Episode nine finds Beyoncé at home in 1957, ironing, scrubbing, washing dishes in bright blue rubber gloves, and drinking so many martinis that we see our Stepford wife glitching and, finally, breaking. "Why Don't You Love Me" is as much Beyoncé's take on her relationship to culture as on 50 years of American matrimony. Our analysis takes you from Los Angeles to Rio de Janeiro, with special help from Betty Friedan, Mr. Clean, Solange, Nina Simone, James Brown, and, naturally, B.B. Homemaker herself.
Episode eight is special for two reasons: We discuss our first song off Beyoncé’s 2016 album Lemonade, and we are joined by our first ever special guest — the writer and critic Mikaela Dery! "Sandcastles" comes down to three queens (with three accents) sitting on a beach and tracing bloodlines, matrimonial lineages, curses, betrayal, anger, forgiveness, and redemption. Cameos include Adele, Dolly Parton, Moira Rose, a conspicuously chastened Jay-Z, and lots of classically contemplative Bey.
Episode seven finally brings in Beyoncé's decades-long collaborator, lover, business partner, and homemaker, JAY-Z. "Upgrade U" wasn't one of B'Day's big singles, and yet it marked the duo's official manifesto as a joint powerhouse — as well as Beyoncé coming out of the closet as a rap artist. It might also have been her first foray into drag, something we see about two and a half minutes into the song's music video. Cameos include Betty Wright, Destiny's Child, and lots & lots of HOV.
Episode six features two giddy cowboys riding Reneigh the horse through Beyoncé’s latest single, her ninth number one hit, 2024’s “Texas Hold ‘Em!” We talk about our Houston girl’s longstanding country credentials and the colorful but fraught relationship between African American musicians and Nashville tastemakers. Needless to say, we pay tribute to the song’s forefather, “Daddy Lessons,” and lasso in special guests, including Ray Charles, Reneé Rap, John Mayer, Rhiannon Giddens, and Tony Hale.
Episode five is really about the holy trinity: Beyoncé, Beyoncé, and Beyoncé. "Me, Myself & I” was the third single off her 2003 debut solo album, Dangerously In Love, and it epitomized the smooth, aching, pining R&B that defined pop in the early aughts. We talk young Beyoncé, feminist manifestos, octave jumps, and, of course, red panties. Cameos include Usher, Twista, Mario, and, best of all, Princess Diana.
Our fourth (fourth!) episode celebrates the 10th birthday of Beyoncé's self-titled album — and how she "changed the game with that digital drop" — by jumping into the engine of her chilly, sexy, vividly vehicular track: "No Angel." Cameos include Caroline Polachek, Solange, Prince, Dev Hynes, and Patrick Wimberly.
For our third episode, we take a magic ride to the disco dreamscape of "Virgo's Groove," the crown jewel of Beyoncé's 2022 album, "Renaissance." The sister song to "Plastic Off the Sofa," which precedes it, "Virgo's Groove" sees Beyoncé moving from heaven to earth, from D’Angelo to Evelyn “Champagne” King. We discuss the song's centrality to "Renaissance" as well as its live renditions on the Renaissance World Tour.
For our second episode, we plumb the depths of Beyoncé’s cavernous and (dare we say) most feral song, “I Care,” from her 2011 album 4. We talk about Beyoncé’s voice post Cadillac Records and how the song was a culmination of her newfound sensibility. Needless to say, her legendary, guitar-crushing vocal solo gets a lengthy, juicy analysis.
Our first episode takes a deep dive into the song "Blow," from Beyoncé's 2013 album Beyoncé. We talk about the song's roots in funk and disco, its evocations and innovations, its music video, and its live performances. We also discuss the industry-shattering context in which "Blow," along with 13 other tracks, was dropped without warning, and the song's reverberating effects through Beyoncé's future work.
Diva Discourse is a podcast about Beyoncé — her music, her live performances, and the strokes of technical and creative genius that make her the greatest showman of our time. The podcast is hosted by two cultural critics and career-long students (or maybe masters?) of the American queen.
Our episodes won’t consist of cursory recaps or celebrity minutia. We'll take deep dives. We’ll cover one song per episode: its composition, roots, context, music video, live performances, and legacy.
Every episode will also feature a special one-minute session titled "Mama Tina's Hair Salon," a shout-out to Beyoncé's mother, Tina Lawson. Tina ran a hair salon in Houston, Texas, where Beyoncé met many of the women who inspired her songs. In our Salon, we pay tribute to the person — real or imaginary, historical or contemporary — for whom we imagine the song in question was quintessentially written.
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