How the 2020 pandemic made Beyoncé’s Renaissance

Beyoncé is kicking off the tour for her seventh studio album, “Renaissance,” this month. The album was released last summer and became a cultural event. On its first day, Beyoncé became the first artist in history to simultaneously chart at the number one spot on 23 Billboard charts. After three months, the album had amassed over a billion streams on Spotify. At the end of the year, Renaissance would top many publications’ best albums of the Year lists. Renaissance would go on to be nominated for nine Grammy awards. It won four and made Beyoncé the most Grammy Awarded artist with 32 wins.

The success of Renaissance is all the more impressive due to having very little promotion. The album was teased for months before but we have yet to even see a music video. The only form of visuals we have gotten is a couture collaboration collection between Beyoncé and Balmain. But how and why did Renaissance achieve all this? 

Renaissance was conceived and created at the height of the pandemic and Black Lives Matter movement. In an interview with British Vogue, Beyoncé said she wanted the listeners to feel joy in a time of uncertainty and stress. Since her 2016 album “Lemonade,” Beyoncé has been making narrative-driven albums that celebrate Black musicians and their contributions to the art. Renaissance was no different.  Taking inspiration from many genres pioneered by Black artists, such as R&B, funk and bounce. However, the album’s most significant influences came from the Disco and House genres. Disco and House were created in the late 70s by Black and Queer artists as a way to escape the marginalization they experienced through dance music. Beyoncé created Renaissance as a love letter to the Black Queer community and the art they made out of resilience and celebration. Beyoncé noted her relationship with her late cousin “Uncle Johnny.” A gay man who helped raise her and introduced her to many of the genres used in Renaissance.

Although the album was created during lockdown, it was released in July 2022 when many lockdowns were no longer in place. The album’s themes of escapism, celebration, hedonism, and self-expression rang just as true in a post-pandemic world. In an interview with Harper’s Bazaar, Beyoncé said, “We are all ready to escape, travel, love, and laugh again. I feel a renaissance emerging, and I want to be part of nurturing that escape in any way possible.”

Renaissance was designed to be a celebration in a post-pandemic world. This can be heard in the composition of the album. The tracks seamlessly flow together to invoke the feeling of a DJ’s setlist. The lyrics speak about self-assurance and pleasure. And the beat drives its listeners to let go and dance. In conclusion, Renaissance was designed to be a celebration in a post-pandemic world.

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