Hey, white people: “Homecoming” isn’t for us
Beyonce at Coachella, 2019 Photo credit: Victoria Stringer
Photo by Victoria Stringer
I remember the sound. It was a low buzz that ran through your body and moved over the entire grounds of Coachella, electrifying you from head to toe. I remember it pulling everyone to the main stage, a hundred thousand people moving as one driving force. Beychella was starting.
As I watch Beyoncé’s documentary, “Homecoming,” I feel that same electric buzz I felt a year ago as I was sprinting across the polo fields to see the queen. But I feel something else again as well: the fact that Beyoncé’s performance was ultimately not meant for me, a white woman. I am a die-hard Beyoncé fan, but I must recognize that her music and her art are made first and foremost to recognize and empower the African-American community. To disregard this significance in her work would be to not truly appreciate it in all of its depth and to only experience it at a superficial level.
“It’s crazy to think that after all these years, I was the first African-American woman to headline Coachella. It was important to me that everyone who had never seen themselves represented feel like they were on stage with us,” says Beyoncé in a voiceover in Homecoming. Her historically black colleges and universities (HBCUs)-themed performance was born from a history of discrimination based on skin color that white people have never experienced. Her art was not intended for our experiences, and because of this, we are spectators only. I believe that it is extremely important to recognize when something is not made for you while still honoring the incredible work of art that it is. I will always sing along to Beyoncé’s music at the top of my lungs, but at the end of the day, it doesn’t really have anything to do with me — it is not my culture. In a world where so much is produced for and by the white experience, recognizing and honoring that which is not without attempting to appropriate it is so important. Appreciation, if you will, without appropriation.
Beyoncé claimed Coachella for herself that night, repossessing music and festival culture in a powerful way that demanded attention and asserted power. She spent 15 months creating a show that celebrated the education of African-Americans and then performed it at the biggest live music event in America in front of a mostly white audience, because her performance was for the minority present and that was what mattered. The editing of the documentary even re-emphasizes this message by only showing black audience members singing and dancing along to the show. “I feel like music can definitely be enjoyed by other people,” said sophomore Triniti Lemmons, “but by watching Homecoming alone, it was very obvious that her goal is to always highlight black excellence through her music.”
I recognize my privilege in being able to witness the piece of history that was Beychella in person, and I acknowledge the irony that said privilege is what allowed me to be there for a show not intended for me in the first place. I will always, always love Beyoncé; she makes some of my favorite music, and I appreciate her as much as I possibly can based on my own experiences. However, her art remains something I will not ever be able to understand in the way she meant it to be understood. Appreciation without appropriation is enjoying the music anyways, but refraining from claiming that you experience it in the same way that the intended audience does.
Sophia • Apr 18, 2020 at 11:14 pm
Almost always when people get super rich and hold great power they change. The reality is that this power can bring out ultimately the true person. Beyoncé loves her people and we must respect that. On a deeper level when you hold great power you have an obligation to those who love you. Beyoncé is an artist at heart, she has much left to learn about life.
Brad Knight • Feb 24, 2020 at 9:10 pm
The irony of saying that “white people have not experienced discrimination based on their skin color” when your headline is “Hey White people, ‘Homecoming’ isn’t for us”.
Historically ignorant and the very defintion of racist.
Beyonce makes music for whoever can pay to hear it. It is for whoever purchases it. Self-flagellate privately.
T B • Feb 22, 2020 at 4:54 pm
I’m black, And let me tell you something, Bey works with a record company, and it is owned by a man named Rob Speye a white man. I truly believe that no label would allow would sign some one in this day in age that doesn’t make music for all races demographics ect. (a major record company for some one who has a platinum selling album). That is a loss of money. I am not really a big fan of bey like all of you seem to be( I listen to her on the radio sometimes), but Its obvious that you are spending to much time and energy dissecting someones art when you could be spending time making your own uplifting your own cultures instead of disrespecting others. Grow up black people didn’t wreck anything, white people had no rhythm, almost all music came from from other cultures, look at all the sports the majority of the player are African american people, we made entertainment better period.
