Beyoncé used to be known in some magazines as “Mrs. Jay Z.” Her husband was then by far the biggest star. Now the tables have turned, as proved by her latest album “Lemonade.”Never mind about its commercial clout – though it is hard to argue with sales since its surprise release. “Lemonade” has already hit number one in the UK and is likely to make the top on the Billboard 200, with reports that it has sold more than half a million copies. The chart includes traditional sales, streaming and equivalents.Its success, according to many newspapers, has a lot to do with its lyrics – what does it say about the fidelity of Jay Z. It is true that the controversy has generated a lot of column inches and publicity, although the album is as much about black power as the superstar couple.“Lemonade” is about the best by Beyoncé. It is her sixth studio collection.Some people will buy a product because it is being talked about. Others will do so on the strength of previous albums and, in this case, their “Bee Hive” fandom for Beyoncé. But ultimately a sustained commercial success suggests that it may be genuinely good. For a review, sales go on one side anyway. The main criterion is the music. And it is inventive, with echoes of everybody from Jack White and Led Zeppelin to Andy Williams. The samples sit well alongside the soul and R&B.Elvis Costello once said: “It’s what’s on the record that counts, it is all that ever counts”. By this measure, it is important to note that Beyoncé has followed the success of her 2013 eponymous album by making it another all-video experience.The Jay-Z references are everywhere: “This is your final warning, you know I give you life, if you try this s*** again, you gonna lose your wife.” In the “Don’t Hurt Yourself” video, she throws her wedding ring at the camera to these lines. This is angry stuff.Or “Who the f*** do you think I am? You ain’t married to no average bitch, boy.” “Still coiled deep the need to know, are you cheating on me?” “He only want me when I’m not there. He better call Becky with the good hair.” (Cue lots of speculation on who Becky is.) The video chapters are called “Denial,” “Anger,” “Forgiveness” and “Redemption,” with the couple’s daughter Blue Ivy making a loving appearance.Perhaps the Carters worked on the project together. They must have known it will make a lot of money, all the better to stoke the flames of curiosity. But it is definitely not a superstar moan alone. The movie that comes with the music has a lot of references to race; slavery; unrest; Malcolm X and the experiences of black women. The closing song is the video “Formation,” released at the time of her Super Bowl show – a visual feast including a sinking New Orleans police car, black kids dancing in front of graffiti saying “stop shooting us”, an MLK picture labelled “more than a dreamer” and cars skidding balletic movements like a sexy version of “The Italian Job.”The title, if you have missed this, comes from a comment from Jay-Z’s grandmother Hattie May at her 90th birthday celebration. “I was given lemons,” she says, “and I made lemonade.” If Beyoncé has gone through some bad times, she has made some pretty compelling songs out of them too. Lemons can be sharp and bitter. Beyoncé has made something sharp and sweet out of them. An impressive achievement.Rating: *****. "
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