Cbreezy

I see what you mean. But I push back a bit on the B"Day thing. Comparable to Act III, it's a relatively low-lift, low-risk expedition. IMO, if anything, beyond the main celebratory element, it was a litmus test to see if there'd be any blowback on the Dream element. Basically, establishing the commercial feasibility of working with him. And while there was no outcry, I still don't think it's coast clear. Bey is in a unique predicament in that she is relatively scandal-free. So, IMO, there has long been a bloodlust to take her down. Something she makes extremely hard by keeping her hands clean. I already noticed how much her name LEAD press titles when his case got filed, e.g., "Beyonce Producer The-Dream". So, it's not far-fetched for her to drop the lead for Act III produced by him and the media "deciding" in that moment to have an issue with it. We've literally seen how the "outcry" over who works with Dr. Luke is hella selective. Doja stays having his name attached to her credits with no blowback; Katy Perry, by contrast, got cooked. It's like the masses know it's hella contradictory, but will never play the one rule for all game. Instead, it's: if we like you, we'll turn a blind eye; if we want your blood, then we will play the faux-shock and dismay game at the loudest volume to sink the release. If I, with ample distance from her operation, can see this from afar, I don't think it's far-fetched for them to be thinking about this at an equally granular level. Bey may be loyal, but she should absolutely be most loyal to her own brand and career. Something I think, in her closeness to The-Dream, is a necessity for her that even he gets.

For me, it's less that I don't think there's demand. I more so question the group's collective desire to do it. There's a world where I could see the likes of Molly, Frankie, and Una being up for it, but the rebrands of Rochelle and Vanessa don't feel as organically aligned with what the group gives. Make no mistake, they aren't "above it," but it's more an individual brand positioning thing and whether the $ would be worth compromising that.

I cannot believe the Halftime headliner has still not been announced. It's almost always a September reveal and, in the Roc Nation years, has been exactly that every year sans The Weeknd (November). A part of me was sold on it being Jay, with the announcement naturally coming after his last show. But that has now come and gone, and still... crickets. It may well still be the case, and we're still within the frame where it could be announced imminently as a victory lap post his shows. But I'm now starting to wonder if it's someone else and this is either a) a deliberate bait-and-switch or b) just bad intel that was never true in the first place. We'll see.

Larger than life! Interesting thread, as I have been having this debate for ions offline. I like my superstars to always have that "super" element. Be that a "super" vocal, "super" choreo, or "super charisma". Or ideally all of the above! It clearly was how things once were. Superstars were effectively our real-life superheroes, not because they were superhuman, but because their celebrity status was attached to their super ability. I TOTALLY get today's value attachment to relatability. It's definitely commodifiable and makes sense in a post-social media world. But I only care for it when it's paired with skill. Take Cardi B, for example. She's the definition of relatable, and it's a huge part of why she's such a big name. At the same time, she has an undeniable ability to turn her "star" on when it comes to performing, charisma, and being the larger-than-life character on stage. The problem with others is that we have an endless list of names who are relatable, but don't have star power. So, at best, they enjoy moments of virality/success, but it rarely translates to ubiquitous praise or popularity because there is not much to work with, nor any legitimate wow factor. Or, we have others, huge names even, who overindex in relatability/girl-next-doorness, but are so lacking in every conventional superstar metric that it, again, will never ever let them be universally praised or adored outside of their cult-like base (which is admittedly huge) because of it. In short lol, being larger than life will always be my pick and 200% justifies a superstar being a superstar. I DGAF about relatability if the core output is compelling.

Agreed. They are absolutely tethered to a particular time and have somewhat of a so-bad-they're-good thing to them lol. Though they have some undeniably timeless bangers, and some of the individual members are extremely talented, even if the group wasn't the best hub for them to shine to their fullest ability (see: Vanessa, Rochelle especially). Because it was such a clusterf*ck of an operation at its height, a comeback (even if just for the nostalgia tour bag) would only work if the kitsch, 00s shamelessness of it all was something they leaned into wholeheartedly. Yet, with several of the members having rebranded as cooler, chic-er, etc in their individual journeys (again Rochelle and, to an extent, Vanessa with her solo attempt), it would be kinda weird going back to their messy formations, offbeat choreo, and all-around cheesiness. Rochelle would 200% Mylene Klass them (see: no thanks, but well-wishes), and they'd need Vanessa not to do the same as it literally doesn't work without at least one of them lol.

