Irreplaceable AKA My Beyonce Problem



Good morning!

Today I'm bringing not only a new polish but another glimpse into my troubled mind. I hope the post title was intriguing for you because this is some silly shit.

Let's first get to the polish:



Pure Ice Irreplaceable
Three coats over Essence Peel Off Base Coat

Irreplaceable is a black jelly loaded with fine black glitter and large silver hex glitter. It has a greenish tint as well that was difficult to capture. It's super pretty and plenty sparkly. However, I did not care for the formula and application.

Three coats was still pretty sheer. The formula was pretty thick and hard to apply. You get great glitter coverage without having to dab, swipe or drop. But it was hard to apply straight and so hard to clean up. No matter how many times I swabbed at the glitter pieces I kept finding, they simply would not budge. I had to use my nail brush to scrub them away once the polish had fully dried. The good news is that this dries pretty fast. However, I'm prolly only going to layer with this. Maybe I'll try thinning it out and trying again...but I'm a little peeved with it so I doubt it.

So, what does this have to do with Beyonce? Obviously, the name. I LOATHE that song. For a couple of reasons. When it came out, I was working at the Nave and it was on the soundtrack. So I heard it a lot. Plus, I had been so kindly informed by a superior that I was not irreplaceable myself.  (I didn't doubt the validity of the statement, mind you. I was angry at the inelegance in which it was uttered and angry that it validated the opinion that I had that I was never going to move up in the ranks.)

Neither of those things are Beyonce's fault of course. BUT. The lyrics are terrible. I get that it's kind of empowering. She's kicking out that no good cheater who's trying to shame her into taking him back. Here's my problem with the lyrics: He says she'll never find another like him. This is her response, which starts off promising and then goes downhill:

I could have another you in a minute
Matter fact he'll be here in a minute, baby

That statement asserts that she got herself a new man but implies that said new man is basically a carbon copy of Mr. Wrong. Not an upgrade but another schmo who will most likely behave just as badly. Because that's men. Amirite, ladies? Oy.
What's so empowering about that? Just replacing one jerk with another? That doesn't say much for her opinion of guys in general and also validates the tired trope of chicks dig jerks. No, no, no.

That's my problem with Beyonce's music. She shouts a line that is empowering to women and celebrating our strength and then destroys it with the next by uttering something that contradicts it. From a feminist viewpoint, this is bad y'all. It's not feminist nor empowering and it makes me angry to have songs like this held up as an example of modern feminist pop music.

This is a constant theme that crops up in her music time and again. And it actually does a disservice. It implies that feminism is not only dead but unnecessary because, hey, we won! I mean Beyonce has a song about it! (Don't get me started with how terrible the lyrics for Girls are either.)
If that were true, more women would hold more positions of power in government. And be paid the exact same wage as men, have dissolved inequality in health care and coverage, changed the culture so that misogyny was not celebrated and practiced and so on. I could go for days but I'll give you a rest.

I will cut Beyonce some slack. First, I'm aware that even though she receives writing credits; she's not fully to blame for these terrible lyrics. Secondly, the song If I Were a Boy isn't bad and it tries. I don't hate Beyonce. I think she is super talented and a smart business woman. Her music is fun but those lyrics are BAD.

So there ya have it. My philosophical disagreement with Beyonce. Trust me, this was gentle. You don't want to hear about my enduring hatred for Billy Corgan.

I purchased Pure Ice Irreplaceable at Walmart for $1.99.



2 Comments

  1. She is responsible for the words that come out of her mouth though. She has a new song that has alienated me as a former fan, she tell us all to "bow down bitches"? Who is she talking to? I don't really want to know. I do know that I like this post. You have an opinion and you are saying it. Good for you. Screw that old boss man. Am I alone in thinking that Beyonce is squandering her position of power...I wonder?

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    Replies
    1. Thank you. I knew it could be divisive and I understand that. Beyonce is accountable because she does sign off and sing these songs, yes. But I didn't want anyone to have the impression that she is responsible alone. I also knew this could be divisive because I'm asserting my feminist viewpoint and not all women consider themselves feminists. Or support feminist philosophy and action.

      I heard that her new song is alienating a lot of people. I'm not really okay with it myself. I'm sure it's meant to be a "power" statement that anyone could draw inspiration from but the language is aggressive and a bit demeaning. I also hate that "bitch" in any form is again used to demean. I'm not real fond of the reclaimed and empowered meaning either but that's just because I don't like name calling.

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