Superstar Beyonce Giselle Knowles Carter recently took the stage at the grand opening of the Royal Atlantis Hotel in Dubai. The Royal Atlantis hotel is now the best of its kind in the world. The grand opening marked the first full length performance from Beyonce in nearly five years. In Beyonce fashion, the performance was private and there was a strict no phone/camera policy. However, many attendees did not follow this rule and fans around the world were able to see clips of the performance. While Beyonce’s actual performance was praised, supporters were conflicted as to why she agreed to perform in Dubai.
Dubai has strict legislation against LGBTQI relationships/marriages.
Beyoncé is an artist who is not discriminatory towards anyone based off race, ethnicity, and sexual orientation or preference. The music she makes is celebrated and praised by the LGBTQI community, and many ponder on her decision to perform in a religious city that does not openly accept the marginalized group. Officials in the city criminalize individuals because of it and homosexuality is illegal there.
Beyonce’s Critically Acclaimed Album Renaissance celebrates the LGBTQI community.
Beyonce released Renaissance Act I as a celebration to black queer culture, even posting a personal letter detailing how the album is dedicated to the most “fabulous gay man” (in her own words) she ever knew, her late Uncle Johnny. Many pointed out that Knowles did not perform any of her songs from the Renaissance album because of the strict laws and religious beliefs of the native Dubaians. However, some say she did not perform as a surprise for her Renaissance world tour kicking off in the summer.
Beyonce was paid over 24 million dollars to make the one-hour performance.
24 million dollars is a lot of money for a performance, but she is Beyonce, and she is worth that and more. Many are saying that she most likely did the performance for financial purposes. Moreover, disapprovers point out that she is one of the wealthiest musicians of all time and money could not have been the main motivation. Some report that Beyonce actually might have been paid 45 million.
Beyonce nor her team has made a statement on the controversy as of yet.
While Bey nor her team has made a statement, her father and former manager Matthew Knowles did. Matthew Knowles told TMZ, that his daughter’s performance united a diverse crowd and Beyonce would never deliberately hurt anyone.
Beyonce will always remain an ICON in the industry.
Attendees of the performance took to social media to praise the actual performance. Many say Bey sounded exquisite twenty-six years into her career. Celebrities including Terrence J and LaLa Anthony both said Beyonce deserved even more money for how well she did.
Beyonce’s vocal ability, talent, and work ethic is unmatched. She will always be the standard and a global icon even with slight controversy. Instead of taking jabs at Bey, there should be a focus on holding Dubai legislation accountable for being discriminatory towards humans who deserve human rights.