Hell hath no fury like Beyonce scorned.
Jaws dropped as Beyonce debuted her highly anticipated 6th studio album, “Lemonade“, on HBO and Tidal. Using spoken word, fashion, and lots of lyrics about relationships, infidelity, forgiveness, and love, this visual album is arguably Beyonce’s most public excoriation of Jay-Z cheating on her with another woman.
Rachel Roy had reportedly spurred a physical confrontation between Jay-Z and Beyonce’s sister, Solange Knowles, in an elevator after a Met Gala event in May 2014. Leakage of the surveillance video showed Solange attacking her brother-in-law while Beyonce stood still and didn’t intervene.
Though the couple have neither confirmed nor denied the cheating rumours, Beyonce isn’t standing quietly in the corner anymore. Below are 12 personal lyrics throughout “Lemonade” that strongly hints at the cheating allegations.
1. Track: “Pray You Catch Me”
“You can taste the dishonesty / It’s on your breath as you pass it off so carefully.”
2. Track: “Hold Up”
“Can’t you see there’s no other man above you / What a wicked way to treat the girl that loves you.”
3. Track: “Hold Up”
“Something don’t feel right because it ain’t right, especially coming up after midnight / I smell your secrets and I’m not too perfect to ever feel this worthless / How did it come down to this, going through your call list? / I don’t wanna lose my pride but I’ma f**k me up a bitch.”
4. Track: “Don’t Hurt Yourself”
“Who the fuck do you think I am? You ain’t married to no average bitch, boy.”
5. Track: “Don’t Hurt Yourself”
“This is your final warning / You know I give you life / If you try this shit again you gon’ lose your wife.”
6. Track: “Sorry”
“Looking at my watch, he shoulda been home / Today I regret the night I put that ring on / He always got them f**king excuses.”
7. Track: “Sorry”
“He only want me when I’m not on there / He better call Becky with the good hair.”
8. Track: “Daddy Lessons”
“My daddy warned me about men like you / He said, Baby girl, he’s playing you.”
9. Track: “Love Drought”
“I’ve always been committed, I’ve been focused / I always paid attention, been devoted, tell me what did I do wrong?”
10. Track: “Love Drought”
“Ten times out of nine, I know you’re lying / But nine times outta ten, I know you’re trying.”
11. Track: “Sandcastles”
“We built sandcastles that washed away / I made you cry when I walked away / And although I promised that I couldn’t stay, baby / Every promise don’t work out that way.”
12. Track: “All Night”
“Found the truth beneath your lies / And true love never has to hide.”
The album eventually moves beyond recriminations to embrace the hope of a second chance. “Baptize me. Now that reconciliation is possible, if we’re gonna heal, let it be glorious,” she says. On “Redemption”, we are shown footage of Jay-Z and Beyonce’s wedding, celebrating their daughter’s birthday, and getting inked with matching tattoos.
What started off as a breakup records ends as a makeup one.
Sources: Cosmopolitan, LA Times, Bustle.
