Beyonce is subject of new college course
Hip-hop fans can now study Beyonce thanks to a new course at Rutgers University.
Lecturer Kevin Allred has signed up to teach Politicising Beyonce as part of the school's Women's and Gender Studies curriculum.
The class offers New Jersey students the chance to watch the pop
star's music videos and explore how the Single Ladies hitmaker's
image and music has impacted the world.
An overview of the course on the university's website reads, "The
performer’s music and career are used as lenses to explore
American race, gender, and sexual politics... Course topics include
the extent of Beyonce’s control over her own aesthetic,
whether her often half-naked body is empowered or stereotypical,
and her more racy performances as her alter ego, Sasha Fierce."
The course includes class discussions, which "often lead to other
vocalists, including Billie Holiday, Nina Simone, Lady Gaga, and
contemporary musicians who embrace the soul singing tradition like
Adele and the late Amy Winehouse."
Beyonce's husband is also the subject of his own higher education
course - Georgetown University is currently offering students the
chance to take the Sociology of Hip-Hop: Jay-Z.