beyonce – Susan X Jane

Ricky Was Right

Ricky Gervais delivered on the promise of a no holds barred takedown of Hollywood in his opening monologue for the Golden Globes but one joke got the most attention. The left called him out for being another white man silencing the voices of people trying to make change. The right loved him for calling out […]

smntks Says

Five Sips of Lemonade

The power of the best artists lay not only in their ability to show you the now but their skill and imagination to show us what’s next. There can be no doubt that Lemonade shows us a more sophisticated and woke Beyonce.

You're Doing It right

Sweet Protection

If you think Beyonce was slaying as Oshun in her lemonade video, check out the real deal–Oshun is a hip hop duo out of New York who fully fux with the Yoruba deities. They take not just the look, but the spirit and intention of West African spirituality and infuse throughout their work. Check out their […]

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Formation: For Nation, For Self

This weekend in an increasingly unsurprising surprise-move, Beyonce dropped a surprise single, “Formation” which was surprisingly woke and, unsurprisingly, Black twitter’s collective head exploded. The video is a beautifully unapologetic apologia of black feminism, full of the trappings of contemporary blackness. And it is dope. The video is full enough of symbols to bang out […]

Yup, They Made That

Progress But Not Perfection

At this year’s VMA Awards Beyonce was determined to not be out twerked by the pretenders to the throne Minaj and Cyrus. She thrilled audiences with a spangle sparkly-pole-shimmying extravaganza featuring her greatest hits–as opposed to Solange’s greatest hits which took place in an elevator. In the middle of it all, Beyonce decided her brand […]

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The Deadliest of Chambers

Wu Tang Clan, rap royalty and cultural icons, recently put out their first single in 7 years, Keep Watch. The album is from the promised sixth LP from the group, Better Tomorrow. If you’re a Wu Tang Fan–and who isn’t–you’re looking forward to hearing some new material. Wu is hoping one fan is willing to go the extra […]

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The Grammys They Missed

Well, the 56th annual Grammy awards are all done but the hangover. In case you couldn’t stay up to catch them all, you may have missed a few awkward moments, some aging rockers and a truly touching wedding a-la Moonies. You also may have missed these award-worthy standouts. Ladies and gentlemen, the first ever smntks […]