Unless you’ve been living under a rock, by now, you know that Beyoncé gave birth to twins. She had them Sunday, June 18th, 2017 – Father’s Day. On a day meant to celebrate fathers, Beyoncé still found a way to steal the spotlight. She shared pictures of her and Jay-Z’s twins on Instagram Friday, July 14th. Before that, Jay-Z released his latest album, 4:44, as a heartfelt response to Beyoncé’s Lemonade album, which she dropped in 2016. Even when it’s not about her, it still is about her. Beyoncé has reached an iconic space and her journey to this point has been interesting to say the least.
Throughout her career Beyoncé, has blessed us with phenomenal music, memorable performances and the opportunity to take a glimpse into her growth as an artist and as a person. Her career path and persona are the most significant reasons for her ascension to Queen Bey.
Beyoncé has been making hits since she first started out with Destiny’s Child. That success continued with the release of her fourth studio album, 4, which helped to cement her status as a star. With hit singles such as “Run the World (Girls)” and “Love on Top” Beyoncé became a household name. She has proven to be an artist who is not only capable of making hit after hit, but also serves as a symbol of female empowerment. She continued her run of success with the release of her self-titled album Beyoncé in December 2013 – an album which was released without any prior promotion. It was considered by some – though there shouldn’t be a debate – to be her best album to date; The album deservedly received a Grammy nomination for Album of the Year in 2015.
Her success as an artist continued in 2016 with the release of Lemonade which was released unconventionally via a short film on HBO. It was yet another example of Beyoncé’s ability to garner attention in a unique way. The album itself is considered by many music critics to be her best album; Metacritic – which compiles reviews of major critics into a single score – had Lemonade as the second best album of 2016. It was an album that covered infidelity, female empowerment, and black self-love all in one package. Beyoncé’s last two albums displayed a willingness to go beyond the pop singles she was recognized for .
As much recognition as she receives for her music, her status transcends beyond being just another artist. Beyoncé drew national headlines in 2012 when she gave birth to her first child, Blue Ivy Carter. Beyoncé received offers from magazines to sell pictures of her daughter but, as is customary for her, she took the matter into her own hands by posting the first pics of Blue Ivy on her Tumblr blog. Lemonade symbolized feminism and black empowerment. It was so influential that Jay-Z came out with his own album 4:44 which served as a response to Lemonade with many of the same themes, as well as an apology to Beyoncé – an apology for his past misogyny. He also touched on other topics including black empowerment and fiscal responsibility. Interestingly enough, Beyoncé made a song years ago exclaiming Jay-Z’s ego and his infallibility; It’s somewhat ironic that the only person able to humble Jay-Z is the same person who propped his ego .
Beyoncé is a multi-layered human being who also happens to be one of the most talented artists of all time. She has shown the ability to make hit songs from her early days with Destiny’s Child to now with Lemonade. She has shown unselfishness in her awareness of social injustice and her willingness to express this in her music. There is nothing wrong with acknowledging her greatness as Queen Bey.
