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‘Ring the Alarm’! Today, September 4th marks the 33rd birthday of the greatest entertainer of our time, Beyoncé Knowles. Beyoncé’s influence on music, pop culture, fashion, film, dance, and onto our glorious universe is undeniable and soars like a ‘Rocket’. Even as I type her name onto a blank Microsoft Word document, it reminds me how to properly spell the her name (Beyoncé! not Beyonce).
Though some may say, Beyoncé’s cultural influence is mediocre and one-dimensional; she is way more than the woman who ‘fills the tub up halfway then [rides it with her] surfboard… surfboard, surfboard”.
To ‘Countdown’ all of Beyoncé’s accomplishments, awards, and record sales would not only be monotonous and take me till ‘The End of Time’, it wouldn’t enthrall who she is and everything she has done.
Beyoncé is a cultural maven. Always in the eye of the consumer, who has built a brand in being no one else but herself. These days she doesn’t market herself as ‘A Single Lady’ but as a ‘Grown Woman’, a wife, a mother, and as a female activist. Though she has developed as a woman, artist, and as a person she never seizes to remind us that she is still after all, a ‘Naugthy Girl’. She still sings about love and sex. But has also begun to talk about a more serious subject matter: death, defying cultural norms, questioning society’s ideals of beauty, and what it means to be yourself.
2014 has been the year of Beyoncé, but hasn’t every other year been the year of Beyonce? After releasing her surprise self-titled fifth album December 2013, she went on to finish her solo tour ‘The Mrs. Carter Show’, then named Time magazine’s ‘Most Influential Person’, as well as joining her husband on this summer’s ‘On the Run’ tour. Which has become, according to Forbes, the second highest grossing tour of all time! The force that is Beyoncé is unstoppable and ‘***Flawless’.
Beyoncé is someone who knows the business of music. Ranging from her hits with Destiny’s Child to her solo work. It is ‘Crazy [in Love]’ to turn on the ‘Radio’ and not hear a Beyoncé song. Her musical influence is everywhere and is unquestionable. And just to remind you if you want another hit, ‘[she’ll] write another one… [she’ll] sneeze on the beat’ and you can guarantee, it’ll get sickah!
Beyoncé recognizes the power of media, the influence of public image, and how to be an innovator of the times. Beyoncé is now more than a brand and when someone thinks of her they are not just thinking about the woman, they are thinking about the voice, the music, the ‘Diva’, the look, the persona, the relationships, the performer, the glamour.
But take away Beyoncé’s marketing genius, beauty, wealth or commercial appeal and what is left?
Raw talent that over the years has been refined to make her my favorite and one of the most successful artist of all time. Beyoncé is not only ‘Schoolin’ Life’ but has become a leader of our generation. Though that may seem like a stretch, what can not be denied is that Beyoncé is truly ‘Irreplaceable!’
Happy Birthday.
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