I had a chance to catch the “Beyonce Experience” this weekend. What I thought would be just another concert, a Dad’s date out with his fourteen year old, turned into a very educational (not to mention, enjoyable) experience on Generation’s Y and Z’s female empowerment movement. All I can say to men is, “Be afraid. Be very afraid.” The women of Generation X “waited to exhale.” With Generation Z and the way they’re being socialized, they ain’t waitin’ on sh*t. I don’t do entertainment reviews, but this was an impressive social statement - a cultural shift of a different kind. With Hilary Clinton running for President, the Beyonce Experience gives the audience a realistic insight to what it would be like should women start running the world. 

We really don’t often appreciate what is happening in our midst and its impact on the lives of our children. What is just another concert to us, is a cultural connection to our children. My fourteen-year-old daughter started three months ago, bugging us that “Beyonce was coming.” The last report card not being what we expected, we were non-committal about her attending the event. She must have asked me 60 times., “Dad, are we going to see Beyonce? “No!” “Dad, are we going to see Beyonce?” “No!” “Dad, are we going to see Beyonce?” “No!” After about the forty-fifth time, and a summer of reading a book every two weeks, “no” finally became “maybe.” By the fiftieth time, it was “we’ll see.” And by the sixtieth time, it was, “Okay, baby, we’ll go.” Just as we “bugged out” over our cultural spokespersons, whether they were in the civil rights, sports or entertainment arenas, they bug out over theirs. Seeing what I saw, I can truly say I’m glad I went. There was a lesson there. 

Every generation has its cultural influences that reach us through music, molding our cultural values and insights. That’s why Elvis, the Beatles, James Brown, the Motown sound, and Hip Hop have left such a heavy footprint on American culture - imprints that have yet to be erased. But our girls have often been reared to subordinate themselves to the cultural values and tastes of men, who love them and objectify them at the same time. Gender subjugation that is integrated into a sexual culture forces men to honor and marginalize women, simultaneously. As the feminist voice has evolved, the perception of the helpless, dependent woman has declined. While the forces of discrimination have historically arrested the professional development of women, women have come light years in the past three generations. They have changed everything they’ve touched, from the workforce to education, from relationships to the law. It was “a man’s world.” Now it’s a woman’s world, for the taking. And trust me, they plan on taking it. Enter this new cultural icon, Beyonce. A performer with a massive amount of beauty, talent and intelligence, who leaves you in a trance, to do with you whatever she desires. Jay-Z’s my hero, not for his musical prowess, but for his ability to handle the most dynamic energy force we’ve seen in some time.  

In the context of women’s empowerment, Beyonce is the next-generation Oprah, controlling everything around her from her image to her sound. In fact, she’s Oprah “cubed.” Oprah may have build a media empire with Harpo, but Oprah’s formidable reach into the psyche and self-esteem of women does not compare with Beyonce’s repertoire of empowerment music and lyrics that indelibly stamp “independence” on the minds of young (and old) girls. You have to see it to believe it. 

The beauty of Beyonce, of course, appeals to our most innate sexual desire. That’s just “the hook,” as we say on the street. In a sexual society, where sexuality has its stamp on everything, Beyonce exudes sexuality. If “Young B” doesn’t get anything else, she gets your attention. There is a power to her strut, and a “bounce” to her stance that many women in America (Black, White, Latino and Asian) seek to emulate. The “Beyonce Bounce” takes you where “the bump” and “Rock Steady” never did (or could). But it’s the expressive power of her lyrics that makes (and takes) women far beyond the “I am woman, hear me roar” mindset. It’s not the “I don’t need a man,” man-hating mindset of the “Exhale” period. It’s more the, “I’m going to let you get me (“work up on it”) but you’d better be able to keep up (Souljah)” mindset that lets the man stay if he wants to stay, and play if he wants to play, but lets him know that if he trips too hard, he’ll be dumped, and if he leaves, that’s okay too. He can be replaced. 

Beyonce takes it from “I am woman” through “I’m every woman” to “I am the woman”, juxtaposed against the “You da Man,” Alpha male mentality that our society embraces. The ultimate “A-type” persona, you almost feel as if it would be a mistake to get caught up in Beyonce’s beauty and sexuality. Her intelligence would twist you far beyond anything her physical attractiveness could. It’s the ultimate trap. With songs like Survivor, Crazy in love, Upgrade U, Ring the Alarm and, of course, the new women’s national anthem, Irreplaceable, she is backed by an all-female, ten piece band. That band funked as hard as any band I’ve ever heard. You get so used to seeing all-male bands that you really go into a bit of culture shock at the very notion of an all-female band. Except, of course, if you’re a woman - where this sight represents the revenge of “Waiting to Exhale.” This generation of women isn’t waitin’. They are straight up “takin’ it.” 

If you want a really intimidating sight, try seeing 10,000 women from the age of five to sixty-five singing, “To the left, to the left, everything you own in a box to the left.” Now picture that in every city on the planet. Any man would say, “Oh, I get the picture now.” The subliminal becomes the sublime as you conclude, quite quickly, that this is what the world would look like if women ran it. Well, trust me brothers, it’s coming. Young B done planted the seed.  

She tried to warn us when she told us, “You must not know ‘bout me.” We do now. 

BlackCommentator.com Columnist Dr. Anthony Asadullah Samad is a national columnist, managing director of the Urban Issues Forum and author of the upcoming book, Saving The Race: Empowerment Through Wisdom. His Website is AnthonySamad.com. Click here to contact Dr. Samad.

Your comments are always welcome.