Pandemic Playlist: Top 5 tracks from Janelle Monáe about being a queer black woman in America
Janelle Monáe Robinson is a singer-songwriter, rapper, actor, producer, and so much more. With eight Grammy Award nominations under her belt in addition to being honored with the Billboard Women in Music Rising Star Award in 2015 and the Trailblazer of the Year Award in 2018, as well as having the Boston City Council name October 16, 2013 'Janelle Monáe Day' in the city of Boston in recognition of her artistry and social leadership, Monáe has already proven she is a force to be reckoned with as both an artiste and an activist.
In addition to her critically-acclaimed music as well as her performances as NASA mathematician and aerospace engineer Mary Jackson in 'Hidden Figures' as well as in the Academy Award-winning 'Moonlight', Monáe has a prominent voice in the fight for equality. When questioned about her own sexuality, the artiste has revealed that she identifies with both bisexuality and pansexuality, and while she has been vocally supportive of non-binary identities, she has neither confirmed nor denied whether she identifies as such.
Aside from LGBTQIA++ rights, Monáe has also used her music to speak about the experiences of black people, boldly taking on topics like police brutality and racial violence long before it was mainstream to do so. Her song 'Hell You Talmbout' remains one of the most powerful protest anthems to come out of modern music, but it certainly isn't the only song of its kind Monáe has put out.
And so, without further ado, here are five tracks from Janelle Monáe that document the experiences of being queer and black in America.
'Dirty Computer'
After five years away from the industry, Monáe released 2018's 'Dirty Computer' to critical acclaim. It came along with an 'emotion picture', or a narrative film that complemented her album, and served as a powerful commentary from the singer on identities that the world deemed 'different' or 'dirty'. The title track explored this commentary in greater depth. Speaking about the term 'Dirty Computer', Monáe explained in an interview with Ebro, "We’re CPUs, our brains are uploading, downloading, transmitting, passing back and forth information. And with all computers you got your bugs, you got your viruses. But are those negatives, positives, features? Or not? I think it’s a conversation I want to have with us as a society, as human beings, about what it means to tell somebody that their existence, either they’re queer, minorities, women, poor, makes you have bugs and viruses. […] it’s about embracing those things even if it makes others uncomfortable."
The album served as an exploration and celebration of the things that made people unique and included themes of women's empowerment, sexual freedom, queer identities, and bodily autonomy.
'Americans'
Another track off 'Dirty Computer', 'Americans' sees Monáe grapple racism in a powerful take on the state of modern America from the perspective of a "queer black woman in America." In addition to the 45-minute picture, Monáe also put out four videos leading up to the release of 'Dirty Computer' that had overtly sexual tones, such as with the more comical video for the song 'Pynk', in addition to featuring queer relationships. In addition to queer experiences, however, this album and all its accompanying releases tackled social and political issues like racism, homophobia, immigration, and police brutality head-on. And of these, 'Americans' stands out as one of the most direct calls to action, serving as the culmination of all the themes explored on the rest of the album.
Featuring a speech from Reverend Sean McMillan in its bridge, and inspired by Barack Obama’s 'A More Perfect Union' speech delivered on March 18, 2008 in Philadelphia as well as by Quincy Jones' quote in GQ that states, "if you’re black, that’s what you get used to in America…anger doesn’t get anything done, so you have to find out: How do you make it work? That’s why I was always maniacal about transforming every problem into a puzzle which I can solve. I can solve a puzzle—a problem just stresses me out," this song addresses everything from the preference many have towards imagery of war over sex, to gun control laws, to the Black Lives Matter movement and police brutality, to addressing what it really means to be an American.
Q.U.E.E.N. (featuring Erykah Badu)
While the word 'queen' has become an increasingly common part of African-American Vernacular English, on this Monáe song off her 2013 'The Electric Lady' album, it also doubles as an acronym: 'Queer, Untouchables, Emigrants, Excommunicated, and Negroid'. Along with Badu, Monáe tackles sexuality, queer love, and the stealing of black people's rights on this groovy track. 'Q.U.E.E.N.', in its entirety, is a true musical gem. But it is Monáe's final closing rap that really packs a punch. With lyrics like "She who writes the movie owns the script and the sequel / So why ain't the stealing of my rights made illegal? They keep us underground working hard for the greedy / But when it's time pay they turn around and call us needy / My crown too heavy like the Queen Nefertiti / Gimme back my pyramid, I'm trying to free Kansas City," and with references to the likes of Bernie Grundman, Marvin Gaye, and Harriet Tubman, this emotionally charged outro is unapologetically black and a rousing call to action for anyone listening to stop being "sheep."
With musical and visual elements that draw from Afro-Futurism, which fuses modern technology with qualities from across the African diaspora, 'Q.U.E.E.N.' goes beyond just being a really good song with an equally stunning music video: it sees Monáe taking pride in what being black means to her, in addition to her calling for revolutionary change that takes inspiration from the rebels of the past to create a new, better future.
'Cold War'
Despite her seemingly tough exterior and unapologetic stances, Monáe has also spoken up about how difficult it was for her to embrace her blackness in addition to detailing the loneliness that comes with being a revolutionary. On 'Cold War', which features on Monáe's 2010 debut album 'The ArchAndroid', the artiste's alter ego Cyndi Mayweather battles with feeling ostracized as she stands firm in her role as a force of change who actively fights back against the oppressors in power. The song has additionally been interpreted as Monáe's take on trying to stay true to who she is while existing within an industry that sees everything she is as 'wrong'.
Additionally, Monáe has stated the song details her experiences with blackness, specifically how she did not feel confident being a black woman in a largely westernized world. Prior to her performance of the song at the 2011 Nobel Peace Prize Concert in Oslo Norway, Monáe shared that she wrote the song so other women and girls could feel empowered.
'Pynk'
Naturally, we can't celebrate Pride 2020 without the mention of 'Pynk', which Monáe has described as being "a celebration of creation, self-love, sexuality, and pussy power." The cheeky track and accompanying music video is, essentially, an ode to the vagina. Featured on 'Dirty Computer', the track is a female empowerment anthem that radiates Monáe's commitment to uplifting her fellow women. Canadian art-pop musician Grimes also features on the track, while actress Tessa Thompson features in the video. Additionally, the song riffs off of Aerosmith's 'Pink', with the band's members being credited as co-writers on 'Pynk' as well. On the reasoning behind choosing the color pink, beyond the obvious correlation with female genitalia, Monáe has stated that she found the color symbolized unity on account of it being "found in the deepest and darkest nooks and crannies of humans everywhere." The critically-acclaimed track and video were described by Eve Barlow as "an expression of unity and an appeal to see people beyond gender." Barlow added that the "song’s genre-bending sonics and the video’s femme-dominated utopia underscore Monáe’s long-held desires for a more fluid society."
Pandemic Playlist is a daily list of songs that will keep you entertained instead of feeling drained while you're isolated at home. Look out for a fresh selection of great tunes from MEA WorldWide (MEAWW) to refresh your mood every day.