London, Europe Brief News – Beyoncé has released her long-anticipated album Renaissance – her first solo studio record in six years – to a blockbuster response from fans and critics, as well as a spot of controversy.
A 16-track dance record packed with high-profile, genre-spanning collaborators including Drake, Skrillex and Grace Jones, Renaissance is the first in a planned trilogy, Beyoncé said, in a statement uploaded to her website the day before the album’s release.
“This three act project was recorded over three years during the pandemic,” the 28-time Grammy-winning artist wrote. “My intention was to create a safe place. A place without judgement. A place to be free of perfectionism and overthinking. A place to scream, release, feel freedom.”
Writer James Hall says it is “a tribute to two forms of music: late-1980s and early-1990s house, and disco.
“It is peppered with sounds that anyone watching reruns of Top of the Pops from that era on BBC Four will be instantly familiar with,” he wrote.
Thanking fans for not listening to a leaked version, Beyoncé wrote online: “I appreciate you for calling out anyone that was trying to sneak into the club early.
“It means the world to me. Thank you for your unwavering support. Thank you for being patient.”
