Queen B acclaimed, already fallen?
American superstar Beyoncé will have to re-record a song from her latest album after heavy criticism on social media for her use of a slang word considered an insult by people with disabilities.
It's a sentence from the title "Heated" of the
Renaissance
album released on Friday that has triggered the ire of people with motor disabilities: the "queen" Beyoncé sings "Spazzin' on that ass, spazz on that ass".
The term "spaz" in English, derived from the adjective "spastic" ("spastic"), may be used to make fun of people with cerebral palsy and may be loosely associated with the terms "moron", “disturbed” or even “bumbling”.
In the United States, the word "spaz" is rare and seems rather to describe a person deemed "out of control" or who acts in an "erratic" way.
The artist assures that she did not want to "hurt" anyone
In an attempt to put out the start of a fire on social networks, Beyoncé will re-record the offending song by "replacing" the term "spaz", a spokeswoman for the artist confirmed to AFP, assuring in an email. that "the word was not used intentionally to hurt".
The track "Heated" was written in collaboration with Canadian rapper Drake.
Exactly the same story happened in June to American singer Lizzo who had to re-record her track "Grrrls" to remove the same slang term "spaz".
"The Effect of a Slap"
For Australian activist Hannah Diviney, who spoke on Twitter, Beyoncé's use of this term "feels like a slap in the face for me, for the disabled community and for the progress made with Lizzo".
She vowed to "keep telling the whole music industry to 'do better' until the 'able-bodied' slurs disappear from the music."
So@Beyonce used the word 'spaz' in her new song Heated.
Feels like a slap in the face to me, the disabled community & the progress we tried to make with Lizzo.
Guess I'll just keep telling the whole industry to 'do better' until ableist slurs disappear from music 💔
– Hannah Diviney (@hannah_diviney) July 30, 2022
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Musical event of the summer, Beyoncé released her seventh solo album on Friday.
Six years after
Lemonade
became a classic, fans have rediscovered their "Queen B" in full
Renaissance
, the title of this 16-track album intended for a world that is starting to party again after the pandemic.
“Making this album allowed me to dream and escape during a scary time for the world.
It made me feel free and adventurous at a time when little was happening,” Beyoncé, soon to be 41, wrote to her 270 million Instagram followers.
Culture
“Beyoncé's influence and legend go beyond music”
People
TikTok: The world can enter the Renaissance era, Beyoncé finally joins the platform
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