Mariah McMullen

Doran
ENC 2135
9/13/2016
Beyonc: Empowerment Through Genres
From the east coast to the west coast, extending from nation to nation, and even ranging
from race to race, the fight for female empowerment and independence is at a crux in todays
modern age. There are many female icons such as tennis competitor and world champion Serena
Williams, philanthropist and talk-show host Oprah Winfrey, and the current First Last of the
United States (FLOTUS) Michelle Obama who represent female empowerment and selfsufficiency. Each of the aforementioned women excelled and dominated in what they do or once
did, continuing to inspire millions of women today. In modern pop culture, performer, singer, and
fashion designer Beyonc Knowles-Carter is a fellow female icon and a powerhouse of influence
in regards to being strong, self-sufficient, and liberated. Beyoncs powerful messages and
anecdotes can be heard through her lyrics. Her multi-million-view videos not only deliver an
auditory message but allow audiences to see the music translated into a visual aspect through
dance and a visual story. Aside from self-expression through performing song lyrics and sending
a message through videos, interviews also help to express personal thoughts and ideas of
Beyonc herself from her own mouth. Through multiple genres, Beyonc reinforces and
encourages the fight for independence and strength for all women.
Beyoncs most anticipated album as of recent, Lemonade, includes themes of
blackness, infidelity, and freedom, using lyrics to turn her thoughts into powerful messages for
women and, particularly, African American women. According to Billboard, Lemonade has
become Beyonces sixth million-selling album at a total sum of 1.051 copies sold in the US
(Caulfield). This identifies logos because it puts in perspective how popular this album is,

allowing one to understand that the album has a large amount of appeal to many individuals. This
entire album, mainly the lyrics, display ethos as lyrics are personal, coming straight from
experiences of the artist who writes them down and utters them into existence. As a African
American female hip-hop and R&B artist, Beyonc speaks particularly highly of her own race,
proudly sharing aspects from her background and life. For instance, in the included track
Formation, Beyonc uses lyrics such as:
My daddy Alabama, Momma Louisiana
You mix that negro with that Creole make a Texas-bama
I like my baby heir with baby hair and afros
I like my negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils
Earned all this money but they never take the country out me
I got a hot sauce in my bag, swag
Beyonc is referring to her roots, explicitly identifying herself as a Texas bama while
simultaneously alluding to all this money, stating that her roots are not gone regardless of the
amount of money she culminated by just being herself (Beyonc). Continuing, she repeatedly
and proudly states that she likes her negro nose with Jackson Five nostrils, flamboyantly
stating her preference to African American likeness (Beyonc). This specific set of lyrics targets
the emotions of the target audience. This shows pathos because Beyonc is dishing out personal
details that many individuals may be able to relate to. Compared to other African American
hip-hop and R&B artists such as Nicki Minaj and Rihanna, Beyoncs music and lyrics speak in
a similar voice in regards to ideas of female empowerment. However, Beyonce defies much of
the characteristics of this genre by heavily including alluding to much of her past and where she
comes from. Instead of pulling from every day like many artists within this genre, she proudly

tells of her history in regards to her life not only as a woman but as an African American woman.
Through using this specific genre, Beyonc explicitly conveys her ideas and feelings about her
place as a woman in society by combining words into lyrics, hopefully sending a similar message
to women listening.
As of right now, Beyoncs video for her hit Single Ladies is her most-viewed music
video, reaching approximately 500,000,000 hits (Beyonc Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)).
This creates a sense of logos because, being Beyoncs most-viewed video, it goes to prove that
Beyoncs music and video combination has been viewed so many times that its popularity is
evident. Within this genre, Beyonc uses a savory combination of lyrics and visual appeal in
order to express herself. For those who cannot stand lyrics, a visual entity such as a video may
entice those to branch out a physically watch a spoken message be conveyed on a screen.
Singlehandedly, lyrics, while very powerful, do not live up to what video has to offer in regards
to live visual messages. In Single Ladies, Beyonc, dressed in an all-black high-waist leotard
paired with heels and followed by a posse of similarly dressed back-up dancers, uses her visual
appearance to draw the attention of audiences. Synchronized dancing to music that is energetic
and upbeat while combining lyrics such as, I need no permission, did I mention / Dont pay him
any attention and Acting up, drink in my cup / I can care less what you think visually creates
a sense of freedom from worrying about the opinions of the man she is talking to (Beyonc
Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It)). This creates a sense of ethos because while singing the lyrics,
she is creating a visual element of dance that creates a physical representation of the lyrics,
creating a sense of credibility that she definitely knows what shes trying to convey to audiences.
Likewise, Beyoncs music video for Diva uses her visual appearance mixed with audio and
her setting to send a message. The video opens with a title slide of the word diva and its

definition: a successful and glamourous female performer or personality. Following, Beyonc

appears donning a stern yet powerful poise while dressed in high heels, a black leather jacket,
and sunglasses concealing her eyes, emitting a dominant yet feminine presence. Instantly, she
presents a style and tone that proves she is, indeed, a diva. Throughout various outfit changes,
Beyonc speaks the lyrics: Na-na-na, diva is a female version of a hustla comparing the
lifestyle of an in-control and dominating diva to the aggressive and spirited lifestyle of a hustler,
noting that they are the same (Beyonc Diva). Beyonc can credit this to her own sense of
style and what she wanted to express. This conveys pathos because shes visually displaying her
message that many women can relate to. Across the planet, many women feel as if they are equal
to men in many ways and Beyonc speaks volumes when she says diva is a female version of
a hustla (Beyonc Diva). Videos are a way of showing translated visual aspects of songs
and lyrics. While Beyonc speaks of money and hustlers, she doesnt have to show off her sexual
appeal like many other female artists within this genre. Once again comparing her to the likes of
Minaj, Beyonc lacks the major exposure of her body and carnivorous reptiles like Minaj uses in
her well-known video for her hit single Anaconda. Indeed, Beyonc neednt shake dance
explicitly and dress in a revealing way such as Rihanna in her popular video titled Work.
However, each of these women are speaking words about the same thing: as a female, do what
you want to do. Minaj, Rihanna, and Beyonc all speak volumes about being an independent
woman.
Aside from expression through music and videos, interviews with Beyonc tell the same
story from a different angle. Many people enjoy music and videos, yet some others want a deeper
view of their favorite singer or idol. Interviews provide a deeper insight for many who simply
want to know more. For instance, in an informative yet modest interview with Elle, in regards to

her own fashion line Ivy Park, Beyonc comments on the idea of the role of being a businesswoman in running her own company, saying, Its exciting, but having the power to make every
final decision and being accountable for them is definitely a burden and a blessing. To me, power
is making things happen without asking for permission. Its affecting the way people perceive
themselves and the world around them. Its making people stand up with pride (KnowlesCarter). Basically, in being her own boss, she has the power to make the decisions she wants to,
in turn affecting others and making people stand up with pride (Knowles-Carter). Beyonc
alludes to a time where she realized that she had real power, describing her time after the first
Destinys Child came out: They [the label] allowed us to write our own songs and write our
own video treatments. It ended up being the best thing, because thats when I became an artist
and took control I realized that we had the power to create whatever vision we wanted for
ourselves (Knowles-Carter). Fortunately for Beyonc, her realization lead to her inevitable
success as an artist, giving many women someone to relate to. This appeals to logos because it is
common sense how Beyonc has become so popular, creating a role model for many women. For
many interviews, they vary from political to personal, such as this one. This interview helps to
convey ethos because Beyonc is pulling her own experience within the music industry and with
success out of her head, making Beyonc herself credible as they are her own thoughts. Women
like Beyonc may speak about other topics such as money or style, but Beyonc defies this by
speaking of her success through realizing that she was her own person, allowing herself to
believe that she could accomplish what she chose, and then creating a role model for many. This
creates a sense of pathos because many people look up to Beyonc as a successful individual,
hoping to be as bright and successful as her. While many of those individuals may not be able to
relate completely, they can emotionally empathize in order to understand Beyoncs journey. Her

success, in turn, lead to a message for women to listen to and sing with, inspiring them to pursue
their own dreams and realizations that they themselves can create who they want to be, no matter
their circumstance.
Throughout the various genres, Beyonc has expressed personal thoughts and feelings
that empower many women across the globe. Through cleverly expressed words in lyrics,
various senses of style and expression through the combination of lyrics and visuals, and
personal interviews, Queen Bs thoughts have delivered a powerful message to woman near and
far. However, one genre that I did not identify that would be useful for Beyonc would possibly
be a personal memoir. While lyrics and interviews are personal, a memoir would be on a new
level of personal. Memoirs generally allow those writing them to allude to intimate memories
and give real accounts of ones own thoughts and ideas. While interviews are very close to that,
they just do not do justice to the raw thoughts and feelings of memoirs. In a memoir, readers can
peak into the mind of the artist herself, peering into what fuels her energy and passion for
performing, soaking up the knowledge that inspires Beyonc to do what she does. It would be an
intimate approach to getting to know an artist, letting readers truly understand how Queen B
herself interprets everyday life and life lessons into empowerment for women of all kinds.
Word count: 1881

Works Cited
Beyonc. Formation. Lemonade, Parkwood Entertainment, 2016.
Beyonce Single Ladies (Put a Ring On It). YouTube, uploaded by beyonceVEVO, 2 Oct.
2009, https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4m1EFMoRFvY.
Beyonce Diva. YouTube, uploaded by beyonceVEVO, 2 Oct. 2009,
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rNM5HW13_O8.
Caulfield, Keith. Beyonce Scores Her Sixth Million-Selling Album in the U.S. With
Lemonade. Billboard. Billboard, 8 June. 2016.
Knowles-Carter, Beyonce. EXCLUSIVE: Beyonce Wants to Change the Coversation. Elle.
Hearst Communications, Inc. 4 Apr. 2016. http://www.elle.com/fashion/a35286/beyonceelle-cover-photos/. Accessed 1 Oct. 2016.

Revisions
This essay, unfortunately, was not my best work. Many revisions took place in order to
create a bettered version of my original essay. The most significant revisions include the
mentions of ethos, pathos, and logos within my genres. They are briefly touched upon in order to
help explain the specified genre. In some ways, it was difficult. In other ways, explaining each of
those rhetorical concepts was rather easy, such as ethos. Much of the genres I chose had some
appeal to ethos, like Beyoncs album Lemonade because it is such a personal album that is
made to appeal to the audience. Also, I went back and deleted a huge chunk out of the paragraph
about Lemonade as a I found I was rambling on too much about lyrics. Other significant
revisions include a more specified title placed on the genre of Beyoncs music in comparison to
other artists in order to tell the audience what specific genre I am speaking about. Also, I went
back and added another source in order to show that while Beyoncs album has great lyrics, is
credible, and appeals to her audiences emotionally, I needed to ensure that I added a sense of
logos by including Beyoncs number of Lemonade sales in the US in order to convey the
bigger picture of Beyoncs popularity and appeal to audiences through record sales.