Formation

Beyoncé released this song and its accompanying video on February 7, 2016 - the day before she performed it at the Super Bowl halftime show. Coldplay was the headlining act, but Beyoncé, who got top billing for the halftime show three years earlier, pretty much took over the show. At the conclusion of the show, a spot ran announcing Beyoncé's upcoming Formation world tour. The Super Bowl is not where you expect to hear a new song (particularly one with "negro" in the lyrics), but Beyoncé is a ringer when it comes to halftime performances, so producers were willing to accommodate.

In this song, Beyoncé expresses pride in her heritage, declaring, "Earned all this money but they never take the country out me" (she was raised in the Houston area). She also makes it clear that her African-American features are an asset, when she sings, "I like my negro nose with Jackson 5 nostrils." This line refers to Michael Jackson's pre-surgery nose when he was still in the Jackson 5. The song is filled with the kind of swagger we're accustomed to hearing from her husband, Jay-Z; she even turns the tables by saying that if her man treats her right, she'll reward him with a trip to Red Lobster. Bey wants her ladies to fall into formation so they can all rise up together.

Beyoncé wrote this song with Swae Lee of Rae Sremmurd. The track was produced by Mike WiLL Made-It and Apluss. It originated when Swae Lee freestyled the words "ladies, let's get in formation" over a Mike WiLL beat. As soon as Beyoncé heard the demo she saw its potential.