Beyoncé explains why there are no music videos for “Cowboy Carter” and “Renaissance”

Beyoncé is a woman on a mission, and no amount of fans urging her to “release the visuals” will stop her.

In a recent interview with GQ The Grammy winner defended her decision to forego music videos for her two latest albums (2022). Renaissance and 2024 Cowboy Carter. Although he had previously hinted at the possibility that visuals might be released, the “16 Carriages” singer now admits that it was a conscious decision to avoid them altogether.

“I felt it was important that the world could focus on the voice in a time when all we see is images,” she told the outlet. “The music is so rich in history and instrumentation. It takes months to process, explore and understand. The music needs space to breathe on its own. Sometimes an image can distract from the quality of the voice and the music.”

She added that given the “years of hard work and detail that went into an album that took over four years,” she knew the songs would stand on their own.

“The music is enough,” she continued. “The fans from all over the world became the visual. We all got the visual on tour. Then we got more visuals from my film.”

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The “Break My Soul” singer already addressed the lack of visual elements for the recent recordings as she made her way to her Renaissance Tour, with a cheeky video aimed at their complaining fanbase.

“I know you hear me,” appeared on the screen during the opening night of the world tour. “You asked for the pictures. You called for the queen. But a queen moves at her own pace. Bitch.”

Beyoncé launched her Renaissance World Tour in May 2023, almost a year after the debut of the title album. During the 53 shows, the concert was recorded for what would become Renaissance: A film by Beyoncéthe full-length concert film that was released in cinemas last December.

As for the albums themselves, they were not affected by the lack of visual elements. Both records were highly praised by critics and audiences: Beyoncé was awarded the number 1 spot with her four Renaissance wins in 2023 and has been able to build on the success of Cowboy Carter. The album's first single, “Texas Hold 'Em,” made her the first black woman to have a country song at number one and to reach the number one spot on the Billboard Charts of the best country albums.

In the same conversation with GQBeyoncé said that despite her pop star status, she is not too concerned with sticking to a blueprint.

“I moved away from the pop star formula a long time ago,” she said. “I stopped focusing on what was popular and started focusing on the qualities that get better with time and experience. Good music and strong messages will never go out of style.”

To prove this, she pointed out the fact that she has always been inspired by different genres and forms of music.

“From the beginning of my career and on every album, I have always mixed genres. Whether it's R&B, dance, country, rap, zydeco, blues, opera, gospel, they all influenced me in one way or another,” she noted. “I have favorite artists from every genre you can imagine. I believe genres are traps that imprison and divide us. I experienced that for 25 years in the music industry. Black artists and other artists of color have always created and mastered multiple genres.”