Mathew Knowles Talks Colorism, Says Beyonce Is Successful Because She Has Lighter Skin Than Other Black Women
Beyonce's father, Mathew Knowles, has spoken out about how colorism may have aided in his daughter's mega-success with predominantly white fans.
Internalized Colorism
Knowles' upcoming book Racism: From the Eyes of a Child charts his difficulties growing up as a black man in the deep South where he was raised. He discusses in a grave, often grisly detail, some particularly shocking and violently racist moments in recent American history.
Knowles even admits that he was drawn to Tina, former wife and mother to superstar Beyonce, due to internalized colorism and eroticized rage, which he unconsciously adopted, thanks to his mother. In an interview with Ebony, Knowles confronts this internal bias.
"I actually thought when I met Tina, my former wife, that she was White. Later I found out that she wasn't, and she was actually very much in-tune with her Blackness," he explained.
Questioning Mass Appeal
Most interestingly, Knowles questions the mass appeal and success of singers including his own daughters who are lighter-skinned and therefore, more popular.
"When it comes to Black females, who are the people who get their music played on the pop radio? Mariah Carey, Rihanna, the female rapper Nicki Minaj, my kids [Beyonce and Solange], and what do they all have in common?" he said.
The interviewer says each of them is lighter-skinned, confirming an unconscious bias in the music industry that wouldn't be as obvious if there was a modern age Lauryn Hill around nowadays.
Knowles, the former manager of superstar girl group Destiny's Child, seems to be suggesting that Beyonce wouldn't be as popular if she was darker. It does make sense, considering the other female artists he named are all also lighter-skinned.
Get In Formation
Beyonce, on her part, has started to address racism in her music, particularly with the black pride lyrics of "Formation." Likewise, sister Solange wrote an open letter back in 2016 targeting ingrained racism in society.
"You don't feel that most of the people in these incidents do not like black people, but simply are a product of their white supremacy and are exercising it on you without caution, care, or thought. Many times the tone just simply says, "I do not feel you belong here",' she wrote at the time.
Their father, a music executive, and entrepreneur, also guest-teaches at Texas Southern University. He encourages students to challenge how colorism might affect artists in the music industry, both established and otherwise.
