Beyonce’s Coachella performance on Saturday sent shockwaves through social media with her jam-packed two-hour set, but her mother admitted that she feared a white audience wouldn’t understand the show.
In an Instagram post Tuesday, Tina Knowles Lawson wrote, “I told Beyonce that I was afraid that the predominately white audience at Coachella would be confused by all of the black culture and black college culture because it was something that they might not get.”
Beyonce’s mother went on to admit she was wrong to make that assumption, and said, “her brave response to me made me feel a-bit selfish and ashamed. She said ‘I have worked very hard to get to the point where I have a true voice and at this point in my life and my career I have a responsibility to do what’s best for the world and not what is most popular.’ She said that her hope is that after the show young people would research this culture and see how cool it is, and young people black and white would listen to ‘LIFT EVERY VOICE AND SING’ and see how amazing the words are for us all and bridge the gap.”
Lawson also wrote that Beyonce hoped the performance would encourage students to explore Historically Black Colleges and Universities, and as part of that mission, the singer announced $100,000 in scholarships to HBCUs following her Coachella show.
Beyonce, who became the first black woman to headline the music festival, was accompanied by 150-plus performers during her set, most of whom were people of color, with many performers as part of a marching band, majorettes and drumline styled on those from black colleges and universities. She and her dancers often wore collegiate-type outfits bearing the Greek letters beta delta and kappa, her initials with the delta referencing her favored number, four. The set was loaded with references and quotes from black history, ranging from an excerpt from a Malcolm X speech to a quote from a Nina Simone song, “Lilac Wine.”
With special guest appearances by husband Jay-Z and Destiny’s Child, the show also included Beyonce singing “Black National Anthem (Lift Every Voice and Sing).” Beyonce will return to the Coachella stage this Saturday for weekend two of the festival.
