I wish that Lemonade (the album) had the poem interludes from the film between each song. 
 

And I wish the regular edition of The Gift didn't have the spoken word interludes from the movie. 

1 hour ago, Golden said:

Bodyguard.. the actual hit that got away

Absolutely, and it makes even less sense since she states it's her favorite....  

Beyoncé is both a contemporary and a legacy artist. Her streams are actually good overall, looking at all credits. But she's never going to be a streaming force like her peers who debuted 10+ years after her. That's ok.
 

And clearly she doesn't care, especially when she's selling out record breaking stadium tours every 18 months.

We need to move on. 

23 minutes ago, Cbreezy said:

Fair clap back lol (although the streams aren't where the lion's share of my take resides).

i know ! it's just that streams should be the last thing we bees use in an argument 

9 hours ago, Erotica said:

Alicia recorded a version of this

 

ikik one of my fave from tha album 

but to find out it was first pitched to bey 

 

1 hour ago, Cbreezy said:

You touch on something that I think is really interesting, and I appreciate the nuance of your take on my take (if that makes any sense lol), because you absolutely hit the nail on the head in some regards. 

 

As a fan from literally the first DC single, I am indeed very dialed into the DNA of where Bey started, what propelled her to new heights, and IMO, what makes up the core of her artistic proposition (even as she continues to break new ground now). 

 

She absolutely has evolved and, as you mentioned, has a career that is kind of split in two (I'd loosely say the pre-ST years and the post-ST years). I legit appreciate both, as it's not lost on me that had she carried on being the rump-shaking showgirl (alone), she would definitely not be as revered as she is now. She would probably be the queen of Vegas or something (in the most premium, "nothing left to prove" kinda way). 

 

So, trust that I will always appreciate the bold, experimental, and altogether deeper artistic ground of her post ST run. They are necessary, and there is no conceivable way she is the level of queen she is without it. 

 

At the same time, and maybe it's just because of when I started stanning her, I can't be convinced that Beyonce (even as of today) doesn't have a specific core musical DNA, sound, vibe, performance style that specifically defines...her. And I just struggle to fully giddy up to the idea that it's the music that is the least reminiscent of that which is somehow her... best. In one regard, it can be argued that she has simply evolved into her best self and most artistically astute self. I can accept that. But on the other hand (which is where the crux of my issue rests), it's odd that she is one of the few MPG most celebrated for the corners of her catlog that are the least aligned with what defines her musical DNA.

 

BTW, I must also stress that Rennie is actually my fave album of hers. So my stance is not necessarily a stance tethered to the  Old Bey vs New Bey debate. I just think I have a perpetual issue with her being most rewarded and literally awarded when she drives in the direction furthest from the material BEYONCE (the artist) is most beloved for (Rennie being the exception, as it's what I expect a Beyonce project to give in 2000-and-now).  So, in saying that, I think maybe my "beef," so to speak, is less so with fellow stans but with the bizarreness of how her music is received critically. Aka the less "Beyonce" she is the better.

 

On the Hive front, we all have individual hot takes. I will say, though, as a sidebar, in my own lil orbit and online, I've clocked that newer fans (many of those who weren't there in those early eras) naturally tend to gravitate towards the newer albums. Which makes TOTAL sense. Add to that the fact that Lemonade represented a shift that saw her most embraced by critics than ever (a stan bragging right), and it figures why it's latched on to so much. Even if she doesn't latch those songs onto her setlists. 

 

  Reveal hidden contents

Don't shoot me either, but if it was what some of y'all profess it to be, those streams wouldn't be looking like they look. And trust me, it's not just a Tidal thing.

 

As always, you raise totally reasonable points, tho again i would say that what u mentioned as "they acclaim only the music that is furthest away from Beyoncé" is a bit narrowminded.

 

Objectively speaking (musical theory, lyricism, production/engineering, storytelling, purpose), shes never been better than now. Lemonade, Rennie and CC quite literally SHITTT on her first albums under very objective criteria. So imho, the acclaim is very warranted compared to her earlier albums.

 

I think we need to take Bey for her word: she doesnt want to be confined to one type of music because she is more than that. CC is just as much Bey as DIL is. They all represent her. Earlier Bey had sth to prove and you can hear it, Bey 2.0. knows she THAT girl and has intention and purpose far beyond just creating a hit or a bawp. You need a level of maturity and knowledge to create an album like CC. Its exceptional.

