[From Beyoncé's Lemonade: album transcript by Bustle]
Grandmother, the alchemist, you spun gold out of this hard life, conjured beauty from the things left behind. Found healing where it did not live. Discovered the antidote in your own kit. Broke the curse with your own two hands. You passed these instructions down to your daughter who then passed it down to her daughter
So I’ve been surfing on the internet trying to find what does spin out mean to make sense out of what Beyoncé said but I don’t seem to find it. Is it an idiom, can you help out thanks
Best Answer
Beyoncé also refers to her grandmother as an alchemist. Alchemy was the medieval science that tried to convert ordinary metals into gold. The term "alchemy" is also used as a metaphor for a seemingly magical process.
In the story of Rumpelstiltskin, a miller claims that his daughter can spin straw into gold.
To "spin" is "to make thread by twisting fibres , or to produce something using thread" (example: "The final stage of the production of cotton is when it is spun into thread").
A metaphorical alchemist who spins gold out of the difficulties of life is managing to make money through a seemingly impossible, magical process.
It is relevant to note here that Beyoncé's grandmother was a seamstress (i.e. a woman who earns her living through sewing).
According to the Telegraph, the album is "an ode to overcoming hardship, turning things around, and triumphing over adversity" and "references both the singer’s personal struggles, and some of the wider issue faced by black women today and throughout history".
The lyrics also refer to a lemonade recipe being passed down through the generations. Lemons are a similar colour to gold. And according to the Telegraph, the title also references the phrase "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade". According to a commenter at phrases.org.uk: