Well, is it?

Absolutely. Idc.

It was a moment but it's forgotten by now. The 2016 'This Is America'

No, I am a casual Beyonce fan and I cannot even remember anything from this song besides being praised from here to heaven. GP would be on the same page.

She has other classics tho - CIL, SL, Halo and maybe Telephone + Say my name from her DC days

Twitter vibes classic definitely

the way versions and screenshots of these tweets go viral every year, I'd say yes

Absolutely. Inc.

Not really. And that is ok.

I think so. The video itself captured black resilience beautifully.

Most people don't know what that is

I think Freedom accidentally became a classic

No, but she made a point

I think it's somewhere between a standard classic and a cult classic.

Its unique and limited release strategy certainly hindered its wide consumption, and so it sits somewhere between because though it was immediately and immensely discussed, is an impactful and iconic work, it was limited in its reach as well has having a specific cultural motives, particularly addressing the topic of Black empowerment, while also leaning into a broader cultural motive which was to call out the racism at the time (mainly from the video).

I think in any case, quantifying its classic-status in terms of commercial statistics alone will be a foolish endeavour, as it actually accomplished far more than its fair share of impact relative to the numbers it was able to achieve given the limitations Beyoncé put on it success. Its splashy video debut and subsequent controversial Super Bowl performance basically has forever engrained it in (at least American) public consciousness in terms of 2010s big pop moments.

Edited March 30Mar 30 by swissman

25 minutes ago, liamswnmt said:

No, I am a casual Beyonce fan and I cannot even remember anything from this song besides being praised from here to heaven. GP would be on the same page.

She has other classics tho - CIL, SL, Halo and maybe Telephone + Say my name from her DC days

You are a casual fan and cannot remember anything from this song besides it being praised?

So you never heard the lyric "I got hot sauce in my bag"?
You've never heard "okay ladies now let's get into formation"?
You don't remember that it was performed at the Super Bowl?
You don't recognize the opening synth?
It's completely foreign to you?
How casual of a fan are you? Is it like you hear her song and you like it but you do absolutely no other engagement with her as an artist?

27 minutes ago, A Million Lights said:

It was a moment but it's forgotten by now. The 2016 'This Is America'

This is a weird way of putting it.

That's like saying ...Baby One More Time is the 1999 Oops I Did It Again.

Edited March 30Mar 30 by swissman

yes

Of course it's not.

Whether or not it's a classic, no lead singer has yet do do such a bold move as:

1. Surprise drop a political music video

2. Perform it at the Super Bowl the next day

3. Give it away for free

4. Not send it to radio

5. Not release it for sale [until the album came out three months later]

6. Not put it on streaming services [for three years]

7. Keep the video unlisted for nine months
   
   And I think that's iconic behaviour.

The last good song she release

It absolutely would've hit #1 if it had a normal wide release But to answer the question I do see it as one. Absolutely iconic.

A cult classic, yes. A regular classic, no.

Sonically a chop

Culturally a classic

Outside the Beyonce base, no.

Not at all. It's definitely acclaimed and relevant, but a classic it is not (at least at the moment).

yes, duh