Last year was undeniably rough. However, just 10 days into 2017 things are already looking up. On what was a bland Tuesday, (Jan. 10) Interview magazine gave fans a wonderful surprise when the publication revealed its Q&A feature with Beyonce interviewing Solange.
The Knowles sisters–who both earned number one albums with their individual projects Lemonade and A Seat At The Table–spoke over the phone while Solange was en route from Philly to New York. Bey questioned Solo about the meaning of “Cranes In The Sky” and how the song, originally written eight years ago, came about.
“I used to write and record a lot in Miami during that time, when there was a real estate boom in America, and developers were developing all of this new property. There was a new condo going up every 10 feet. You recorded a lot there as well, and I think we experienced Miami as a place of refuge and peace. We weren’t out there wilin’ out and partying. I remember looking up and seeing all of these cranes in the sky. They were so heavy and such an eyesore, and not what I identified with peace and refuge. I remember thinking of it as an analogy for my transition—this idea of building up, up, up that was going on in our country at the time, all of this excessive building, and not really dealing with what was in front of us.”
The free-flowing conversation touched on various topics including their childhood in Houston, controlling her art, being a womanist, and fighting the feeling of arrogance when she admits she wrote every lyric on the album. Solo also discussed the similarities between Master P and her father Mathew Knowles.
“I remember reading or hearing things about Master P that reminded me so much of Dad growing up. And they also have an incredible amount of love and respect for one another. And I wanted a voice throughout the record that represented empowerment and independence, the voice of someone who never gave in, even when it was easy to lose sight of everything that he built, someone invested in black people, invested in our community and our storytelling, in empowering his people. You and I were raised being told not to take the first thing that came our way, to build our own platforms, our own spaces, if they weren’t available to us. And I think that he is such a powerful example of that.”