Column by Christian Clark

clarkchr@grinnell.edu

Hey, everybody! Welcome to the Hot Room, where I will be discussing the latest celebrity news and feuds. Today’s feuds are torn straight from the headlines and features: possibly the two greatest artists yet. I’ll let you finish, but Beyoncé and Yeezus—formally known as Kanye—have taken over social media and every current news outlet in the world. Beyoncé just released a new single called “Formation,” in which she instructs ladies to “get in formation.” Then, she came to the rescue during the Super Bowl halftime show with her flawless performance. While Beyoncé was making the world stop and carry on simultaneously, Kanye made us think and want to read Socrates with his active Twitter account. Many people know that I am a huge Kanye fan. I am #Kanye2020 and will continue to be this way until Yeezus graces the seal of the oval office with his fresh, all black Yeezy 350s. In other Kanye news, he sent the world into a flurry after releasing “The Life of Pablo” exclusively on Tidal. Once again, Jay Z is trying to steal our money by teasing us. I can already tell that Beyoncé will release her next album exclusively to Tidal, forcing us to pay $19.99 for the subscription. I can feel it. (Side note: I am still waiting for Adele’s “25” to hit Apple Music, aren’t you?)

Beyoncé’s “Formation” is a very enjoyable song, and it definitely made a statement in the media. She addresses many rumors from over the years. The song begins with her addressing the fact that she and Jay Z are not members of the ‘elite squad known as the Illuminati.’ Beyoncé has such an impact on the world that she helped increase Red Lobster’s sales by over 30 percent through her song lyrics. I really hope they cut her a check even though, as she states in the song, she does not need a handout of any kind. Oddly enough, after her performance at the Super Bowl and subsequent nod to the Black Panther Party, she received what I will refer to as mass hate from mainstream media, who felt as though her performance was racist, inconsiderate, discriminatory and promoted an anti-police agenda. Now, a majority of these comments came from non-people of color who felt left out of the performance and some people of color who simply wanted their 15 minutes of fame on a hot situation. It is not Beyoncé’s responsibility to choose a creative direction that makes non-people of color comfortable, nor is it her business to be conscious of their comfort. Honestly, if you had an issue with her celebrating the 60th anniversary of a group created during a time of pure social disaster, you are a part of the problem that she so beautifully addresses in her song and video. Just recognize she is being #UnapologeticallyBlack and that’s it, get into formation. Now, on to Kanye we go!

As for Kanye, his PR team needs to stop letting him have access to his Twitter because his rants are too much to digest. Of course, I follow Kanye’s Twitter account and retweet and favorite his tweets, but that’s beside the point. Kanye tweeted about dissing Taylor Swift in his song where he explicitly calls her out by name and claims to have made her famous. This did not settle well with Taylor’s brother, who went on to throw his Yeezys in the garbage. Kanye also announced that he was 53 million dollars in debt and explained that he is personally still rich but needs funding for his projects. He even let the world know that he asked Mark Zuckerberg to donate one billion dollars to the Kanye cause. Yeezus has left this world! (Congratulations to Mark who welcomed a new baby into this world in December.) His tweets were pretty much uncontrollable and made absolutely no sense, but to Kanye they made perfect sense. That is our future president, ladies, gentlemen and other beautiful people. So, what does the world do with a Twitter-savvy Kanye? We make sure he has a Kanye day while on his Kanye way, buying overpriced clothes for his Kanye date and dropping live songs for his Kanye mates.

I hope you’ve enjoyed this edition of the Hot Room and don’t forget to join me next time to discuss more hilarious and serious celebrity tales. Cheers!