@sereinik I think by new she means openly addressing issues of race. In the past she’s kind of just accepted her white audience and tried to not offend them. Think of her old Loreal hair ads, straight blonde hair. That wasn’t marketed toward POC. That was marketed to white girls. She’s new in the open fight for POC freedom. She’s new to the openness of addressing racial issues. She’s always been very pro-women, think of “Irreplaceable” “Single Ladies” “If I were a boy” “Run the world” those were very pro-women but nothing before this album was very pro-POC.

@sereinik Thoughts on current annotation? Want to edit it?

“new” in this context is moving forward, I believe. There’s an old saying that goes something like “I’m free! I’m a new [wo]man!,” so I think it’s similar to that.

@Tyrant @sereinik

@sereinik – yeah that’s something i couldn’t work out. is “new” moving forward? like breathing “new life”?

hold on but why does she tell the storm she’s new? imo if the storm really is racial injustice, it’s bey recognizing she hasn’t been as vocal about black issues prior to recent years when maybe she could have been. thus, she’s “new” to the scene.

Bey also quotes Ephesians 5:28, knowingly or otherwise, where Paul is giving instruction on the marital relationship between a husband and his wife throughout the chapter.

In the music video, there’s a quote from Malcolm X’s speech entitled, “Who Taught You To Hate Yourself” He says, We will kill you, for our women I’m making it plain yes, we will kill you for our women. We believe that if the white man, will do whatever is necessary, to see that his woman get respect and protection, then you and I will never be recognized as men. Until we stand up like men and pays the same penalty over the head of anyone, who puts his filthy hands out, to put it in a direction of our women.

I think “Know that I kept it sexy, you know I kept it fun / There’s something that I’m missing” means something like “I’ve worked hard to be good for you, but it seems that my efforts are not enough.” Though, in the following “maybe my head for one”, she recognizes she must worry about herself and her self-esteem first. She remembers the queen she is.

“Running blind in truth” means both her eyes are closed but her 3rd eye is open

I think with these lines we’re surely also supposed to remember the most recent and most striking reference to WATER in Bey’s work: sinking under the water (recalling the Katrina disaster in New Orleans) while on a police car, in her Formation video. That sinking–despite the Gucci dress she was wearing–was a kind of drowning in American racism, incompetence, disrespect (the flooding was caused as much by urban neglect and US Army Corps incompetence as by the storm itself, and it disproportionately affected N.O.’s poor communities). What’s striking with Freedom is that the water symbolism is reversed: rebirth instead of death. “Tell the deep I’m new.” It’s also not an accident that soon after this moment in her anthem a powerful new voice enters the song: Kendrick Lamar’s.

Wading in the water can also reference a baptism. Beyoncé is cleansing her self and her soul through her anger and call to action.

Another famous “Wade in the Water” reference is the dance piece in the revered Alvin Ailey masterwork “Revelations.”
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Per Alvin Ailey’s website Revelations is “a classic is a tribute to that tradition, born out of [Ailey’s} “blood memories” of his childhood in rural Texas and the Baptist Church…. Since its premiere in 1960, the ballet has been performed continuously around the globe….”
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Revelations | Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater — Alvin Ailey American Dance Theater

Using African-American spirituals, song-sermons, gospel songs and holy blues, Alvin Ailey's Revelations fervently explores the places of deepest grief and holiest joy in the soul. More than just a popular dance work, it has become a cultural treasure, beloved by generations of fans.

Considering Beyoncé’s history with dance, it is more than likely she saw this Ailey work, and with LEMONADE, she is contributing her voice to the her “blood memories.”

I agree with Kele that King Canute could be part of her meaning here. Granted I only read the attached wiki article, but I think that adds a great deal of irony to the line all together. King Canute was a man of power and believed to be a great man basing his reign off of the word of God. Maybe this line could be a reference to both? Beyonce is a woman of great power given her social status. Maybe when she says she’s going to “wave through the waters”. She means she will wave (like the Queen Bey that she is) to the people she see’s on a day to day basis. Using the words of God and the righteous works of leaders like Harriet Tubman. She tells the tides “Don’t move”. Reminding herself that while she does have her power of status. She still has no power over the elements or other people’s personal beliefs.

This line alludes to the structural racism we see in our nation, and that Black Americans are faced with everyday. America has always treated Black Americans unfairly compared to White Americans, which has severe mental health implications. Lamar is noting that America was founded on the inequality of Black and Whites during slavery when White men stole the lives of Black individuals to work. Systems in America such as the housing, medical, and government system continuously lie to the Black community in regards to basic living necessities. As a result of this discrimination it has been found that “those who encountered frequent discrimination, meaning a few times per month or more, were about 25% more likely to be diagnosed with a mental illness. They were also twice as likely to develop severe psychological distress over time” (Web MD). Black Americans are also 20% more likely to report severe psychological distress compared to their white counterparts (Web MD). Lamar shines light on this issue in America throughout ‘Freedom.’