Historically, the lighter your skin, the greater your value as a person. Porcelain white skin was indicative of a life of luxury, in particular, one away from labor in the destructive sun (see also: colonialism). And if you were “unfortunately” born with dark skin, the beauty standard still applied, then and now. In 2020, women of color in the United States, Africa, India, Mexico, Brazil, and other diasporic nations worldwide spent over $8.6 BILLION on skin lightening.
It’s a destructive standard that parents of little brown-skinned girls have to combat from the day their babies are born. Parents like mine ensured that every Cabbage Patch Kid and Barbie doll we were gifted had skin AT LEAST as dark as ours. But when your mom is Beyoncé Knowles-Carter, there’s an award-winning, critically-acclaimed song and video to remind you and the world just how beautiful your brown skin is.
“Brown Skin Girl” opens with pairs of Black women and girls playing hand games, a tradition passed down through generations among people who were stolen and allowed no possessions or had to abandon them again and again (see also: Seneca Village, Tulsa). Another tradition, the African-American debutante ball that was created out of exclusion but is still maintained today, sees a great deal of screen time.
SAINt JHN and Wizkid lend vocals and appear in the video too, and I don’t want to diminish their contributions but…“Brown Skin Girl” is all about the ladies. Beyoncé and Blue Ivy are stunning as always, especially alongside Mother Tina and baby sister Rumi. But the collection of Black women from models to background extras is unprecedented. Naomi Campbell, Lupita Nyong’o, Kelly Rowland and Sudanese models Adut Akech and Aweng Ade-Chuol are just a FEW of the gorgeous faces you’ll see. But brown-skinned women are global, so you’ll notice women of other nationalities too, including Sri Lankan Tamilian model Sheerah Ravindren, in the brown skin girl parade. It’ll move you to see these women of all ages and nationalities celebrating their own skin, celebrating each other’s skin, and being celebrated on such a massive scale.
Like everything Beyoncé touches, the details are exceptional and intentional, like lush, jewel tones in nearly every scene that make brown skin shine, because usually, the darker the skin, the greater the color’s impact. Hair is given a particular role of honor for a culture that constantly has to fight for its place in American society (see also: Tignon Law, CROWN Act). Finally, this masterpiece closes with little Blue Ivy singing the final chorus acapella, before another Black girl rises from among the debutantes, both symbolizing a future where little brown skinned girls never second-guess their worth.