In 2007, Knowles began to record music again. Her second studio album Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams (2008) deviated from the pop-oriented music of her debut to Motown-inspired sounds from the 60's and 70's. It peaked at number nine on the US Billboard 200 and received positive reviews from critics. She followed this up with the 1980s pop and R&B-inspired EP True (2012) on Terrible Records and her imprint Saint Records. Her third studio album, A Seat at the Table (2016) was released to widespread critical acclaim and became her first number-one album in the United States. The album's lead single, "Cranes in the Sky" won the Grammy for Best R&B Performance. Her fourth studio album, When I Get Home, was released in March 2019 to further critical acclaim.
Knowles was heavily influenced by Motown girl groups and says that her first passion is songwriting. Frequently compared by the media to her sister Beyoncé, Knowles has claimed that they have different aspirations and are musically different. She has been ranked by Billboard as the 100th most successful dance artist of all-time, and in 2017 was honored with the "Impact Award" at Billboard Women in Music. Her other ventures include an endorsement deal with Rimmel London and a line of hip-hop-oriented merchandise for young children.
Interlude: Dad Was Mad
Solange Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
My first day a state trooper caught me
Put me in the backseat of the car
And meeting the other black kids, was six of us
And seeing all of those parents
And also KKK members having signs and throwing cans at us
Spitting at us
We lived in the threat of death every day, every day
Integration and segregation and and racism
That was my childhood
I was angry for years angry very angry
The lyrics of Solange's Interlude: Dad Was Mad describe the experiences of her father, Matthew Knowles, during his childhood in Alabama where he experienced racism and segregation. The song speaks about the first day of school when Knowles was among a group of black children that were escorted to school by state troopers amidst protests from the KKK who hurled cans and spat at them. The lyrics describe how this experience left Knowles feeling lost in a vacuum between integration and segregation and how he grew up living in fear for his life.
The song portrays the anger and confusion that Knowles felt as a result of the deep-seated hatred that was directed at him and other black children during his childhood. The song stands as a testament to the resilience and strength that he required to survive that time and become one of the most successful music executives of all time.
Interestingly, the song also hints at the fact that racism and segregation were not limited to the southern states but were also present in other parts of the country. By highlighting the presence of KKK members in Alabama, the song provides insight into the extent to which racism was still prevalent in the U.S. during Knowles' childhood.
Line by Line Meaning
I was the first one of the first
I was among the first Afro-American children to integrate into a predominantly white school
My first day, a state trooper caught me
On my first day of school, a state police officer apprehended me
Put me in the backseat of the car
The police officer took me and put me in the backseat of his vehicle
And meeting the other black kids, was six of us
I met the only other five black kids in the same situation as me
And seeing all of those parents
I witnessed the parents of the white children staring at us
And also KKK members having signs and throwing cans at us
Members of the Ku Klux Klan also showed up with signs and threw cans at us
Spitting at us
They even spat on us
We lived in the threat of death every day, every day
We endured the constant fear of death on a daily basis
So I was just lost in this vacuum between Integration and segregation and racism
I was left in confusion between the issues of integration, segregation, and racism
That was my childhood
This was my upbringing and what I had to face daily
I was angry for years angry very angry
I carried anger with me for many years, a deep and bitter anger
Lyrics © Sony/ATV Music Publishing LLC
Written by: Solange Knowles
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind