Beyoncé’s recently trending hit, Formation, really shows who Beyoncé is and her background from which she comes from. She carefully chose the lyrics to this song to center around her life, such as her family, heritage and even her fame. This music video depicts the issue that the black community is facing, such as police brutality, lack of attention the blacks receive, and the aspects of black culture. Throughout the whole music video, there is no coincidence in anything that is shown or seen, as Beyoncé knows that she already has such a mark on the world. Each decision into making this music video and choosing the lyrics for this song, are to get the world to see everything through her perspective. 

Police brutality is used through unexpected forces or being excessive to get what they want by using their authority. The one thing that the police want the most is their high authority and the respect that they think they deserve. They believe that they are more powerful than any other civilians, therefore when people look down on them and don’t respect them, then they use their power in the wrong way. Lately, there has been an issue involving white police officers being discriminate against the black members of the community. In “Formation”, a young black child, dressed in all black, wearing a hoodie, is dancing in front of a bunch of officers in full combat clothing. This is related to the scene of police officers in Ferguson, Missouri, where Mike Brown was shot. Michael Brown, an unarmed black teenager, was shot and killed on August 9th, 2014, by Darren Wilson, a white police officer, in Ferguson, Mo., a suburb of St. Louis. This depicts how the white police officers were discriminate against the blacks, and there are many other cases to prove this. After watching this little boy dance and show off all his talents instead of being a harmless stereotypical black boy being a threat, this child shows fearlessness, talent, and daring in the face of adversity. Also, other important scenes in “Formation” involving police brutality is the scene where there is graffiti on a brick wall, that says “Stop Shooting Us”, the wall of SWAT officers lined up, and the New Orleans police car sinking into a body of water. This is related to the Black Lives Matter Movement and other racial justice topics, which is all for another day. 

The very first line of this song says, “What happened at the New Wil’ins?”. This is in relation to the Hurricane, Hurricane Katrina, that happened on August 29th, 2005. Some of the very first scenes in “Formation” include the city under water and the aftermath of the city due to Hurricane Katrina. Apparently, New Orleans didn’t get the attention they deserved or needed to get individuals back on their feet just because it was mostly a black community. This shows the discrimination of the blacks never receiving the attention that everyone should, of whites, blacks, or anything in between. Once again, the scene where Beyoncé is laying on the New Orleans sinking police car that is in a body of dirty water depicts the tragedy of the dark time that this community went through, barely being recovered or offered help from the Government. 

In Beyoncé’s music video, “Formation”, she also portrays her culture, the black culture. She wants the world, or everyone that listens to her, to know exactly where her roots are from and she isn’t ashamed of anything. She uses phrases like, “I like cornbread and collard greens” to shows that yes, it is stereotypical for blacks to like those things, but it is okay for individuals to be stereotypical when you are proud of your background. Beyoncé embraces being black and wants everyone to know how proud she is to be who she is. She even has a clip in this music video of her own daughter, Blue Ivy, in this music video to prove that family is a big thing in the black society, and to depict that her daughter should be proud of her roots as well. She uses the lyrics “I like my baby hair with baby hair and afros”, to show that being natural is beautiful and that all black women should embrace themselves naturally. Not only does she embrace the black culture, but she embraces the fact that she is a black woman. She embraces all the aspects of her identity and what made her who she is today. The scene where Beyoncé has her head out the window and her hair hanging down while the car is doing what is called figure eights or donuts in an abandoned parking lots references how she confident to be who she wants to be. She can wear her hair the way she wants to wear it and she will embrace it because that is what she wants. Beyoncé uses her power and fame to show that she is proud of her heritage and background through the many different scenes in her famous music video.  

Many people, including myself, listen to this particular song on repeat, not even knowing the important message it conveys, as it also has a catchy beat. This video cuts deep into the mistreated lives of the black community in relation to police brutality, the black community being ignored and rejected, and their background and culture. This is her own personal ode to black culture, and she shows no regrets towards anything. Beyoncé’s powerful message in “Formation” goes out to the black community and her heritage. She believes that everyone should be proud of where they come from, no matter the judgement and troubles from the outside world. Queen B really hit this one out of the park and went way above and beyond in order to be successful with this powerful message. 
