Review by cgraves04

I'm going to go ahead and say first off that I think most of the users giving this visual and musical masterpiece a low rating did so out of spite against Beyoncé and not because they gave it a fair shake. Their malice is unfortunate because it diminishes the incredible amount of collaboration and creative talent contributed by various artists from African countries. This is not just a Beyoncé visual album-many African musicians, artists, and dancers were also heavily involved, and the message of the entire project is one of love and support for black people around the world. A shame that people would diminish that out of mindless hate for one singer.

The music alone, a mixture of R&B, hip hop, and Afro beat featuring artists from across Africa and the US, is fantastic. I listened to it on repeat when it was first released. But the visual album is on a whole different level. The sumptuous cinematography and costuming is a feast for the eyes (to borrow a cliche), incorporating gorgeous African landscapes and integrating high fashion with traditional African garb from Nigeria, Benin, South Africa, and more. Many faces make an appearance, emphasizing the cultural diversity and beauty of Africa, and the dancers are out of this world. The theme continually returns to one of identity and homecoming.

To be clear, this is a visual album made up of disparate songs joined to form an overall arc based on The Lion King. In other words, each song is its own music video, and together they are a loose creative interpretation of The Lion Ling. It's not supposed to be THE Lion King (if you want to watch the actual movie, then watch the actual movie!). These are also Beyoncé music videos, so yes, she makes an appearance in most of them. Don't most artists appear in most of their music videos? This work is meant to be viewed as art, not as a traditional movie. On that note, I highly recommend watching and judging it for yourself. It gets ten stars from me.