
Beyoncé’s “Formation” music video is comprised of a multitude of colors, genders, actions, facial expressions, and repetition of scenes. All of these devices are used to create and develop a political statement that is shown visually throughout “Formation”. With this political statement Beyoncé is trying to show the world that police brutality against African Americans is relevant and is happening all too often. 

“Formation” the music video is specifically set in Louisiana because Beyoncé’s mother is from there. We know Beyoncé has family ties to the state because she sings the lyrics “My daddy Alabama, Momma Louisiana”. The following line says “You mix that negro with that Creole make a Texas bama”. This shows the viewer that Beyoncé not only has family ties to the south, but she was also raised in the south. Big Freedia is featured in “Formation” to help bring Beyoncé back to her southern roots. Big Freedia is a well-known New Orleans hip-hop artist that creates a type of music called bounce music. This New Orleans hip-hop music is featured in “Formation” to show the viewer that Beyoncé is proud of where she came from and that she has not forgotten who she is. The setting of Louisiana is particularly important in the music video not only because it relates to Beyoncé, but because it is a state that has had many police brutality cases. A famous case involves an African American male named Alton Sterling. Alton Sterling was shot several times in close range by two white police officers after an anonymous person told them Sterling had a gun. This shooting led to protest throughout New Orleans and was the first of many more police brutality cases to come. 

While the setting of “Formation” and the addition of Big Freedia help develop Beyoncé’s political point, Martin Luther King is also used to further the point. Martin Luther King is mostly known for his “I Have a Dream” speech, which explains why the newspaper is titled “More Than a Dreamer”. This shows that like King, Beyoncé is trying to act upon how she feels instead of wishing that police brutalities will stop. She is using her platform as an artist to show that she will fight for the rights of other African Americans like King did. The publisher of the MLK article is also important because it is called “The Truth”. This is significant because Beyoncé is visually showing that “Formation” the music video is simply just the truth. The truth that police brutality is relevant and all too frequent.

Actions are used to show the different levels of seriousness between adults and children. Along with actions, the viewer is also drawn to the mouths of the people in “Formation” when a close up shot is used. The viewer is specifically drawn to the differences between Beyoncé and her daughter Blue Ivy because of their relation to each other. Blue Ivy is featured twice at the beginning of “Formation”. The first time she is shown running around with two unknown girls, while the second time she is seen looking directly into the camera. A close up shot of Blue Ivy smiling and swaying her hips is used to show the viewer that she is happy. Unlike Blue Ivy, Beyoncé is seen throughout the whole music video and is shown without smiling. This gives the viewer a sense of anger and seriousness. The focus is brought to Beyoncé’s mouth particularly in the close up shot of her wearing a large hat. The hat covers most of her face, which draws the viewer directly to her mouth. In this scene, Beyoncé is shown sticking her middle fingers up and singing provocative lyrics. The rest of the adults also have straight faces throughout, which back up the feeling of anger and seriousness within “Formation”. Towards the end of the music video, an unknown boy is shown dancing in front of a line of police. A reverse shot is used to introduce him in the music video. As he is dancing he stops to put his hands in the air. The line of police follows him by putting their hands up as well. This visually shows that police should take their hands away from their guns and put them up to avoid another case of police brutality. The actions and facial expressions of children throughout “Formation” show the viewer that children are unaware of what is happening in the world around them. They see the good in the world while adults are forced to see the ugly truth. African American adults realize that they have to protect both themselves and their children from becoming another statistic of police brutality.

Color is a key concept in “Formation” because it alludes to a bigger meaning. Although many colors are used throughout “Formation,” the three main colors include white, black, and red. White is used to represent purity and innocence. This color is typically associated with happiness and a sense of newness, while black is the complete opposite. It is used to represent pain and death. Blue Ivy and two unknown girls are shown clothed in white, compared to a little boy that is clothed in all black. This is significant because children are seen wholesome, but the boy is not shown as wholesome because of his attire. The all black outfit is used to represent the likelihood of him becoming another victim of police brutality. A popular reoccurring scene in “Formation” involves Beyoncé on top of a sinking police car. In this scene she is shown dressed in a white and red stripped dress. The white represents the innocence of police brutality victims, while the red represents the unnecessary blood shed of the victims.

“Formation” consists predominately of women. This shows that women are strong willed and empowered, even though they are seen as fragile compared to men. Beyoncé is showing her dominance by placing herself in the center of each scene, including the few scenes with men. Beyoncé shows her appreciation to the natural African American females and males by singing the lyrics “I like by baby heir with baby hair and afros/I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils”. These are a few of the stereotypes society places with African American people. Each time these lyrics are sung, Beyoncé’s shows the natural African American women with natural hair. In the past, Beyoncé’s family has been scrutinized based on features that both her daughter and husband possess. With these few lines Beyoncé is letting the world know that she likes natural features of African Americans and does not want to change them.

“Formation” was able to make such a big political statement by referencing past events and bringing to light current events. The music video developed this political statement by bringing in color, gender, actions, facial expressions, and reoccurring scenes. The addition of other famous people throughout “Formation” further developed the political point in the music video, while helping to visually depict the statement for the viewer. 
