Dirty Beautiful Black Queer Computer

 

Week 12

Janelle Monáe's emphasis on the feminine queer experience in "Dirty Computer Emotion Picture" challenges the hypermasculine and heteronormative representations of blackness and queerness that are often perpetuated in mainstream media. For example, black queer women in the media are usually portrayed as hyper-masculine or butch. Monae embraces and acknowledges that black queerness does not always equate to masculinity but can look like so many things, including hyper-femininity and nonbinary expression. Monáe's emphasis on the feminine queer experience is a crucial component of this Afrofuturist artwork as she centers on alternative cultures and highlights intersectionality. Monáe challenges dominant white-cis-hetero narratives and offers a powerful vision of liberation and resistance. She does this by portraying black queer women as complex individuals who experience joy, love, and liberation, as well as pain, trauma, and oppression. For example, in the song and video for "Pynk," Monáe celebrates the beauty and joy of having a pussy! She shamelessly embraces the physical parts of her that she identifies with her femme identity and her own sexuality. (Although this song is beautiful and exciting to listen to as a cis-woman with a vagina, I think there are some ways that it can be problematic as not all people who identify as women have vaginas, although she does challenge gender expectations and norms in other pieces within Dirty Computer). For example, in "I Like That," she highlights the struggle of being different and the importance of self-love and self-acceptance. These strong and exciting expressions of challenging gender norms, especially as a black queer woman, were inspiring to watch and filled with joy and love at the forefront which is important to see represented throughout mainstream media.