Cultural impact of Beyoncé
Beyoncé has been recognized as setting the playbook for music artists in the modern era, with musicians from across genres, generations and countries citing her as a major influence on their career.[22][24][25] According to Billboard, Beyoncé remained a stalwart of R&B and hip-hop in the late '00s and early '10s, which meant that mainstream radio wanted to follow her lead when she released new music.[42][43][44] In The Tennessean, Andrea Williams wrote that Beyoncé opened the door for others in country music, proving Black songwriters, producers, and musicians belong in the genre.[55][56] In an article for Teen Vogue, Philip Henry explained how Beyoncé's 2013 eponymous album and its rollout "raised the bar for what we consumers expect", describing it as "one of the most important moments in music".[57] Many artists would go on to adopt surprise rollouts, such as Drake and Taylor Swift, with MTV's Hilary Hughes writing in 2021 that "seven years after Beyoncé's arrival, its ripple effect across the industry is undeniable".[59] Artists were also inspired by Beyoncé to attempt to create album releases that were unique cultural moments, such as U2's Songs of Innocence, which was automatically downloaded for users of iTunes.[36] Artists' projects that have followed the precedent set by Beyoncé include Frank Ocean's Endless (2016), Drake's Please Forgive Me (2016),[36] Janelle Monáe's Dirty Computer (2018),[8] Lonely Island's The Unauthorized Bash Brothers Experience (2019), Thom Yorke's Anima (2019), Sturgill Simpson's Sound & Fury (2019), Kid Cudi's Entergalactic (2022),[71] and Jennifer Lopez's This Is Me... Now: A Love Story (2024).[40] Until 2015, new music was released on Tuesdays in major markets such as the US and Canada, largely because the Billboard charts were published on Wednesday, and because retailers could prepare their stock ahead of the weekend.[11] In an article for The Guardian, Tshepo Mokoena explained that by taking control of her career through Parkwood Entertainment, Beyoncé set the precedent for musicians, such as Janelle Monáe and Little Simz, to become more autonomous.[78] Scarlett Harris wrote that Beyoncé has empowered artists to defy industry conventions and release their music in their intended manner, quoting Taylor Swift's re-recordings project.[79] HuffPost's Daniel Welsh wrote that Beyoncé's forgoing of conventional promotional tactics, such as press interviews, has inspired other artists to take control of their own narrative, such as Rihanna and Taylor Swift.[8] NPR's Ann Powers said that Beyoncé is the exemplar for other social media users, noting her ability to share moments that feel intimate and casual while still not invading her privacy.[86] According to Andrea Peterson of The Washington Post, "Beyoncé has increasingly used her platform and her art to address racial inequality, especially in the wake of police-involved deaths of black men that have dominated headlines in recent years."[93] She has used her social media platform and celebrity status to highlight racial injustices on several occasions, including after the murder of George Floyd,[94] issuing an open letter to Kentucky Attorney General Daniel Cameron, calling out the lack of arrests in the case of Breonna Taylor,[95] and attending protests after the killing of Trayvon Martin.[98][99] Hunter Harris commented on this phenomenon for Refinery29, writing: "Beyoncé's work is often a battleground for these discussions about race, privilege, and culture because the musician has such a singular importance to Black women.[112][113] Beyoncé was described as the most influential feminist in America by The Washington Post, citing how her form of feminism – which encompasses self-reliance, sexual confidence, representation, and economic empowerment – resonates with younger women.[134][135][136][137][138] Entertainment Weekly's Alex Suskind noted that her "songs, album rollouts, stage presence, social justice initiatives, and disruptive public relations strategy have influenced the way we've viewed music since 2010."[139] Stephanie Li wrote in Black Camera that Beyoncé's continued impact can be attributed to how she reinvents herself "again and again through record-setting albums, transformative songs and videos, and visionary marketing strategies.