
In Beyoncé’s music video, Formation, she exposes the real life situations that the people of New Orleans have been through and that African Americans still face in today’s society. She uses dramatic images throughout her video to shock viewers and to make them face the facts of the dangers that some Americans are living in. By learning about the social inequalities that have caused tragedies like the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina, people can understand the political and social justice movements that are taking place throughout the United States. Formation helps to create empathy for those who have loved and lost, and the video also creates a movement towards change in America. Through the use of visual images and lyrics depicting the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina and police brutality, Beyoncé’s Formation video conveys a message focused on bringing social justice to the black community.


In this first image, Beyoncé sets the scene for her message by using the background to further showcase her feelings of the devastation. The camera is far away from the central object creating a long shot of Beyoncé on top of a police car. She exposes the entire view of New Orleans and the destruction caused by Hurricane Katrina through using it as the background in her music video. The video directors and Beyoncé want us to take in the whole devastation of what Hurricane Katrina did to New Orleans. Additionally, by using a long shot, it seems as if Beyoncé is alone and isolates herself. It sends a message to the viewers that no one is around to support her and that she stands alone in her movement. The only other thing around her is the cop car which serves as a prop for Beyoncé’s message against cop violence in the music video. Beyoncé standing on the police car in the midground of the photo provides a centerpiece for the shot. She stands out in the image because of her bright red outfit and her peculiar perch on top of the drowning cop car. Beyoncé expresses her resentment towards the police by being on top of the car, helping it sink. Her extra-diegetic gaze intensifies the viewer's thought of the flooded scene as she stares right at us. Beyoncé wants us to understand the severity of her cause and message of the music video when she looks into the camera. The flooding water and destroyed houses provide a dramatic scene for Beyoncé’s video and show the devastation that Hurricane Katrina caused. The midground and the background provide a larger view so that we can understand the totality of Beyoncé’s message of the havoc that the hurricane caused in New Orleans. Overall, her message is clear in this screenshot because it gets the point across for both the devastation that Hurricane Katrina caused for thousands of people in New Orleans and the need for change in the behavior of policemen.

The music video Formation by Beyoncé is about black empowerment and looking for justice and accountability for the cops that have abused their power. In this image, the camera is behind the main character, giving an over the shoulder shot that shows what the little boy sees from his stance. The young child has both of his hands raised up as well as the cops in the photo which sends a powerful message of nonviolence and unity between the two. Both the policemen and the boy are wearing black clothes in the photo which helps to make a statement of the severity of the situation between police and African Americans. According to the color theory, black is a combination of all of the colors, so it is a mix of everything. Black is also a dangerous color which helps to send a violent message to the viewers. The young boy in the foreground of the photo takes most of our attention. He does not belong in this situation, since he is so young. The boy represents the future of the black community which is threatened by the current events of cop violence against African Americans. The viewers feel a deeper connection to this message of the video because he evokes our sense of compassion for children. In the midground, the police officers are lined up wearing their full protest uniforms with their hands up as well. This shows that the message of nonviolence that Beyoncé expresses throughout the video can be achieved when we work together. It is possible for cop violence to stop. In the background, the sun is setting and has a calming effect on the viewers. Additionally, there is a police car behind the line of cops, and they are in a neighborhood which makes the problem that Beyoncé is trying to showcase feel like more of an issue, since it is happening everywhere, even in our own towns. This image alone forces us to face the facts; children are also being swept into this messy situation of gun violence between cops and protesters. The lives of innocent children are being threatened in their own towns and homes as the gun violence and police brutality makes its way through the cities. The viewer watches as the characters gaze at each other reciprocally. The boy is observing the cops, just as they are looking at him. There is a sense of solidarity between the two sides in this photo as they stand with their hands raised together. Through a single image, Beyoncé is able to express the deep sense of unity that is needed between cops and African Americans in order to stop the violence and deaths.

The viewer sees the first image at the beginning of the music video when Messy Mya, a popular rapper and comedian from New Orleans, refers to the hurricane that happened in New Orleans. His words perfectly support the images we see in the video of Beyoncé in flooded waters with destroyed houses in the background. The second image appears when Beyoncé says “slay trick, or you get eliminated,” which is a phrase created by Beyoncé that invokes everyone to join the black lives matter movement or else it will not survive. Beyoncé fears that if the black lives matter movement is not together and formed full of supporters, then the movement will cease to exist along with their rights. Her overall message of the necessary transformation in the relationship between African Americans and police is expressed with images of the destruction in New Orleans after the hurricane and the black power movement for specific groups such as the black queers, black trans, and black women’s liberation. She uses images of the devastation in New Orleans to create a revolution and evoke a response from everyone. Beyoncé acknowledges that the African American community needs to be coordinated as group in order to be effective; they either stand together or fall apart. Both images are powerful and awaken the thoughts of the viewers as we begin to understand the importance of her message.
