@SagittariusN2U I don’t even think it was fully shade, she really did fw that song lowkey 😭😭

@KirBbeeHolic2 @LalaAmie79 Y’all are being weird and antiblack… I agree it’s a little silly to promote hair care products in a wig but trying to use her natural hair being short and coily as a gotcha is ugly asf and Beyoncé would beat y’all asses for doing that coon shit

@lidolmix Sorry but sometimes the slow emotional ballad version eats. I also want to remind everyone that the play in question was a ROMANTIC musical. Why tf were Sharpay and Ryan (siblings) even auditioning for the main parts?? 😭😭

@PaIIahAbdul What is pushing the needle about this though? Like genuinely what’s she doing here that other pop girlies haven’t already done (and better)

@katsinazaria @__jahlil__ You got it boo

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ You got it boo

@katsinazaria @__jahlil__ mind you i 100% agree with that analysis of "This is America". and again i'm not denying that Beyonce's performance had a message or deeper meanings. I just don't think the use of the flag specifically was as clearly central to that message, which is why ppl jumped to propaganda

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ i mean that's been my whole point 😭. kendrick's usage and message was much clearer than Beyonce's, hence ppl were more likely to read it as propaganda (which is a reading i've said like 500 times i don't even really agree with so like..) just agree to disagree.

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ depth also does not automically indicate critique. beyonce's message in the album and performances are clear. i just don't think being critical of american imagery is a key part of that message. if you somehow read that cool, but many people didn't hence the discourse

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ well other examples typically have a clearer representation of the critical aspect i.e the flag burning, the colos inverted, the flag upside down, the flag in an unexpected context etc etc. just having the flag there behind a plastic sheet isn't so clearly critical

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ well no i didn't admit my interpretation is flawed. i'm recognizing that some may disagree but whether it's right or not has no bearing on my overall point which is that her use of the flag imagery didn't read as critical of the US as clearly as Kendrick's did, that's it

@kellcur @__jahlil__ bc celebration of black southern culture does not automatically imply political criticism of the US to me (nor does it have to), but that's all i'm trying to say. the rship btwn the visuals and a message that's critical of the US was not *as* clear

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ but how does that track with the remainder of the project being dripped in red, white and blue? If we're turning away from American ideals wouldn't it make more sense to not invoke American imagery?

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ but how is that a critique specifically of the symbol itself? celebration of black southern culture doesn't automatically imply critique of America as a political entity. And yeah that's just my reading, but my main point is I think to general audiences it was also not clear

@kellcur @__jahlil__ And I think that diff is why ppl read her usage of the flag as less political/subversive and more aesthetic, which gives way to propaganda allegations. In a way that I don’t think would make as much sense with Kendrick

@purla0317554 @kellcur @__jahlil__ How did her performance criticize the symbol?

@katsinazaria @__jahlil__ But see my point is I don’t think it’s (entirely) that. I think there was a very clear difference in the message of both performances and the way flag imagery was utilized in relation to that.