Edited August 29, 20251 yr by Kristie Kuwa

If these acts were full era's the singles for act 1 and 2 would have been:

 

BMS

Heated

Church Girl

Summer Renaissance 

Alien Superstar 

Cuff It

America Has A Problem

Virgo's Groove

 

TH'E

16 Carriages

Tyrant

Bodyguard

ll Most Wanted

Levii 's Jeans

Yaya

 

Ya'll Agree?

 

 

Edited August 29, 20251 yr by Bicassie

7 minutes ago, Bicassie said:

If these acts were full era's the singles for act 1 and 2 would have been:

 

BMS

Heated

Church Girl

Summer Renaissance 

Alien Superstar 

Cuff It

America Has A Problem

Virgo's Groove

 

TH'E

16 Carriages

Tyrant

Bodyguard

ll Most Wanted

Levii 's Jeans

Yaya

 

Ya'll Agree?

 

 

 

 

Rennie

 

BMS  (Summer)

Alien Superstar  (Fall)

Cuff It  (Winter)

Heated  (Spring/Summer)

 

 

CC

 

Texas

Bodyguard  (Late Spring)

Levi  (Late Summer)

II Most Wanted  (Winter) 

Edited August 29, 20251 yr by Lose My Breath

2 minutes ago, Lose My Breath said:

 

 

Rennie

 

BMS

Alien Superstar

Cuff It

Heated

 

 

CC

 

Texas

Bodyguard

Levi

II Most Wanted

idk….wasn't church girl supposed to be the original 2nd single

1 minute ago, Bicassie said:

idk….wasn't church girl supposed to be the original 2nd single

 

I mean, I think so, but it was a bad choice lol

11 minutes ago, Lose My Breath said:

 

I mean, I think so, but it was a bad choice lol

right but she def would have in a full era, atleast as a promo single

jun 2022 - bms

aug 2022 - heated

feb 2023 - cuff it

may 2023 - ahap

sep 2023 - virgos groove

 

feb 2024 - texas / 16 carriages

apr 2024 - bodyguard

aug 2024 - leviis jeans

nov 2024 - ii most wanted

jan 2025 - tyrant

 

wouldve been my singles rollout lol.

It shouldve been:

 

Rennie:

BMS

Alien Superstar

Cuff It

AHAP

Heated

 

CC:

THE

2 Most Wanted

Bodyguard

Tyrant

oh lord we're doing this again?

 

1 hour ago, ScorpiosGroove said:

oh lord we're doing this again?

 

I opened the thread earlier and legit closed my entire browser after reading like three posts

 

9 hours ago, dnboy1 said:

I wonder how she'll announce Act III. Super Bowl again? Grammy teasing? 

The World Cup final will have its first halftime show on July 19th next year, maybe she's gonna use this performance for either the act III lead single live debut or a tour announcement, a truly global one this time. 

 

 

4 minutes ago, nooniebao said:

 

 

We need more 

I'd hate to see you come home, me, the kids, and the dog is gone

 

anyone got a ranking idea ****

top 5:
#1 Renaissance 

#2 B'Day (srry i'm one of those)

#3 Cowboy Carter 

#4 Lemonade

#5 selftitled

 

Middle Tier:

#6 Black Is King

#7 4 (yeah, i said it)

 

bottom 3:

#8 IASF

#9 DIL

#10 Everything Is Love

 

 

 

I'm so excited to hear her futuristic Rock sound  I love how she celebrates the past but also explores the future with this project...tracks like SHB, 2H2H, AS or AUIYM are the perfect examples imo 

Edited August 30, 20251 yr by Crayzik

A lot of you all talk a lot about streams but forget 90% of streams are not organic and pushed by labels..that eventually doesn't generate any money for the artists unless they go on tour.

3 minutes ago, Kingdom said:

A lot of you all talk a lot about streams but forget 90% of streams are not organic and pushed by labels..that eventually doesn't generate any money for the artists unless they go on tour.

Even with all of that… Beyoncé's streams are not bad at all. Her streams are just not focused on some huge singles like most artists she's compared to.