5 Lemonade Contributors You Should Know
Beyoncé broke the internet once again with the release of her second visual album, Lemonade. The project provided us with stunning visuals, political statements, hilarious memes and an eclectic mix of music that speaks to her evolution as an artist. The album included an unusual list of collaborators (Jack White, Father John Misty, Soulja Boy, and James Blake to name a few) that are familiar faces on their own accord. We decided to dig and see who else was behind the magic.
Laolu Senbanjo
The Nigerian-born and New York City-based body artist has become an overnight hit. He is responsible for the Yoruba tribal-style body art designs seen in the visual for the fourth track “Sorry.” Senbanjo, a former human rights lawyer, is a man of many talents, citing himself as an artist, actor and musician.
Ingrid Burley
One of the first artists signed to Beyonce’s Label, Parkwood, Ingrid is actually one of the superstars’ closest childhood friends. Before being signed last year, the rapper participated in writing camp’s for Queen Bey. Her heavy southern influence can be heard on songs like “Flawless” and “Bow Down”. She also penned “Love Drought” on Lemonade.
Wynter Gordon
Wynter Gordon is no stranger to the music industry. How she managed to stay just beneath the surface is beyond us. The naturally talented singer/songwriter has penned songs for major artists such as Mary J. Blige, Danity Kane, Flo Rida and Jennifer Lopez. She was featured on David Guetta’s 2009 release One Love and since the beginning of her career she has released four EP’s and one studio album. She is also the voice and creator behind the 5-piece band, The Righteous young. Gordon is credited with writing “Sorry,” “Daddy Lessons” and “Don’t Hurt Yourself.”
MeLo- X
Multimedia artist MeLo-X is most definitely a person you should know. The Flatbush, Brooklyn native produced a mixtape of Beyonce remixes in 2014 and then was granted the opportunity to produce music for the Carter’s On the Run Tour. Aside from making beats for Bey, Melo has directed an independent film on contemporary artist Hugo McCloud, dj’s regularly, raps, and is an accomplished photographer. He has credits on “Hold Up,” “Sorry.”
Warsan Shire
Of all the contributors to Lemonade, Warsan Shire shone the brightest. Accredited with being the first Young Poet Laureate of London, Warsan Shire has been known amongst the literary community for a while now. She catapulted herself to fame by using social media platforms like Tumblr and Twitter to tell her stories. Her poetry weaves each song on the visual album together and she is the first name you see when the credits role. The Kenyan born British native has published two books of poetry “Teaching My mother How to Give Birth” in 2011 and “Her Blue Body” in 2015.