I think so, too. A few thoughts. This is the reason I will never moan too much about her keeping her cards close to her chest. Imagine she had laid out her plans for the trilogy at the point of Rennie (like many of the Hive demanded at the time); the amount of pivots BTS would make the frontend look a mess, too. From lapsed date frames, missed video launches, etc. It undoubtedly makes for a frustrating experience as a fan, but at the very least, she is keeping up the veneer of it looking like she's executing some grand plan on her own terms, when I can imagine the BTS is a very different story. The amount of vaulted material this woman must have will make her latter career and sunset years fascinating if ever they decide to open up the vault. We already know she makes tons of songs per project, but to think there are likely full-fledged projects unreleased is equal parts frustrating and exciting. Like the first iteration of 4, which was supposedly a Fela Kuti-inspired Afrobeats album (hence End of Time and RTW) and now a potential Rock album that may be subbed out for another Rock album for reasons discussed. Assuming for a sec that the reason for the possible reworking is true, should the Dream stuff blow over (and he's proven innocent), she automatically has material ready to roll for a deluxe. She probably won't (because she's not made that play with the other two acts), but it's, at the very least, an option.

Fairly certain this will be announced tonight at his second LA show (if he is indeed doing it).

If Jay is doing Halftime, that announcement is coming at the end of one of the shows. So, it's imminent! Wondering if they will try and contain the noise by overtly marketing it as Jay-Z and friends. Or whether the guests will be more implied.

I appreciate this thread and kinda agree. Not a stan, but I have always appreciated her contributions to music and culture. I do wish the masses can get to a point where we can have unbiased, un-rose-tinted-glasses, and un-informed-by-her-popularity-outside-of-music conversations about her discography. As someone who actually lived her rise, from single #1 to now, there is absolutely no denying that quality was not the initial pursuit. Albums a year, riding the popularity of whatever sound was "in". It's paid off well, because amidst that, she authentically landed on some great, timeless bops (ironically). But I legit think that's accidental rather than intentional. I'd say from about Talk That Talk onwards, she settled into her definitive lane and image: music's bad gyal rebel with a Caribbean flair. Like, TTT, Unapologetic, and Anti all sound like sister projects. The issue, IMO, isn't the family planning or booming biz ventures (though I do think the rigor of the music industry doesn't make it an attractive concept for her given her external success). I think it's the reality that, after all that putting whatever out, she settled into a critically praised pocket with Anti and the string of preceding albums. It's kinda giving a...well, what to do next? tea. Don't drag me, but I've never quite seen her as an artist-artist in the most literal sense of the term. She rode waves, has an iconic vocal tone, and her truest talent is her ear for a hit. She has, in herself, an in-built A&R. The kinda-sorta problem now is that she's stumbled into this reverence, which was reserved for her peers like Beyoncé and Adele, and now almost "has" to deliver something next-level, grandiose to justify the hype. And I imagine that adds A LOT of pressure. The reality is that the hiatus actually works to her benefit. I have always said and still believe that she really could drop Anti 2 (sonically), and today's audience would eat it up like it wasn't exactly what she gave in 2016. Lift Me Up almost being #1 makes clear that she has the hype. What I think will be interesting is what happens after her inevitable big comeback. I highkey think R9 will be it. And from an optics perspective, probably should be. It will do well automatically, so it can really be the definitive bookend without her ever really needing to navigate the pressure of another big music run. That, or her schtick, can just be taking huge gaps - ironic given her start. But hiatuses/returns are effectively promo in and of themselves.

