Upside My Head (Pay Attention Now)

Thursday, May 19, 2016

Formation and #BlackGirlMagic: Conversations with my granddaughter

I have tickets to see Beyoncé in concert on Monday, so in high-squeeeee anticipation, Lemonade has been on constant rotation in my life, especially in my car. Last night as my 11-year-old granddaughter and I were driving to her track practice Formation rotated on and she started singing along, passionately. She clearly knew all the words.

I'm okay with this. It's #BlackGirlMagic and she was feeling it.

But I wanted to make sure she knew why she was feeling it, so on the way home I asked her if she knew what the song meant. She said, "Kind of. Not really."

Next came the deconstruction message, kid style.

I said, "It's a song that's for Black women and girls everywhere that celebrates being who you are and where you are from. It's about being independent and in charge of your life. That you don't have to take crap from anyone or let anything take you down. And most important, be you."

Then we listened again and as we car-danced and sang along, there was no doubt she was listening especially hard to the words, so with a little help from me, we got all extra loud on some key lines:

...I see it, I want it
I dream it, I work hard, I grind hard 'til I own it
Cause I slay, I slay, I slay
Okay ladies now let's get in Formation cause I slay
I just might be a Black Bill Gates in the making
I slay, okay, I slay...

Of course there are words and themes in this song that are not for a child's ears, but she already knew all those words anyway, so why not emphasize the ones that create the important message - isn't that what good deconstruction and education (and grandparenting) is all about? (Oh, and yes, I had to explain who Bill Gates is.)

Besides, what could be cooler than an 11-year-old Black girl and her 60-year-old white grandma bumping and singing Formation on their way down Lake Street, through the heart of South Minneapolis? I mean, seriously.

All kidding aside, Beyoncé's work these days is no joke. Have you read the Lemonade Syllabus or paid attention on Black Twitter? Queen Bey is causing a ruckus in all the right ways. She takes her pop-culture, superstar status and slays with messages of Black female empowerment, feminism, overcoming anything, being your authentic self, and getting free. #BlackGirlMagic indeed.

She is someone who is accessible to my grandchild and offers up fierce and powerful messages to her - and to Black girls and women everywhere. And all of the rest of us along for the ride, too.

This morning, I watched my grandchild as she expertly got her hair into shape with a flat iron, repairing the damage from a post-track practice water fight. (Yes you read that right - she does her own hair. Her mother is not about raising an entitled child and expects her to take care of her own business and to do her share at home). As she walked out of the house and to the car there was a little extra sass in her walk. She was confident and slaying, 11-year-old style.

#BlackGirlMagic