Our website is made possible by displaying online advertisements to our visitors.
Please consider supporting us by disabling your ad blocker.
Formation (song)
| "Formation" | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
&sq=&lang=&file=File:Beyonce_-_Formation.png) | ||||
| Single by Beyoncé | ||||
| from the album Lemonade | ||||
| Released | February 6, 2016 | |||
| Recorded | 2015 | |||
| Studio | Quad Recording Studios, New York City | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 3:26 | |||
| Label | ||||
| Songwriter(s) |
| |||
| Producer(s) |
| |||
| Beyoncé singles chronology | ||||
| ||||
| Music video | ||||
| "Formation" on YouTube | ||||
"Formation" is a song by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé from her sixth studio album Lemonade (2016). Beyoncé wrote and produced the song with Mike Will Made It, with Swae Lee and Pluss as co-writers. The track was surprise released on February 6, 2016, through Parkwood Entertainment. It is a trap and bounce song in which Beyoncé celebrates her culture, identity and success as a black woman from the Southern United States.
The song received widespread acclaim upon release, with music critics praising the song as a personal and political ode to black Southern identity. It was critics' top song of 2016 and was named one of the best songs of the 2010s by numerous publications. In 2021, Rolling Stone placed it at number 73 on its 500 Greatest Songs of All Time list. "Formation" won all six of its nominations at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards and received three nominations at the 59th Annual Grammy Awards: Record of the Year, Song of the Year and Best Music Video, winning the lattermost award. In the United States, the song debuted at number 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 and was certified three-times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America. It also charted within the top 40 in Australia, Canada, France, Hungary, Scotland, Spain and the United Kingdom, and received Diamond certification in Brazil, Double Platinum in Australia, and Platinum in Canada and New Zealand.
The song's music video premiered on the same day as the song itself as an unlisted video on YouTube. Directed by Melina Matsoukas, the New Orleans-set video portrays black pride and resilience through diverse depictions of black Southern culture. The video received critical acclaim, with Rolling Stone placing it at number one on its 100 Greatest Music Videos of All Time list in 2021. Beyoncé performed the song during her guest appearance at the Super Bowl 50 halftime show the day after its release, and it has featured on the setlists of her subsequent tours.
Upon release, "Formation" ignited discussions on the topics of culture, racism and politics. The song also triggered controversy, with conservative figures claiming that Beyoncé was spreading anti-police and anti-American messages and law enforcement officers protesting at her concerts. It became known as a protest song and was adopted as an anthem by the Black Lives Matter movement and the 2017 Women's March. The song has also been the subject of study at schools, colleges and universities.
Previous Page Next Page
