Africa is BLACK IS KING, but y’all don’t get it…
Other than the people who criticize the film due to their personal religious preferences, EVERY African I have heard criticizing Black is King has been LOUD & WRONG!
While I do think there is room for criticism for Black is King and for the lack of diverse representation of Africans and Blacks in general in the media, I think most critics lack depth of thought and consideration around the topic. They all sound like film and book critics who did not do their research.
To those who say East Africans were not represented…
Beyonce’s Black Is King is a LOVE STORY TO AFRICA, according to her own statements. It is not designed to represent ALL OF AFRICA as Africa is a continent with 56 countries and THOUSANDS of ethnic groups. There is no way she can represent them all. Furthermore, this is not a documentary.
To those who say she tried to make it look like everybody was a king in pre-colonial Africa…
She did not claim she wanted to tell the story of prehistoric Africa. She did not even claim she was trying to tell the story of Africa today. She said IT IS A LOVE STORY TO AFRICA. Period! Obviously everything about that film is a metaphor. I don’t see anybody talking about it metaphorically as it was meant to be discussed.
I believe that Africa is the baby in the film, personally. I believe she is sending a metaphorical message to Africans and Blacks about who they are deep inside. People are taking it literally and insulting something based on what it is not. That’s like going to Dunkin Donuts and insulting them for not selling hamburgers instead of just going to Burger King. If they are looking for documentaries they should go to the History channel or National Geographic.
Beyonce used Yoruba spiritual archetypes based on the fact that majority of slaves brought to the Americas were from that coast, and she told a story of a child who was separated from his inheritance and got consumed by worldly entrapments, and is being called back to his greatness by the spirits of his ancestors. If the story of Africa told using African religious archetypes can not be seen for the loving work of art it is, then the whole world is clearly insane.
Fortunately, I believe Black Is King is a seed, the fruit of which will be seen possibly decades from now. People are not ready. Once upon a time, people were not ready for Black men in American baseball, football and basketball. So, I’ll wait.
