Sounds Like A Cult The Cult of Beyoncé
Oct 14, 2025
This week, cultural critic Kathleen Newman Bremang joins to dissect the mesmerizing Cult of Beyoncé. She explores how the Beyhive operates like a faith, with rituals and blind devotion reminiscent of religion. Kathleen shares her personal journey from fan to critical admirer, examining Beyoncé's impactful feminism and the cultural symbols in 'Lemonade.' They discuss the complexities of celebrity worship versus organized religion and critique the contradictions in Beyoncé's capitalist ventures. Overall, it’s a fascinating look at devotion in pop culture.
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Growing Up With Beyoncé
- Kathleen Newman-Bremang grew up with Beyoncé and describes her fandom as intertwined with personal growth and identity formation.
- She separates nostalgic love from her role as a critic to analyze Beyoncé objectively when needed.
Mystique Fuels Projection
- Beyoncé's cultivated mystery and tight control over her image create space for fans to project meanings onto her work.
- Kathleen calls this controlled presentation effectively "Beyoncé propaganda," which fuels cult-like devotion.
Performance Meets Political Messaging
- Beyoncé's feminism blends performance and genuine moments of political imagery, making it both empowering and branded.
- Kathleen argues the work was radical for pop culture context, even if sometimes surface-level compared with deeper activism.