Meet The Gorgeous Kenyan-born Somali Lady Featured on Beyonce’s New Visual Album ‘Lemonade’

The world is raving about Beyonce after the release of her HBO special Lemonade, which premiered on the popular television network last Saturday night.

In the special, Beyonce opens up herself to the world, talks about cheating ,#blacklivesmatter among other issues.

But the excitement surrounding her album this time isn’t only focused on Beyonce but also on Kenyan born poet Warsan Shire.

In the video Beyonce is quoted saying “I tried to change. Tried to be softer, prettier.” A citation from one of Warsan’s poems,“For Women Who Are ‘Difficult’ To Love”. Beyonce also quotes other Warsan’s poems like “The Unbearable Weight of Staying (The End of the Relationship)” and “Nail Technician as Palm Reader”

In the production credits for Lemonade, the Kenyan-Born-UK-raised poet is credited as having worked on the album’s “Film Adaptation and Poetry.”

This is however,is not the first time the spotlight has been on Warsan, she is known for winning the UK’s Brunel University inaugural prize for African Poetry (2013) , for becoming London’s first Young Poet Laureate and also being named Queensland, Australia’s poet in residence.

Photo:www.araweeloabroad.com

But Warsan is not the only African featured in the visual album;work by Nigerian visual artist Laolu Senbanjo adorns the bodies of  Beyonce and her dancers while twins Lisa-Kaindé Diaz and Naomi Diaz of Ibeyi strike a fierce pose with Blue Ivy’s mum.

The Ibeyi twins in red and white pose with other stars

This is not the first time Beyonce has sought talent from the motherland, in 2013, she featured Nigerian author Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie on “Flawless” off her self-titled album;“Yonce”. In 2011, Beyonce released Run The World (Girls) and Mozambican Kwaito dance group Tofo Tofo did the dance choreography.

Now that’s #blackgirlmagic!

Additional Reporting:cnn.com and refinery29