Music

I am sure almost everyone has heard of the latest album released by Beyoncé. Lemonade, Beyoncé’s 6th solo album after her previous album, Beyoncé, was released on 23 April 2016. Lemonade is also her second visual album, and was a big hit, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200. In its first week, 485 000 copies were sold, earning Beyoncé her 6th consecutive number-one album in the whole of America. Though this album which has 13 songs consists of mostly R&B (rhythm and blues), it also has a variety of genres like pop, hip hop, country, and many more.

Some of the songs that are more striking than the others to me are ‘Love Drought’ and ‘Sandcastles’.

‘Love Drought’ is written by Ingrid Burley, Mike Dean and Beyoncé. This song has a slow and sleepy harmonisation, which matches the lyrics of the song. Despite the speculations in the media about the lyrics of the song being inspired by Jay Z’s infidelity, in an interview on June 2016, Beyoncé revealed that that was not true.

‘Sandcastles’ is a song under the genre soul, which combines elements of African-American gospel music, R&B and jazz. It is a ballad with the themes of forgiveness and reconciliation. The lyrics of the song are very meaningful, saying how Beyoncé and Jay’s relationship is vulnerable, just like how a sandcastle is easily washed away by the waves if it is built too close to the shores.

Sources:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lemonade_(Beyonc%C3%A9_album)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Beyonc%C3%A9

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Sandcastles_(Beyonc%C3%A9_song)

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_Drought

Wong Jing Rung

2D