Black Is King
Beyoncé’s visual album on Disney+, which brings to life the music of her 2019 album, “The Lion King: The Gift,” draws imagery from both Christianity and traditional African religions. It opens with a scene of a basket tumbling down a river, then Beyoncé along the shore, holding a baby, evoking the biblical story of Moses. She also sings about, speaks about and embodies the orishas, intermediaries between humans and the divine in Yoruba spirituality, throughout the film. It ends with Beyoncé, who was born and raised United Methodist, surrounded by what appears to be a church choir. Writer and theologian Candice Marie Benbow described “Black Is King” as “steeped in honor and reverence of the indigenous religious/spiritual practices of our ancestors” and permission for Black women to “explore and understand” all parts of their spirituality. (Emily McFarlan Miller)
