User talk:Marinieuw

This is the talk page for Marinieuw (talk) 15:04, 9 February 2016 (UTC)

Assignment No. 1
Halftime performances on Superbowl Sunday are a spectacle. As someone who has never been very interested in American Football, the halftime shows are usually the only part of the event I care about. This year's Superbowl Sunday was graced by the presence of acclaimed performer Beyoncé. The day before, her new video Formation was released to the public, and during her halftime performance was her first time performing this. It’s in Beyoncé’s style to release new albums and music without much preamble, and once again it was all a lot of people could talk about on various social media platforms. In one weekend the Beyoncé fans received a new song, a new music video, a performance and the announcement that there would be a World Tour this summer. As someone who has only recently become a fan of Beyoncé, this was a wonderful thing to hear. The music video for Formation was amazing, and the Superbowl halftime performance equally so. The song was a met with a mashup of Bruno Mars’ Uptown Funk, and together they made the crowd go wild. In two days, Beyoncé managed to make the entire world aware of her new song and that's important for a couple of reasons.

The performance caused discussion due to the way Beyoncé and her backup dancers were dressed in the attire of the Black Panthers; it was the 50th anniversary of the formation of the group. It caused controversy on the Internet due to the militant, aggressive connotation the Black Panthers have. I don’t believe that is the connotation that Beyoncé intended; instead, she wanted to send a strong, political message to the world about her stance in the state of current racial tensions in the United States. Through this performance, she showed her solidarity to the people of colour in the States. While Beyoncé has always been a large advocate for the civil rights movement, this performance reached new heights. Representation from celebrities is always seen as incredibly important, for many fans are often prepared to listen to her idols. Therefore I find it so significant that Beyoncé provides this information, because with her voice and her influence, she is able to bring important issues to light. I hope that Beyoncé keeps using her power in this way, and making amazing music as she always does. Marinieuw (talk) 19:44, 9 February 2016 (UTC)

REPLIES:

I saw this as well and remember thinking that it was very unlike Beyoncé to take such a political stance, but I admire her for it. It never crossed my mind to assume Beyoncé would be condoning the actions of an aggressively militant group, but showing her support to the African American community during a time when they are being aggressively oppressed. The song Formation itself seems to be Beyoncé just celebrating the African American culture in the States and giving the people reason to be proud of their community, heritage and achievements. Riinamaria (talk) 14:21, 11 February 2016 (UTC)