By Josephine Amoako

Pretty Hurts

It’s been a long time since I’ve been inspired or impressed by a Beyoncé’s music video; I hardly listen to her songs anymore.  A few nights ago, after several attempts to find a good movie to watch, I settled on listening to music instead. I was working on the next chapter of the Swapping Places series when I heard a voice. I was tempted to change the channel but somehow felt lazy to pick up the remote control.

I have concluded that when it comes to secular music, great tunes or beats do not necessarily translate into great music videos.  However, I felt drawn to this video.  I loved the interpretation of the song thru the video and I instantly told myself, “Aha, this is the Beyoncé I used to know.”

As women who are living in the 21st century, a widely accepted truth is that beauty is pain. For a lady to step out with a flawless makeup on, it means she might have taken quite some time to have it done. For those in the limelight, God knows how much they spend and what they go through to appear the way they do and all for what? Human applause or recognition?

Don’t get me wrong, looking good is great. But the issue is the intention behind the extent we go sometimes. I believe the purpose for whatever we find ourselves doing is what matters. Let the applause just be a bonus. It’s not worth it, killing yourself just for your fellow human being to call you beautiful or the best at something.

The truth is, for all the thousands of people who claim to be a fan, they are also claiming loyalty to someone else!  We all have our favorite artist, but our playlist contain songs from other singers as well.

We should discover what we are good at, excel at it and when our 5 minutes of fame comes, we should enjoy it. But let’s remember, the spotlight won’t be in our direction forever. When it is moving away, we should let it go but keep working harder, not just so it will come back to us, but because we know that is what we were born to do. As for applause, no matter how loud and hard people clap, they will definitely fade at one point. If we only live for applause, what will become of us after it ceases?

Every goal hurts not just being pretty because everything takes effort. Just don’t do it to please people because they will let you down. No matter how much you love a song, you tire of it after listening to it after a while. The same with applause. Live for something more worthwhile.

© Josephine Amoako 2017