In her speech, she cited statistics from the University of Southern California’s Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism study of Grammy nominees. “Of almost 3,000 pop songwriters credited last year only 12% were female, only 3% of the engineers were female, and one of them is Ann [Mincieli, Keys’ regular engineer]. Only 2% of producers are female and one of them is me! Our world is 50-50, and it’s time for our industry to reflect that.”

My mama taught me that every year is the year of the woman… but this year is definitely something else. It’s a powerful year, it’s an empowering year, and it’s the beginning of so many things. And many of us in the music world are working more diligently than ever to showcase and support the work of female songwriters, musicians, engineers, and producers.

Keys went on to talk about the Time’s Up movement as well as the gender pay gap. “We deserve the utmost respect, and so many of these women across industries are telling our culture that time is up on double standards.” She further stated, “and it is over for pay inequity and colleagues who are at best disrespectful and at the worst unsafe – so it’s over for that.”

The singer highlighted the importance of diversity and women of color in the music industry. “Songwriters tell our stories, they sing who we are as people — don’t we all want to hear from all of us? My ancestors’ spiritual songs told their stories and gave them strength, and we’re all stronger because of it.” Keys named some of her influences, such as Joan Baez, Nina Simone and Aretha Franklin. Contemporary female artists of color  such, as Janelle Monáe, SZA, Solange and Mary J. Blige were also mentioned.

The singer concluded by saying: “We were told we need to step up. Well, you feel that step up now?”

We over at QM definitely feel that step up and are ecstatic about this new movement. The singer has shown that not only is she famous for being incredibly talented, she cares for the rights of  people of colour as well as those of women and we couldn’t be more proud that she’s utilising her platform for good.

When I heard the news, the picture of architectural monochrome decor came to mind. You know, like swinging tables in the air? and cupboards that defy gravity? and such and such… If you know Solange’s work and you’re familiar with her futuristic, artsy feel to fashion, you’ll understand what I’m talking about. I’m also particularly excited because I’ve grown a love for interior spaces and the approach to how they’re designed. Her approach, I’m certain, as with all things she touches, would be pretty unorthodox.

Solange and her cultural hub, Saint Heron are teaming up with IKEA on an interior design line. In an announcement, Saint Heron shared that the creative collaboration will explore “architectural and design objects with multifunctional use.”

https://www.instagram.com/p/BjvF53AF9vr/?utm_source=ig_embed

In a press release published in Lonny, IKEA Range & Supply’s head of design Marcus Engman, said: “Contemporary art is a huge part of people’s [lives] today. At IKEA we are curious about the creative space in between architecture, design, art, and music and how that could come alive in the homes of the many people. This is what we want to explore together with Saint Heron.”

IKEA continues to push past the norm pushing the boundary of their home offerings. Between collaborations with Virgil Abloh’s Off-White and collections focused entirely on self-care, this is yet another stride for the world’s largest furniture retailer and for Solange, another big win in line with the Saint Heron mandate – another opportunity to push intersectional cultural themes forward.

We couldn’t be more proud.

You may recall that Bey was supposed to headline last year’s festival, but canceled due to doctor’s orders, because she was pregnant with twins (Sir and Rumi Carter) at the time. Her performance was so worth the wait! And gosh Bey’s post-pregnancy snapback game is out of this world. We need her to show us the way.

Okay, so in case you don’t know what “Coachella” is girls, Wikipedia and Google are your friends: The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly referred to as Coachella or the Coachella Festival) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, located in the Inland Empire’s Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. The event features musical artists from many genres of music, including rock, indie, hip hop, and electronic dance music, as well as art installations and sculptures.

So back to the matter: Beyonce’s performance. It was two hours long. Two whole hours of amazing performances back-to-back. Her hubby, Jay-Z and sister, Solange made appearances.

But most importantly, there was a Destiny’s Child reunion! This was by far our favourite part of the entire performance.

A DESTINY’S CHILD REUNION MEDLEY WE DESERVED. #BEYCHELLA pic.twitter.com/qqOsXaB6FG

— . (@ctrlbrian) April 15, 2018

Michelle Williams and Kelly Rowland looked and sounded great but we think it would have been even more epic if original band members Letoya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson were added to the mix. Now, THAT would have been THE reunion of a lifetime.

Here are other highlights we loved:

• “Crazy in Love” performance in which she was accompanied by a New Orleans-style brass marching band. It was a fresh take on the song
• The step dancers during her performance of songs on the “Lemonade” album. EPIC
• Nina Simone tribute and Malcolm X Quotes
• When Beyonce and her band paid homage to Fela Kuti

Beyoncé and Jay-Z will kick off their joint “On the Run II” tour this summer, and we can’t wait.