T B should educate himself • Mar 3, 2020 at 7:06 pm
Is this a fucking joke? White people have no rhythm and all music comes from other cultures? Only an idiot of epic proportions who’s completely illiterate when it comes to the fine arts and musical theory specifically would genuinely believe white people “have no rhythm” and didn’t contribute to music (on the same level as other cultures).
The FACT is, fool, that white people have composed the most complex music, both harmonically & melodically, not to mention the most technically advanced to perform human have EVER made. Period.
And there’s nearly half a fucking millennium to prove it. Give me just ONE example of an African composition that comes even remotely close to something like Rachmaninoff’s Rhapsody on a theme of Paganini in terms of nuance, depth and skill it took to compose. Just one, I fucking dare you.
Heck, go ahead and find me an Asian musician who’s composed works that beat the worst of Bach or Chopin. Go ahead and try. You will never succeed, because like I said, the fact of the matter is, Europeans (Russians included) are responsible for creating the most technically advanced music of ALL time.
How could that even be possible if white people supposedly “sucked” at music, or even something so basic as rhythm? I realize that ignorant, racist black Americans love to think of themselves as creatively and musically superior to white people, but there’s no evidence to suggest that’s the case.
And you know what’s funny? I’ve lived in Africa, and I do love African music and I have no doubt I know plenty more about real, traditional African music than you ever will (not to mention all of the African.. heck, world music I own), but I’m not delusional, and unlike you, this isn’t about defending or unjustly uplifting a particular race… it’s about respecting the great musical geniuses that have changed music history more than any contemporary trash musician ever will.
If white people sucked so much at rhythm, explain to me how Bach managed to write solo piano pieces using 4 voices, or how Chopin used the most complex polyrhythm (something you evidently don’t understand) ever seen in music. Christ, you’re an idiot. Just obscenely delusional and disrespectful towards historic giants. The idea that whites “have no musical culture” despite them producing the best musicians TO THIS FUCKING DAY is just more evidence of your obscene ignorance.
Greatest pianist of our time? Sokolov, a Russian. Greatest pianists of all time? Liszt, Chopin, Rach, etc. All white people. This is just ONE instrument. It’s basically true for the entire orchestra, and you know why? Cause all of these instruments were invented by white people. It’s in our blood. For the same reason that the Japanese will always dominate martial arts, white people will always dominate (complex) music. Because they’re the only “race” who’ve taken music as far as they have. I realize these facts will bother you, but unless you educate yourself on 500 years of music in the next year, you literally have ZERO fucking right to have an opinion on this matter.
Diavolus • Feb 11, 2020 at 11:10 pm
Wasn’t coachela found by white people? Are you going to put a race on this. I am going to say that white people made it once again, and black people ruined it… once again.
Fenja • Jan 19, 2020 at 6:33 am
For decades now there have Bern foreigners who listened to American music and watched American Movies without Full understanding the culture but still feeling connected to it. There are sometimes articles explainibg certain cultural aspects, but there was never the wuestion if these movies or songs were meant for Americans only.
Why is there the need of some people to continuously explain, „I like this but as I am white, I know it is not for me“.
Im too PC • Jan 17, 2020 at 7:29 pm
This is laughable at best. Another self-hating white person claiming the Black artists are somehow special and should be worshiped as we marvel at how “woke” they are. Perhaps Beyonce and other Black artists should stop accepting white fans money or better yet they should pay homage and respect to all the inventions they use that were created by white people
foreverawesome • Aug 19, 2019 at 1:14 am
if this was reversed and was a white woman singing and only having white dancers and singing about white people and empowering white people and basically saying that her concert was mainly intended for white people, it would be considered racist. just think about how if it was flipped. so yeah i think beyonce has become pretty racist, after her 4 album, i think she has gone down hill. i just feel like she is excluding white people and that we arent equal to her. i just dont get how people down understand that no one should be racist to any race regardless if one seems more or less privillaged. i am honestly disgusted by her coachello homecoming film, not one white person and i really dont like her singing the n word. just really horrible.
ya'll are racist af • Apr 29, 2020 at 2:05 pm
Dear “foreverawesome”, I’m reading this 1-year-old article and I can’t believe I’m coming across this racist ass comment, so even 1 year later I had to answer. You should be ashamed of yourself for claiming “reverse racism” is a thing. White people don’t suffer any form of racism, being judged, excluded, even enslaved at some point in history just because the color of their skin and cultural aspects. What Bey is doing is even more than a form of representation of people that are still marginalized to this day. “I feel like she is excluding white people” sounds so dumb. Your white ass that is literally represented EVERYWHERE in media since absolutely always can still appreciate her music.
