Tonight marks the one-year anniversary of Beyoncé's surprise self-titled visual album. The release of those 14 songs and 17 companion videos changed the way artists go about conceptualizing the way they drop albums. Harvard even did a case study on the impact the album had on the industry and why it sold so many copies without prior promotion. Beyoncé is currently nominated for five Grammy Awards at the 2015 ceremony including Album of the Year. She was given the Video Vanguard Award at the 2014 VMAs and has won many other awards for the project. To celebrate the whirlwind year she's had, Queen Bey shared a new short film "Yours and Mine."
In the nearly 12-minute video, Bey reflects on how fame has impacted her life, among other topics.
"I sometimes wish I could be anonymous and walk down the street just like everyone else," she admits in the opening of the clip. "Before I was famous, I was the girl on the hill with the guitar. I was the girl that just wanted a beautiful view of the beach. Now that I'm famous, it's really, really difficult to do very simple things. I think it's the hardest thing to give up."
She goes on to talk about how she deals with the fame through the lessons her mother taught her.
"My mother always taught me to be strong and to never be a victim," she says, "never make excuses, never expect anyone to provide for me things I know that I can provide for myself."
Along with fame comes losing a piece of your humanity, she says.
"When you're famous, no one looks at you like a human anymore. You become the property of the public. There's nothing real about it."
Elsewhere she talks about her childhood, how she deals with conflict and fear, how this world is only temporary, her thoughts on body image, what it was like to watch her friend die, having the world witness her life, her empathy for both men and women, the power of loving someone, and many other things she's learned in life.
Watch the full video below, and let us know what you think in the comments section!