[148][149][150][151] In The New Yorker, music critic Jody Rosen described Beyoncé as "the most important and compelling popular musician of the twenty-first century ... the result, the logical end point, of a century-plus of pop.Someday, surely, her "Single Ladies" leotard will take its place alongside Mickey Mouse and the Model T Ford and Louis Armstrong's trumpet in a Smithsonian display case.Several publications reported that the news followed an uptick in protests by several conservative groups, including the National Union of Malaysian Muslim Students, urging the Ministry of Culture, Arts and Heritage to stop the concert from taking place.[225] Introducing Beyoncé as the recipient of the 2016 CFDA Fashion Icon Award, designer Diane von Furstenberg said: "The image of a woman being in charge has never looked more glamorous and more desirable.[253][254][255] Other phrases that Beyoncé mainstreamed or popularized include "twerk",[256] "FUPA", "Becky", "surfbordt",[257] "I woke up like this",[258] "shoulda put a ring on it",[259] and "hot sauce in my bag".[275] Gerrick D. Kennedy of the Los Angeles Times wrote that the Beyoncé Effect was present throughout Coachella 2018, with a line-up that was more inclusive of female, queer and minority artists.[279][280][281] Following Beyoncé's mention of the American clothing brand Levi Strauss & Co. in the Cowboy Carter song "Levii's Jeans," the company experienced a 20% increase in its stock price.Brett House, economist at Columbia Business School, said that the tour has helped create a "gentle cool-down" of economic activity in the US during the summer, instead of the usual abrupt stop.[140] Professor Tom Smith from the Goizueta Business School at Emory University incorporated the Renaissance World Tour into his lectures as a case study, focusing on events that profoundly influence market dynamics.[304] Beyoncé's first North American stop in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, has resulted in a 21% increase in hotel searches, a 10% rise in shopping inquiries, and a 9% uptick in beauty service requests compared to the weekly average from the previous year.These artists include;Taylor Swift described Beyoncé's as a major influence and a "guiding light throughout my career", who has "paved the road" and shown how to "break rules and defy industry norms".Debuted at Edge, New York City's highest outdoor sky deck, the figure features Beyoncé in a Balmain bodysuit and Nefertiti-inspired headpiece, commemorating her as the first Black woman to headline the festival.
Beyoncénumerous accoladescultural iconmusic industryproductionpromotionmusic videosurprise albumsvisual albumsGlobal Release Daystaccatopopular musichip-hopcountrywomen's empowermentBlack culturesystemic inequalitiessocial justicefourth-wave feminismBlack Lives MatterThe Writing's on the Wallurban musicKanye Westmumble rappersMichael Eric DysonRun the World (Girls)Major LazerPon De FloorJack ÜJustin BieberWhere Are Ü NowLean OnDJ SnakeLil JonTurn Down for WhatBillboard Hot 100Ann PowersRolling StoneRenaissanceEurodanceEiffel 65Scatman JohnEuropopSpice GirlsBackstreet BoysTake ThatDangerously In LoveHot 100David GuettaCalvin HarrisSkrillexRihannaTaylor SwiftLady GagaChris BrownNicki MinajCKWR-FMrhythmic radioTop 40 radioShaboozeyA Bar Song (Tipsy)country musicThe TimesNBC NewsLinda MartellThe TennesseanAfrican musicAfrobeatsLondon School of EconomicsBillboardBloombergBillboard U.S. Afrobeats SongsSurprise albumTeen VogueThe GuardianSongs of InnocenceAriana GrandeThank U, NextFast CompanyHarvard Business SchoolMTV VMAsSingle Ladies (Put a Ring on It)LemonadeCrack Magazinedance crazeGangnam StyleMiley CyrusWrecking BallHotline BlingThe Washington PostFrank OceanJanelle MonáeDonald GloverVisual albumThe BeatlesA Hard Day's NightPrincePurple RainBlack Is KingThe New York TimesEndlessPlease Forgive MeDirty ComputerLonely IslandThe Unauthorized Bash Brothers ExperienceThom YorkeSturgill SimpsonSound & FuryKid CudiEntergalacticJennifer LopezsinglesstreamingThe VergeMyf WarhurstDouble JInternational Federation of the Phonographic IndustryParkwood EntertainmentLittle Simzsocial mediaFormationPresident of the United StatesBarack ObamaHoward UniversityblacknessBET Humanitarian Award