Unveiled on Tuesday June 21, “Break My Soul”, the first title of Beyoncé’s next album “Renaissance” which will be released on July 29, is meeting with both a musical and societal echo in the United States. The song ranks number 1 in listening on iTunes and raises the debate.
The lyrics of this song indeed refer to the movement called “the great resignation” which has seen millions of Americans voluntarily leave their jobs since the start of the Covid-19 epidemic. In 2021, more than 47 million people voluntarily left their jobs in the United States, according to figures from the United States Department of Labor.
In her song, Queen B proclaims in particular: “Hire at nine / Finish at five / And they get on my nerves / That’s why I can’t sleep at night”.
“It is interesting to see how this phenomenon has infiltrated the air of the times”,
nick bunkerindeed job search site economist
In the United States, many experts and media have therefore looked into the content of “Break my soul” since its release. “Beyoncé’s ode to quitting her job is the latest cultural reference to the ‘big quit’ movement in the workplace that began in the spring of 2021, when the US economy reopened from the pandemic-related downturn.”, explains the American media CNBC. In recent months, some Americans had already expressed their desire to quit everything by posting videos on the TikTok social network with the keyword “Quit-Toks”.
“It is interesting to see how this phenomenon has infiltrated the air of time”Nick Bunker, an economist at job search site Indeed, told CNBC.
For CNN, the country’s first channel, Beyoncé’s song is even “an anthem” for the “great resignation” movement. The American media lists many messages on social networks from Beyoncé fans who say they sent their resignation letter after listening to “Break My Soul”. “I’ve been at work for an hour and I see why Beyoncé is telling me to quit my job”writes for example a user on Twitter.
An hour into the work day and I see why Beyoncé told me to quit my job.
— The Gentleman’s View (@flyyellowbwoy) June 21, 2022
“In the last twelve months, a record number of Americans have left their jobs themselves for various reasons: burnout linked to the pandemic, wishing to be better paid, need to take care of their children during the epidemic or of old people”explains CNN.
The news channel adds in a humorous tone that Fed Chairman Jerome Powell, “wants to see unemployment rise in the United States in order to save the economy. But Beyoncé could move ahead of her plans”.