Inside the biggest controversies surrounding Beyoncé’s ‘renaissance’

Long ago, Beyoncé decided to let her music speak for itself.

She said, “I am grateful that I have the ability to choose what I want to share.” Harper’s Bazaar Last year, in short, extremely rare an interview It is read as if it had been done via email. “One day I decided I wanted to be like Sade and Prince. I wanted to focus on my music, because if my art wasn’t strong enough or meaningful enough to keep people interested and inspired, I’m in the wrong business. My music, my films, my art, my message – it should be. That’s enough.”

Accordingly, Beyoncé hasn’t said a word about her excellent new album RenaissanceWhich didn’t stop her lead single “Break My Soul” from becoming her first #1 song in 14 years. Nor did it stop the album from dominating musical discourse for weeks, with the reference set’s interpretations of dance music history and news stories spawned by the twists and turns of a seemingly endless series of controversies.

The new episode of Rolling Stone Music now dives into the details of those controversies, while also presenting exclusive look In the making of one of her songs via producer Hit-Boy. To hear the full episode, which includes clips from Rolling Stone’s Mankaprr Conteh and Jeff Ihaza, listen to Apple Podcast or spotify, Or press play above.

Controversy points addressed in the episode include:

Activists referred to the capable language in the “hot”, while Kilis She complained about Beyoncé including fulfilling her “milkshake” without notifying her in advance; Either way, Beyoncé responded by retroactively changing the album. In the episode, we discuss those criticisms, and the editing itself, which changes recorded music into an endlessly recurring digital product rather than a static work of art — a moment Kanye West predicted with his famous 2016 “Ima fix wolves” tweet. Jeff Ehza explains why it can feel like These changes “miserable.“

Bishop Patrick L. Woodin Sr. from the pulpit said he found the gospel samples on the rotten “Church Girl” album sacrilegious, shortly after Fox News also criticized the album’s obscene lyrics.. Wooden gold as far accuse Beyoncé from selling her “soul to the devil”. In a segment with Mankaprr Conteh, we discuss Conteh’s piece that dismantles the album’s true messages, including “the distinct imagining of fidelity as uncontested by the profane” in “Church Girl,” as well as how the song can be read as a critique of religiously motivated homophobia.

In a sub-tweet that she fully advised, she later apologized for the songwriting legend Diane Warren He wondered how a single song could have 24 writers – an apparent reference to the “Alien Superstar” of the Renaissance. Frequent collaborator The-Dream responded: “It started because we couldn’t stand certain things at first, so we started sampling and it became an art form, a big part of black culture (hip hop) in America.”

In the episode, Hit-Boy explains how he was part of the team behind Travis Scott’s “Sicko Mode”, which is credited more than the “Alien Superstar” writers — and how the credits tend to reflect many producers, songwriters, and lyricists, as well as many The names are attached to any samples and/or extrapolations that the song may use. Moreover, after Marvin Gaye’s estate successfully sued Pharrell Williams and Robin Thicke over “Blurred Lines” just for borrowing Gay’s “Got to Give It Up” feel, artists seem to be taking credit for what may seem like minor or erotic borrowings Controversial of old songs for purely legal reasons.

Download and subscribe to the weekly podcast, Rolling Stone Music Now, hosted by Brian Hiatt, on Apple Podcast or spotify (or wherever you get your podcast), and check out six years of episodes in the archive, including career-spanning in-depth interviews with Bruce Springsteen, Halsey, Neil Young, Snoop Dogg, Brandy Carlyle, Phoebe Bridgers, Rick Ross, Alicia Keys, The National, Ice Cube, Robert Plant, Dua Lipa, Questloff, Killer Mike, Julian Casablancas, Sheryl Crow, Johnny Marr, Scott Welland, Liam Gallagher, Alice Cooper, Fleetwood Mac, Elvis Costello, John Legend, Donald Fagin, Phil Collins, Justin Townes Earl, Stephen Malcus, Sebastian Bach, Tom Petty, Eddie Van Halen, Kelly Clarkson, Pete Townshend, Bob Seger, Zombies, Gary Clark Jr., and many others – plus dozens of episodes featuring the genre – include discussions, debates, and explanations using rolling rockCritics and Reporters.