Lemonade is the sixth studio album by the American singer and songwriter Beyoncé. It was surprise-released on April 23, 2016, by Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records, as a visual album together with a film of the same name. Beyoncé conceived Lemonade as a concept album that explores the historical Black female experience in the United States, allegorized as a personal journey through marital betrayal and healing, and structured as a song cycle based on the Kübler-Ross model.