Beyonce´ released the latest vignette in a video series where she explains various elements that went into creating the audio and visuals for her latest album. In “Self-Titled Part 4 -Liberation,” she talks about putting her sexuality on display and coming into herself as a new mom who still wants to feel confident and sexy, and as a woman who still has dreams. So many people have had opinions about her work and her motives that it’s nice to hear where her head was during the creative process.
The video opens with Bey talking about the process for “Partition” (one of my favorite songs). Assuming you’ve heard her album by now, and I really hope you did, a lot of the songs and corresponding visuals are sexually suggestive and racy but not raunchy just for the sake of getting attention. Beyonce´revealed that while she is comfortable with being sexual, it was embarrassing to be so open about it during the recording process but she got over it.
For the video, she recreated a Crazy Horse routine that inspired her years ago. She and Jay-Z went to a Crazy Horse show (in Paris) on the night they got engaged and she was so inspired by the sexiness of the dancers that she wanted to be a part of it, so she enlisted them for the video.
Get into cabaret style entertainment!
She also addressed changes she went through once she gave birth to Blue Ivy and working hard to feel normal again postpartum. She doesn’t believe that mom’s should be frumpy and boring and I agree. I’m not a mother but there also seems to be similar belief systems in place when it comes to wives. I’ve seen a lot of women lose themselves to relationships whether it’s marriage or motherhood. They let their bodies go, they give up on their happiness and don’t nurture their own desires, and become people who are constantly saying “I wish I could,” or “Coulda, woulda, shoulda.” I realize that the aforementioned life changes are critical aspects of a woman’s life but I feel it’s also important to maintain elements of your individuality to help foster optimal happiness for all parties involved.
Beyonce´talks about this toward the end of her video when she explains her 195 lb weight gain during pregnancy. She lost 65 lbs following the baby and she felt proud and accomplished, like anyone who loses weight or achieves their optimal physique should.
“I wanted to show my body. I wanted to show that you can have a child and you can work hard and you can get your body back. I know finding my sensuality, getting back into my body, being proud of growing up, it was important to me that I expressed that in this music, because i know that there are so many women that feel the same thing after they give birth,” she says. “You can have your child and you can sill have fun and still be sexy, and still have dreams and still live for yourself. I don’t at all have any shame about being sexual and I’m not embarrassed and I don’t feel like I have to protect that side of me because I do believe that sexuality is a power that we all have.”
Say that again, please!
What she’s saying speaks to me as a 31-year-old. One of the changes I’m experiencing in my 30s is a new found sense of confidence that I didn’t have in my 20s. I heard a lot of women mention this transformation in the past but there’s nothing like experiencing it.
I love her album because it exudes self-confidence, embraces femininity and represents the power of sensuality. I’m still quirky and awkward at times but I’m a work in progress. Again, if you haven’t heard Bey’s new album yet (assuming you’re a fan of pop music) then you should. There’s a lot of good material on there for dance playlists and it’s especially pole dancing gold.
In related news, I may have to make that trip to Paris so I can check out Crazy Horse. However, in the meantime, I guess I could check out some local cabaret and burlesque classes.
