Hello World,
Like the rest of the Innanet, I watched as Beyoncé, swaddled in her flowing, white organza, bejeweled dress with muted makeup to match, belt out her rendition of “Take My Hand, Precious Lord” on the GRAMMYs Sunday night. Backed up by the Harlem Boys To Men Choir(tee hee), who also wore white, she hit all of the right notes and gestured with all of the appropriate movements, but when she was done…
Meh. I was still sitting on my bed, head scarf on and sleep at the corners of my eyes, with my remote beside me just like I was before she started….Translation: I wasn’t taken to church. Had she not been singing “Take My Hand, Precious Lord,” I wouldn’t have even thought about church. As one of my FB friends aptly noted: “All those dramatics and no spirit.” Chile…And more proof that God just don’t like ugly. (Back story: In some sort of secret coup, Beyoncé usurped Ledisi’s chance to sing the song at this year’s GRAMMYs although Ledisi was the one that portrayed Mahalia Jackson and sang “Precious Lord” in the recently released movie “Selma.”)
So since this is a religious blog, I decided to break down or introduce the Holy Spirit for those who don’t know Him…First of all, the Holy Spirit, is one of the three parts of God. There is God the Father, God the Son and God the Holy Spirit. The Holy Spirit is the invisible presence God who enables us to know or perceive things that we could not know or perceive without His presence…Below are a few Bible verses that describe Him…
All of them were filled with the Holy Spirit and began to speak in other tongues as the Spirit enabled them. Acts 2:4
But the Advocate, the Holy Spirit, whom the Father will send in my name, will teach you all things and will remind you of everything I have said to you. John 14:26
“You stiff-necked people! Your hearts and ears are still uncircumcised. You are just like your ancestors: You always resist the Holy Spirit! Acts 7:51
In today’s terms…
The Holy Spirit is the One that lets you know, in some sort of mysterious way, that even while the doctor is giving you bad news, you will be healed…Hallelujah, Thank You Jesus!
The Holy Spirit is the One that lets you know that after you have fasted and prayed, that what you prayed and fasted for, is already done in Heaven although it hasn’t been manifested on earth yet…Hallelujah, Thank You Jesus!
The Holy Spirit is the One that will have you crying like somebody slapped you when you hear your favorite gospel song on the radio, swearing the artist got in your head and is singing your testimony for all the world to hear…Hallelujah, Thank You Jesus!
And that was the problem with Beyoncé’s rendition…”Take My Hand, Precious Lord” is Thomas Dorsey’s testimony…He wrote that song after the death of his wife in childbirth and their child days later…Reportedly, it was Dr. King’s favorite song, and he loved to hear Mahalia Jackson sing it…Now, I don’t want to say that Beyoncé’ is not saved nor has the Holy Spirit, but from where I sat in my bedroom, the Holy Spirit bypassed her performance…That’s why aine nobody listenin’ to Rihanna, Lady Gaga and all of the popular girls in the music industry when you going through…You got to go to Shirley Caesar, Yolanda Adams and other great women of gospel music when you need to hear from the Lord…The Holy Spirit has blessed their songs to bless us in our time of need…Below is Ledisi’s version of “Take My Hand, Precious Lord.” The video is just her voice…You don’t even have to see her face to feel the Spirit…
Now since Beyoncé’s performance on Sunday, she released a video about why she sang the song instead of Ledisi. Something about connecting to her father, ancestors, the struggle etc. Bye Beyoncé…That could be true of Ledisi or any black person in America for that matter as well…It was her moment to shine…That’s why the late Etta James was mad at you…God rest her soul…You performed her signature song that nobody but nobody could sing like her for the Obamas’ first dance at the inauguration in 2009. Admittedly, you portrayed Etta in the movie “Cadillac Records” sooo…see, and that’s why Ledisi should have performed on Sunday. She portrayed Mahalia Jackson in “Selma” not you…
But God has a way of making things that seem bad end up being all good…This year’s GRAMMYs was one of the lowest rated in its history…But for the Beyoncé backlash, no one would probably be talking about it that much. But since Beyoncé is one of the biggest stars (I’m a fan…sometimes…) in the world, even people that didn’t watch the show are now wondering why Beyoncé did what she did…and inadvertently being introduced to the luscious vocals of Ledisi…
Any thoughts?
I’m not a big Beyoncé fan, but this whole flap annoys me. This was the Grammy awards, and they weren’t going to close it with a B-list singer like Ledesi, even though she can sing rings around Bey. The Grammys have never been about the best singers. It’s an industry award chosen by industry people, and it’s always been very political. They ALWAYS go for the big names, and nobody’s bigger than Beyoncé. This wasn’t the Stellar Awards, so why does everyone expect a gospel quality performance from a pop singer who is really a lightweight when it comes to her pipes? Jennifer Hudson would’ve been a better choice if they wanted a high profile pop singer. JMHO…
I understand to some degree the choice, but now they are dealing with the backlash so maybe the show coordinators will learn from this or maybe not since this backlash has gotten a lot of attention when it was one of the lowest rated shows in its history Beyonce’ included…And no, I don’t agree with Jennifer Hudson singing because she didn’t portray the role in the movie…
I’m curious to know has Ledeci’s sales picked up this week.
That’s the best revenge.
I’m hoping so…She’s too great of an artist to ignore…
Ledisi’s Atlanta show sold out this week, so I’d say that’s something.
Wow, didn’t know that!!! Awesomeness!!!
I think there are a couple things going on with the Bey backlash. 1) the obvious diss to Ledisi. But 2) is an overexposure to the Bey brand. It’s like someone coming into your space and putting a brand of soda in front of you for every meal. And if you decide you want water, the powers that be say no, you want the Bey. So people start muttering, but getting slapped down for not bowing to the Bey. With this latest fiasco, the ones who are thirsty for something else are sick of sipping the Bey Koolaid. And of course people stopped tuning into the award shows, it’s the same names on rotation with a few exceptions. Same drink being served. (And can someone put Kanye in a corner) For me, I’ll continue on my Bey-free diet. And I’ll be all right.
Totally agree Michelle, and I could write another blog post about Kanye altogether…He is too extra…and I don’t know why people think he is a genius either…
Jackie, you really explained what so many of us are thinking, but couldn’t put into such great words! My sentiments exactly!!!!
Thank you so much Amika 🙂 I really, really, really appreciate it:)
she was wrong, wrong, wrong
yes, yes, yes…
Thanks, Jackie!Beautifully and truthfully stated. For some reason, I thought that the Kanye redux was actually an attempt to distract media attention from the Bey/Ledisi debacle. Did that cross your mind?
And thank you for the kind words 🙂
No, I hadn’t thought of that Giaz…but anything is possible with Kanye 🙁
According to the reports, Beyoncé wasn’t asked to perform this song. She called up John Lefend and asked if she could perform the song to introduce them. A little vain…but as John L. said in his interview, who’s going to say no to Beyoncé? Maybe that’s the problem…
I have no thoughts to share on Beyonce so to speak, I don’t think the performance carried the weight. The ending was flat like a drops mike and walks off the stage experience, which I doesn’t work for this kind of song.
As you stated this is not a riff song, this is a God is with me in ways I could never imagine kind of way. I love the discussion here and your points so true.
You can steal someone else’s blessing, but that doesn’t mean it will be a blessing to you.
There are times when you need to walk away, say thank you but no thank you this isn’t the right thing for me and move on.
this is a new age thing going on here.