. To that Beyoncé responded that she now has this incredible platform, and that she will use it to give her people a voice and to make change. She wanted to express the need for higher education for black folks, and celebrate their history and culture.

I can best conclude my post with this tweet by @BringTheBeatIn: Not arguing with folks over Beyoncé today. At this point if you don't get it, you just don't get it. I prefer to have Beyoncé to myself anyway. The masses don't deserve her.

Thanks everyone for a great semester! Beyoncé bless America.