Beyoncé Knowles-Carter has cemented herself as one of the greatest artists of all time. The 42-year-old singer, who just announced a new album, has amassed diversity in her success, from her albums to her brands, and commercials. Despite her admirable achievements, much of society holds the opinion that she is overrated. Anyone who looks at Beyoncé’s long list of awards, records, and accomplishments can see that the singer is not undeserving of her current status. It poses the question: What makes someone considered overrated in the first place? Does it have reasoning behind it or is it more of, “I don’t like this person, so they don’t deserve their success”?
I don’t remember when I first started to listen to Beyoncé, but I think I’ve always been partial to a hardworking and seemingly kind woman. I do recall, however, getting angry at the freshman-year lunch table when my friends were talking about how she was overrated. At that point, I wasn’t listening to as much of her music as I do now, but even then, I thought their reasoning was silly. Beyoncé is not the only female celebrity that society deems as overrated. Singer Taylor Swift and athletes like Alex Morgan and Serena Williams have also been brought up when discussing who deserves their success. Most of the time, it’s coming from men who don’t believe women should have much recognition at all, or sometimes, it’s regular people who think they could do the same easily.
My opinions about Beyoncé are biased, but I still believe that this label many female celebrities and athletes receive is rooted in misogyny and racism. For people like Beyoncé, Taylor Swift, Alex Morgan, and Serena Williams, they have proved themselves time and time again. Beyoncé and Swift have both broken hundreds of records and have a combined total of 46 Grammys. Athletes like Morgan and Williams have each won multiple tournaments and medals. So, what else would they need to do to “deserve” their success? Opinions on music and athleticism aside, these achievements did not come by without hard work and dedication, especially for black women. Even though women now have more opportunities and freedom in their respective fields, it isn’t easy when many industries are still male-dominated. Even though it appears to be rather easy for big-name celebrities like Beyoncé and Williams to find success, many seem to ignore what it takes to get there.
Female celebrities face factors such as unequal pay, sexual objectification, and harsh media coverage. Their every move is looked through a magnifying glass by those who hope to catch a story. They can’t show any feelings other than happiness, appreciation, and grace or they are subjected to judgment from both the media and viewers. They rarely receive apologies and instead deal with the brunt of backlash on their own. They lack the grace given to male celebrities for making mistakes or simply being a human in the spotlight. The immense pressure of being a female star is significant. Artists and actresses are expected to consistently come out with new music or projects. Athletes are expected to always win games or gold medals, and when they don’t, conversations arise over their well deserved respect or success.
Music and sports preferences are, of course, one’s opinion, but writing off accomplished women as overrated due to your own opinions writes off what they have done in extremely cutthroat industries. Women of color particularly have overcome a plethora of barriers and also face systemic racism. A woman can achieve essentially everything there is to achieve: the records, the awards, the overcoming of challenges, but it’s still not enough. Men, more often than not, do not receive this treatment, and when they do, it’s not rooted in bias against their gender. Women constantly have to raise the bar and invent something new to prove what they already have. This doesn’t just happen in entertainment and sports fields, but STEM or corporate ones as well. While it seems like a minor and silly issue with favorite songs or sports teams, it runs deeper as the root of the issue reflects society’s perception of women. To recognize these issues, one must look internally at how society’s opinions influence their own when it comes to successful women.