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The Musical History Of Jelly

The Sporkful

00:00

Beyonce's Jelly Roll

The metaphor was used among black musicians in the 20s and 30s. In the 40s, white musicians started using it as a metaphor for sex. The most famous example is Glenn Miller's version of It Must Be Jelly because Jam Don't Shake Like That. Beyonce uses this kind of domestic, very feminized metaphor of baking a cake for her sexual desirability and skill.

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