AlcyoneSong
Established
- Joined
- Aug 19, 2019
- Messages
- 485
So I watched the film/video album Black is King...
I'm still processing what I saw because there is SO much to unpack. Béyonce doesn't just do things haphazardly. There is intention in every shot. You have to be critical about what you see and not take it at face value. This website has helped me and a few times I had to stop the film and rewind back to see what I thought I saw.
The movie claims to be a movie to promote Black Empowerment. Yet it doesn't do that. Instead it's an illuminati infused narrative laced with animism, spirituality, and esoteric symbols. Beyonce is certainly giving the elite what they want, and holds no punches back.
She peppers this with images of African ancestor worship (animism), Voudou icons (Baron Samedi makes an appearance along with Hathor, Mary, and other African dieties from the Western Coast)
Symbols of Currency
Throughout ALREADY and the rest of the film you’ll spot certain symbols; cattle, goats, cowry shells, gold, rings, grills, durags, and chains. All are traditional and contemporary symbols of currency and status, even outside of the African diaspora.
Yellow and Oshun
Beyonce wears yellow throughout the film (like she did in Lemonade) alluding to Yorubariver goddess Oshun, representing love, fertility and sensuality. It also harks back to the rejuvenating power of water. Oshun is remembered in the lyrics to MOOD 4 EVA too.
There isa hidden umbrella, giving a nod to Akan culture, with its peoples spread throughout Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, and Togo. You need to understand the Akan's were responsible for many of the slaves that were taken to the Americas. They were NOT the good guys.
"From the 15th century to the 19th century, the Akan people dominated gold mining and trading in the region; throughout this period they were among the most powerful groups in Africa.The Akan goldfields, according to Peter Bakewell, were the "highly auriferous area in the forest country between the Komoe and Volta rivers." The Akan goldfield was one of three principal goldfields in the region, along with the Bambuk goldfield, and the Bure goldfield.
This wealth in gold attracted European traders. Initially, the Europeans were Portuguese, soon joined by the Dutch and the British in their quest for Akan gold. The Akan waged war on neighboring states in their geographic area to capture people and sell them as slaves to Europeans (Portuguese) who subsequently sold the enslaved people along with guns to the Akan in exchange for Akan gold. Akan gold was also used to purchase slaves from further up north via the Trans-Saharan route. The Akan purchased slaves to help clear the dense forests within Ashanti. About a third of the population of many Akan states were indentured servants (i.e. Non-Akan peoples). The Akan went from buyers of slaves to selling slaves as the dynamics in the Gold Coast and the New Worldchanged. Thus, the Akan people played a role in supplying Europeans with indentured servants, who were later enslaved for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. In 2006 Ghana apologized to the descendants of slaves for the role the Ashantis had played in the slave trade."
They sold their own people out.
This is also why the narrative changes here. We say Black is King? NO. It's a half-truth.
The message Beyonce sends is a disturbing one because superficially it seems "empowering" but if you dig into the history and the cultures showcased the narrative changes into something very insidious.
I'm still processing what I saw because there is SO much to unpack. Béyonce doesn't just do things haphazardly. There is intention in every shot. You have to be critical about what you see and not take it at face value. This website has helped me and a few times I had to stop the film and rewind back to see what I thought I saw.
The movie claims to be a movie to promote Black Empowerment. Yet it doesn't do that. Instead it's an illuminati infused narrative laced with animism, spirituality, and esoteric symbols. Beyonce is certainly giving the elite what they want, and holds no punches back.
She peppers this with images of African ancestor worship (animism), Voudou icons (Baron Samedi makes an appearance along with Hathor, Mary, and other African dieties from the Western Coast)
Symbols of Currency
Throughout ALREADY and the rest of the film you’ll spot certain symbols; cattle, goats, cowry shells, gold, rings, grills, durags, and chains. All are traditional and contemporary symbols of currency and status, even outside of the African diaspora.
Yellow and Oshun
Beyonce wears yellow throughout the film (like she did in Lemonade) alluding to Yorubariver goddess Oshun, representing love, fertility and sensuality. It also harks back to the rejuvenating power of water. Oshun is remembered in the lyrics to MOOD 4 EVA too.
There isa hidden umbrella, giving a nod to Akan culture, with its peoples spread throughout Ghana, Côte d'Ivoire, Benin, and Togo. You need to understand the Akan's were responsible for many of the slaves that were taken to the Americas. They were NOT the good guys.
"From the 15th century to the 19th century, the Akan people dominated gold mining and trading in the region; throughout this period they were among the most powerful groups in Africa.The Akan goldfields, according to Peter Bakewell, were the "highly auriferous area in the forest country between the Komoe and Volta rivers." The Akan goldfield was one of three principal goldfields in the region, along with the Bambuk goldfield, and the Bure goldfield.
This wealth in gold attracted European traders. Initially, the Europeans were Portuguese, soon joined by the Dutch and the British in their quest for Akan gold. The Akan waged war on neighboring states in their geographic area to capture people and sell them as slaves to Europeans (Portuguese) who subsequently sold the enslaved people along with guns to the Akan in exchange for Akan gold. Akan gold was also used to purchase slaves from further up north via the Trans-Saharan route. The Akan purchased slaves to help clear the dense forests within Ashanti. About a third of the population of many Akan states were indentured servants (i.e. Non-Akan peoples). The Akan went from buyers of slaves to selling slaves as the dynamics in the Gold Coast and the New Worldchanged. Thus, the Akan people played a role in supplying Europeans with indentured servants, who were later enslaved for the trans-Atlantic slave trade. In 2006 Ghana apologized to the descendants of slaves for the role the Ashantis had played in the slave trade."
They sold their own people out.
This is also why the narrative changes here. We say Black is King? NO. It's a half-truth.
The message Beyonce sends is a disturbing one because superficially it seems "empowering" but if you dig into the history and the cultures showcased the narrative changes into something very insidious.
