“The song is really about women empowerment, and about us owning our sexuality.”
In the 1988 film Coming to America, Eddie Murphy, playing the prince of the fictional nation of Zamunda, comes to America (with Arsenio Hall in tow) to escape an arranged marriage and find the love of his life. In New York, he meets Lisa, the woman who embodies everything the prince is looking for in a future queen — independence, poise, self-confidence. It doesn’t hurt that she’s gorgeous.
Now, over 20 years since the film’s release, Lisa’s character has inspired another piece of art: “Queen of Zamunda,” the spectacular song from Oakland MC Queens D.Light.
Listen in as Queens explains the sex-positive message and the various influences behind “Queen of Zamunda” with host Max Savage Levenson in this episode of the podcast, recorded at Piff Gallery in downtown Oakland. For more from Queen D.Light, including her recent full-length release California Wildflower, see here.
