If there’s anything good that came from Queen Bey getting cheated on, it’s her new album Lemonade. Beyoncé’s content, which is both personal and political, is on another level: she is way ahead in the industry. Lemonade is a creative vision like nothing seen before, comprising of powerful anthems to bop around to while pretending we’re about to smash someone’s headlights in. It also provides an important, often overlooked message.
The songs detailing Jay-Z’s affair, which are honest and harsh in the best way possible, refrain from blaming the other woman. This is too often the main focus of songs about cheating, and really takes away from the main issue: you were cheated on by the person that committed to you. Who benefits from blaming the other woman? Of course she’s not in the right, and you can validate throwing a little shade at her (like Beyoncé does with lines like “Becky with the good hair”) but if you pinpoint her as the root of the destruction of your relationship, you’re denying the real issue.
In one of her angrier moments of the album, Beyoncé sings: “I don’t wanna lose my pride, but I’ma f*ck me up a b*tch.” Like any rational person, she has a moment of utter resentment towards the other woman, but she doesn’t harp on this contempt throughout the entire album. Rather, she realizes that the only people who can make or break a relationship are the individuals that are in it. If someone comes between that, then you need to address the underlying problem. You shouldn’t take your anger out on the mistress, because you can’t win by pretending that it’s her fault. In fact, with that mindset, you will gain some fault, and you’ll subsequently be stuck in a relationship where you continue to excuse your partner’s mistakes.
On a small scale, Lemonade urges us to never blame the other woman if a partner proves unfaithful. On a larger scale, however, it empowers us break away from the mainstream notion that suggests women should pit themselves against each other. From the media to the workplace and school, we see this frequently. Strong women support each other. Jealousy restricts the success of women as a whole. Rather than comparing our victories to one another’s, we must embrace our successes in order to prevail in our male-dominated society, and thereby create stronger ties between each other and eliminate the encouragement of female rivalry. As a result, we will achieve greater success and a clearer vision than ever before. A Lao Tzo proverb reinforces this: “Because she competes with no one, no one can compete with her.”