Sarah Jo'on Yeoung • Apr 27, 2019 at 7:13 pm
You think you have the right to tell me what I can do? Who do you think you are? If people like you got their way in society, we would still be enforcing segregation and thought policing. If you think you’re gonna pull wool over our eyes, think again. I and many others will fight back against your constant attack on individual freedoms. You may think you’re progressing towards a brighter future, but believe me, the ends never justify the means.
Calliope Izquierdo • Apr 29, 2019 at 1:19 am
I’ve seen you commenting on a lot of trinitonian articles lately, and like, are you ok? Are you good? I’m not gonna make it appoint to give Victoria an award for writing this article because she didn’t write it for an award or special social points or whatever. But this is an important article to be visible on a primarily white campus: acknowledging the scope of your experience and how that affects how you relate to media (particularly Black media) is something everyone should do, but white people in particular have a more pronounced responsibility to constantly self-interrogate and be critical. While it is good to be weary of white people humbling themselves with the ulterior motive of earning “woke points” without living the things they speak, I don’t think this is it, necessarily. Actually at the precise moment of writing “necessarily,” it occurred to me that I don’t think you read the article, nor the other comments (or at least not one of them), and that I, probably shouldn’t expend the energy of finishing this sentence since I don’t expect you to read it either. But for the sake of posterity, I’ll double-down my assertion that actively pushing back against self-reflection minimizes the nuances of Beyonce’s intent as well as the undeniable fact that the totality of Black experiences are not white people’s to claim, even if by the omission of acknowledgment. In this case, “individual freedoms” aren’t relevant: a black person’s input on this topic is inherently more valuable than mine and yours because they could probably relate to the issue first-hand—but we shouldn’t expect them to do all the work of social critique for us.
And also, re: “[these projected personality traits] will be your downfall.” Do you know something I don’t? Because shit, dude. I can appreciate some spontaneous theatrics, but like, what cause are you trying to represent?
Sarah Jo'on Yeoung • Apr 27, 2019 at 7:11 pm
omggggggg some white person listened to Queen Beyonce!!@!!!!!!@!@@!!@!!@ Sound the horns of war this is HATE CRIME!!!!!!!!! Those people should be jailed and stoned for their transgressions!]
The wanton self hatred and lack of respect of others for the sake of superficial social virtue will be your downfall.
A white person • Apr 25, 2019 at 4:09 pm
I disagree with the assertion that her music wasn’t made for white people. Her music was formed by her experience as a black woman in the South in the same way as Toni Morrison’s writing or Maya Angelou’s poetry. That doesn’t mean that race is the entire encapsulation of her work. Beyonce writes about betrayal, loyalty, family, parenthood, commercialism, sex. All themes that any human, and American certainly, could relate to. To say that the art of a black artist is only made for black audiences reduces the totality of their experience and perspective to their race. This drives us apart rather than bringing us together.
Beyonce represents much more than just her race. She represents Houston, hip-hop culture, Texas, our country, her gender, her family, and herself. Any of these traits identify her and her work, and focusing on race comes at the expense of every other trait.
Victoria Stringer • Apr 25, 2019 at 5:31 pm
I of course agree with what you said about Beyoncé’s music having themes of betrayal, loyalty, family, etc. that everyone can relate to. However, my column was not intended to “reduce” her music, but to highlight the fact that to ignore the strong presence of black culture that is present in, and drives a lot of, her music, would be to devalue her work. I do believe that persons of any race can identify with the themes you named because they are themes consistent with humanity itself, I simply attempting to say that to reduce her music to those themes only would be limiting her scope as an artist and not fully understanding the purpose of a lot of the art she makes. I apologize if this was unclear; limited word count always leaves for some confusion!