Just seen that his LA shows are at the very stadium the 2027 Super Bowl is happening at. I always felt they were kinda randomly placed relative to the other US shows, which were all the way in July. I thought (and it still may be the case that) it was down to venue avails. But the announcement tie-in on the final night feels a lil too neat not to be a thing. My prediction. He kills both shows and, like the EIL announcement in London, the surprise trailer goes live at the end of the last one. Simultatenously online too.

I'm with you on that, but I think two things can be true at once. I literally think Donk was a low-risk litmus test. It was always presented as a gift to the fans/bonus track. If she got cooked for doing it, there's an easy walk back: it's an old song that was going viral on TikTok. As we saw, nothing really happened in terms of blowback. At the same time, I 200% believe Act III didn't drop as intended because of that tea we heard about she/her team recalibrating after his allegations. There is genuinely a lot at stake as a "Beyonce", and audience/media reactions are impossible to predict. She could easily have released Act III, and everything would have been fine (even with his name attached), or she could have had a Katy/Dr. Luke situation. I'm interested to see what the credits look like when the album finally arrives.

Oh, friend, just to clarify: I don't want a tour nor a ETIL 2. No, no. I'm speaking about Halftime. Bey is not going on no Halftime to play. She'll slay, and that's the part that won't allow me to do the performative anger/distress about it being via a Jay-Z-headlined show. The actual thing I'm worried about, that someone touched on above, is that he is the one person she cedes the spotlight to. So, if she participates, it would be the perfect vehicle to get her "Act III tour announcement" on. And she's shown that she will do that ish after someone's show with no hesitation lol (Usher, Coldplay). But, if - like I hope - there's no joint Jay stuff coming in regards to music or tour, I'm equally not convinced she'd be as gutsy as to center herself straight after his show.

The way I was confused about the Jay stuff, cus y'all were reacting to a link that wasn't shared. I was like...huh, what's going on? Anyway... While I don't think this will be an easy ride, I have a hunch that some of the Hive aren't as "enraged" about the right or wrong him doing it per se; it's the inevitable Bey blowback. Where I struggle to be hypocritical is that all of us will get our lives if she is involved in any way, and will also get our lives if she uses it as a promotional springboard into Act III. So, for me at least, there's no point being faux mad, when I know I'll lap it up when it happens.

I'd like to think/hope it's all condensed into a tight, maximum-impact rollout. 2027 for everything ala Lemonade. Our girl obviously isn't hurting for coin, but it's fairly clear she generally tours every two years (evident across most of her career). It's her biggest moneymaker and runs on a relatively predictable schedule. Something went awry with the likely scheduled release of Act III for this year, but if 2027 was on the cards for the project's companion tour, it's way easier to see a scenario where that holds, and it's the music drop she can be more flexible about. Stadiums, sponsors, vendors etc are all locked in way ahead of time and I think she'd have a bigger issue switching that all up than the music.

Rooting for ha! And, as others have said, very smart play on her dropping this new video. Now, for the streaming/chart watchers, is this doing anything on TikTok, radio, etc yet? Really wishing her another big moment. I'm so jarred at how, in two successive years, she's had burgeoning moments that have been messed up by the Xmas freeze (Push 2 Start, Chanel). Both of which never recovered enough to reach their full chart potential) when the holiday songs disappeared. On the upside, the tour set proves she is definitely past the "one-hit wonder" stage because she really has a body of songs that genuinely resonate and a legit audience at her shows. She's an interesting one. Because, as someone reared in the golden era of MPG's, her commercial performance of late would have - back then - seen her on the chopping block at a major. Think Mya, and later Tinashe. But, in this era of virality, social following, and above all, touring coin, I feel her position is a bit more secure, and her trajectory may legit be a case of brick by brick. She/her team do need to knock album #3 out of the park, though. Not just musically, but in terms of proper setup, commercial collbs, etc Because something has been very off about how APOP was handled. And I feel we'll eventually hear come the next cycle or if/when she ever leaves Epic. Pre-release, the Tygers even noticed that she was barely promoting the pre-save/ore-order link. We'll see.