Renaissance

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There are soft moments here, too: “I know you can’t help but to be yourself around me,” she coos on “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA,” the kind of warm, whispers-in-the-ear love song you’d expect to hear at a summer cookout—complete with an intricate interplay between vocals and guitar that gives Beyoncé a chance to showcase some incredible vocal dexterity. “CHURCH GIRL” fuses R&B, gospel, and hip-hop to tell a survivor’s story: “I'm finally on the other side/I finally found the extra smiles/Swimming through the oceans of tears we cried.” Iconically, Renaissance is the first of a three act project – meaning we’re just at the beginning of a glorious Beyoncé era. The album has already reached number one on US iTunes and is in the top 100 of Apple Music in more than 100 countries around the world. Beyoncé posted a special message thanking fans for not listening to the leak, saying: “I can’t thank you enough for your love and protection. I appreciate you for calling out anyone that was trying to sneak into the club early. It means the world to me.” Renaissance is dance-inspired, pulling from ‘70s disco-funk, soul, ‘90s R&B, House, Afrohouse and more. It even ends with a stunning Donna Summer interpolation for good measure.

album Renaissance a dance-floor hit with critics - BBC Beyoncé album Renaissance a dance-floor hit with critics - BBC

The Beyhive rallied around Beyoncé, after an album leak two days early threatened to ruin her epic drop. This is not what you expect. Thinking this is going to be an ode to Bey’s innocent church days as a child? Well, when she tells you to ‘drop it like a thotty’, you might be a little surprised. But in the very best way – as she points out, you can be a church girl and still get down. A big thank you to my Uncle Jonny. He was my godmother and the first person to expose me to a lot of the music and culture that serve as inspiration for this album.I want to give a special thank you to Rumi, Sir and Blue, “ she continued, “for allowing me the space, creativity and inspiration and a special thanks to me beautiful husband and muse who held me down during those late nights in the studio. Creating this album allowed me a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world. It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving.

Renaissance Album Review: Every Track Ranked | Glamour UK Beyoncé Renaissance Album Review: Every Track Ranked | Glamour UK

Beyoncé’s vocal production and performance is on a wholeeeeeee different level now. That was unreal.— Kevin McHale (@druidDUDE) July 29, 2022 There are soft moments here, too: “I know you can’t help but to be yourself around me,” she coos on “PLASTIC OFF THE SOFA”, the kind of warm, whispers-in-the-ear love song you’d expect to hear at a summer cookout—complete with an intricate interplay between vocals and guitar that gives Beyoncé a chance to showcase some incredible vocal dexterity. “CHURCH GIRL” fuses R&B, gospel and hip-hop to tell a survivor’s story: “I'm finally on the other side/I finally found the extra smiles/Swimming through the oceans of tears we cried.” This one wasn’t my favourite, but in all honesty, by this point in the album I was so hyped up, I didn’t even care. To match the running theme of this album, it made me want to dance. I basically danced around my bedroom to every song.

RENAISSANCE is a good ass album. Like, very good. Beyoncé is experimenting without losing herself and her sound. The vocals are amazing. The songs are intention. The transitions are seamless. She took her time to her this one right,” one fan wrote.

Renaissance (2022, CD) - Discogs Beyoncé – Renaissance (2022, CD) - Discogs

Parkwood Entertainment LLC, under exclusive license to Columbia Records, a division of Sony Music Entertainment. For me, this is the evolution of Bootylicious. It’s gone from Beyoncé not thinking we’re ready for her jelly to her basically saying, ‘This is my jelly and it’s here, whether you like it or not.’ Listen to it and be prepared to instantly love your body. And as one person neatly summed it up: “She is truly an architect of sound, working on a GENIUS level to concoct sonic brilliance like a mad scientist.”This is one of my favourites, for sure. There’s an instant disco vibe to this one. It’s so sexual – I mean, the lyrics are ‘I wanna sit on top of you.’ It’s kind of like the older sister to Blow (from the Beyoncé album). Perfect vocals, and one I can’t wait to sing along (badly) to at her next concert/in the club/probably just in my shower. In the post revealing the Renaissance art, Bey gave some insight on her intention while creating her upcoming album. “Creating this album allowed me a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world,” she wrote. “It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving.” She also released an 17 second ‘album cover’ video alongside an official lyric video for each song. Ever since Beyoncé released Renaissance, we've been desperate to glean the music videos Beyoncé would grace us with. That feeling you get, waiting for the release of a new Beyoncé album or music video is, in my mind, like being an expectant parent awaiting the birth of your child: What will it look like? What will its first words be? What if I don’t like it? I’m supposed to love it. What if it’s nothing like I expect?