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The Lineage of ‘Lemonade’
From Ma Rainey to Beyoncé, here are the ladies who tell it how it is
When Beyoncé released her visual album, Lemonade, in 2016, fans were overtaken by the imagery and odes to Blackness and womanhood, but they were also intrigued by her personal story of Jay-Z’s infidelity during their eight-year marriage. Beyoncé used her music to intentionally share experiences many women face—experiences that can shake you to the core: feeling powerless, confronting the mistrust of a partner, managing the anger and sorrow of loss. Her expression would become her healing, as well as that of her fans.
But long before Beyoncé, Black women singers were laying men’s shit bare on record. They also openly sang about the experiences no one is supposed to talk about: the loss of infants, abusive husbands, and lust. This lineage of women — from the early 1900s to now — used their music to reclaim their autonomy and hold the men who caused them pain accountable. They created the whole genre of music that speaks to gender and sex politics — and awareness. Their songs have empowered other women, paved the way for today’s artists, and introduced us to the power of truth-telling.
As Beyoncé recounted to Elle in 2019, “I began to search for deeper meaning when life began to teach me lessons I didn’t know I needed… I learned that all pain and loss is, in fact, a gift.”
Lemonade went on to sell 2.5 million copies worldwide, making it one of the top-selling albums of that year. More than that, culturally it opened the door for Black women to once again have a conversation in public that many of us whispered in private. Lemonade, however, was not alone.
Named the “Mother of the Blues,” Ma Rainey is one of the the first voices ever recorded singing the blues. The lyrics to one of her more popular songs, “Trust No Man,” cut to the chase…
