Beyoncé showed up at Kamala Harris's rally in Houston. Will it persuade more people to show up to the polls?

Beyoncé proved she got some coordination with team Harris after she made a surprise appearance at the Democratic presidential candidate's rally in Houston on Friday.

While it may very well be the biggest celebrity endorsement, will Beyoncé's vote of confidence be enough to tip the scales in Kamala Harris's favor both in Texas and beyond?

Today on Commotion, culture writer CT Jones joins host Elamin Abdelmahmoud to talk about how Beyoncé's appearance was received, and why campaigns rely so heavily on celebrity endorsements.

We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player.

Elamin: You watched this livestream of Kamala's rally from Houston. For people who missed it, there were rumours that Beyoncé could be there. We didn't know for sure whether that was going to happen, and then it happens. Describe the scene for people. 

CT: It was the definition of a quintessential hometown crowd reception. I mean, I doubt you would hear louder screams for an artist who, let's be clear, was not actually performing. She was just there, and brought the entire room down. 

She came out with Kelly Rowland. She looked beautiful. I think one of the things that was so incredible was obviously the energy that it brought to the room. People were ecstatic, and it kind of combined this huge energy of people in Texas being there to potentially vote in the first Black woman president. 

Elamin: Yeah, there's something about Beyoncé in general where she can command a room by just standing there. And so when she just said "H-Town," and then just went silent, those cheers could have genuinely gone on for eight minutes straight. 

CT: She didn't need to talk. She could have just stood there.

Elamin: She could have. She didn't, though. She spoke for about five minutes…. reminding us that people did not fall out of a coconut tree. CT, what stood out for you about Beyoncé and what she had to say that day? 

CT: I think it's always important for an artist who is there to nominate a political person to just— really, that's not the time to mention how many Grammys you have, and Beyoncé is the queen of knowing what the moment is for. I think it's incredibly important that she mentioned and referenced specific policies. Abortion is obviously going to be a really hot button issue, and as kind of a hometown crowd, I think it was really, really important for her to mention the historic nature of it. My grandmother is an A.K.A. [Alpha Kappa Alpha sorority member]. She loves talking about voting. So I think it is fair to be like, there are people who have waited and waited and waited for this moment. I think it was an excellent choice all around.

Elamin: I think also there is a history to Beyoncé that I think is maybe worth talking about…. What's Beyoncé's history with politics? 

CT: I think Beyoncé's actually a really fascinating case because she is one of those people who has become a superstar without being forced to be apolitical. Post 2005, you pretty much always know what Beyoncé is going to stand for, right? Her music cannot be divorced from her political opinion. It's why you have such an iconic Super Bowl performance with an homage to the Black Panthers. You have the Formation music video, standing in the wreckage of Katrina. You have Black Lives Matter being such an inherent part of her discography. You also have Black Is King. 

You have all of these moments where Beyoncé is saying, "I'm a proud Black woman. Here are the things that I support." And you even have her directly endorsing a lot of politicians. She's famously Democrat. She famously lends her hand to Democratic causes. You know, if you're seeing an ad on TV and you hear a Beyoncé song, it's going to be for the Democrats because you know what else she has? A great legal team. If you're hearing a Beyoncé song, it's because she or someone on her team wants it there.

You can listen to the full discussion from today's show on CBC Listen or on our podcast, Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud, available wherever you get your podcasts.

Interview with CT Jones produced by Jane van Koeverden.