Beyoncé’s Renaissance and the Rhetoric of Inclusion

Beyoncé’s new album has only been out for five days officially and it’s already causing all that commotion, but maybe not for the reasons you’d think.
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Bringing back her soulful sound, Beyoncé had more than just stories, double entendres, and codeswitching in the lyrics of her new album Renaissance — she used a word flagged as a microaggression by disability advocates in Heated and sampled an artist’s work without receiving consent in Energy.

The Internet was swift at amplifying these messages. Shortly after removing the same word from her lyrics Lizzo also recently removed from her song Grrls, Beyoncé also removed the sample and credit to Kelis for Energy.

Could it be a calculated move by Beyoncé to manage brand optics by listening to fan feedback, removing harmful lyrics, and making accommodations for other artists?

Or could it be the work of a culturally inclusive leader? Could it be both? We’ll let you decide.

P.S. Beyhive don’t come for us.

THE SIX SIGNATURE TRAITS OF AN INCLUSIVE LEADER

Cognizance

Bias is a leader’s Achilles heel.

Curiosity

Different ideas and experiences enable growth.

Cultural Intelligence

Not everyone sees the world through the same cultural frame

Collaboration

A diverse-thinking team is greater than the sum of its parts.

Commitment

Staying the course is hard.

Courage

Talking about imperfections involves vulnerability.

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