Beyoncé's Lemonade is Not Just About Cheating

Most of my weekend was spent thinking about Prince, crying about Prince, singing Prince's music and listening to my guy’s mom share her most beloved Prince moments. But when I dried my eyes on Sunday morning, I saw that "Lemonade" had dropped the night prior. And according to press, this was an album about Jay Z.

The thought of lemonade sounds sugary and sweet, right? Well, in this case, we’re all getting to know Beyoncé's personal meaning of "Lemonade"— an hour-long, lyrically controversial visual album released on HBO on Saturday night with an accompanying album only streaming online on Tidal.

Most of us believe Beyoncé is an expert at demanding attention from the public. That’s mainly because she’s known for coming up with the most original ways to release an album. For album number six, she chose the HBO network to assist her with visually expressing her deeply personal lyrics.

Granted this is not Bey’s first “visual album,” but it does offer something the music scene hasn’t seen before. The megastar presented her new music as a collection of schematically stylized music videos using spoken word, fashion and lyrics touching on relationships, empowerment, infidelity and romance. She also tells the story of a woman not to be taken advantaged of in any way, shape or form.

Taking a closer look at the lyrics, Bey is very publicly addressing the long standing rumors of infidelity in her marriage to Jay Z. Knowing there’s been gossip about her marriage, for a few years now, she’s using HBO's platform to explicitly express how all of it makes her feel.

Is “Lemonade" about Beyoncé and Jay Z, or it’s about how much of a hound Jay Z is, or it’s about that infamous elevator fight, or about how pissed Beyoncé is, or about Beyoncé’s heartbreak over her marriage?

Apparently, this Lemonade uproar has summoned a woman who has indirectly responded to Bey's new approach via social media. Rachel Roy, a former fashion designer who has been linked to Jay Z in the past (rumors and nothing more). Roy was also married to Damon Dash, a former business partner of Jay Z.

Roy posted this to Twitter:

The fashion designer is also facing new scrutiny after posting a similarly cryptic message to Instagram following the release of Beyoncé's "Lemonade" album and music video. In the haunting "Lemonade" project, Beyoncé seems to insinuate at Jay Z's infidelity in multiple tracks, notably punctuating a verse in her song "Sorry" by asserting, "He better call Becky with the good hair."

Several hours after the track was released, Roy posted an Instagram photo of herself and a friend with the caption, "Good hair don't care, but we will take good lighting, for selfies, or self truths, always."

RACHEL_ROY VIA INSTAGRAM

Rachel Roy sparked speculation with this photo, which she captioned, “Good hair don’t care.”

It seems like Roy ousted herself as the subject of Beyoncé’s new song.

Remember in May 2014, when speculation rumors were flying after the infamous elevator incident involving Jay Z and Beyoncé’s sister, Solange Knowles? Roy was at the center of the drama after Solange punched and kicked Jay Z in an elevator after a Met Gala afterparty - right in front of Beyoncé.

The fashion designer was previously married to Jay Z's old business partner Damon Dash — who worked with the rapper on both his Roc-a-Fella Records label and his Rocawear clothing line. Jay Z bought out Dash's share of Rocawear for millions in 2005.

SPLASH NEWS/SPLASH NEWSBeyonce (c.), Jay-Z (l.) and Solange Knowles (r.) leave an elevator at a Met Gala afterparty at the Standard Hotel in 2014.

Beyoncé has remained mostly silent about the incident, but she appeared to insinuate she was cheated on throughout her eclectic "Lemonade" setlist.

After having watched Lemonade, it seems to be about so much more than one relationship and its infidelity. It’s about the love that black women have – the love that threatens to kill us, makes us crazy and makes us stronger than ever. Queen Bey celebrates the beauty and strength of black womanhood by highlighting black women who have endured trials despite constant persecution for their blackness.

The most forthright and heartbreaking homage to the women left behind – the women who will be left to put the pieces back together again - are the appearances of Lezley McSpadden, Sybrina Fulton, and Gwen Carr. They sit imperturbably, holding portraits of their fallen sons, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brownand and Eric Garner.

Sybrina Fulton, Lezley McSpadden, and Gwen Carr are featured holding pictures of their now deceased sons, Trayvon Martin, Michael Brown, and Erica Garner in homage to the importance of their lives.

If you’re in need of empowering words to get you through something, whether positive or not, feel free to check out one of my old clients, of whom I still support, Lyratree.com — a place where you can go to hear lyrical and musical messages that will resonate with their particular life happening, situation or mood.

Watch this hysterical Lemonade review by Phil DeFranco! Poor Rachel Ray.

View a complete breakdown of Beyoncé’s album ‘Lemonade’ by track

Beyoncé’s Lemonade is on iTunes and Amazon (but you can only stream the entire album on Tidal)

Check out the ‘Lemonade' (Script) on HBO

Read the blog post introducing

Beyoncé’s first single off of ‘Lemonade'