Beyoncé is my favorite artist of all time. For as long as I can remember, I have been in love with her music. Her first album “Dangerously in Love” debuted in 2003, the year I was born, so I was quite literally born a Beyoncé Knowles fan!
In July of this year, exactly 20 years later, I was able to score tickets to her Renaissance World Tour with her opening song being “Dangerously in Love.” What a full circle moment!
I will never forget the experience of everyone in the stadium dressing head to toe in their best silver outfits, all the way from their blinged-out cowboy hats to their silver-lined hand fans that spelled out “Renaissance” each time they flicked them open. Of course, I also tried to look just as put together myself, but some fans were so talented they recreated some of her concert looks, which looked almost identical to hers.
Hearing her sing her No. 1 hit songs right in front of you is crazy. Beyoncé’s voice made me cry the very moment she sang the first note of the show.
On Dec. 1, I had the opportunity to see the concert again, but this time on the big screen. Even though I went to the concert in person this past summer, I was not the closest to the stage. But in the movie theater, I could see everything.
Most of the film focuses on her performance at the concert, but at some points, the audience gets to see behind-the-scenes moments, like what Beyoncé went through on a daily basis during the sold-out world tour.
After almost 20 years in the music industry, she still receives criticism from others after trying to make her show as perfect as possible; but what I love about her is that she does not give up on her decisions. She trusts herself.
Another important person in the film was her 11-year-old daughter Blue Ivy Carter, whose cameo appeared because she played a big role in the Renaissance Tour. Carter is still a kid, so you would think others would be easy on her, but social media of course has its negative side. Strangers think it’s perfectly fine to hate on a celebrity’s child.
Beyoncé made an agreement with her daughter that she could perform for only one show because she did not want Carter to earn her way in this business the easy way. But after accidentally reading some hate comments, Carter made a promise that she would work hard as if she were one of the dancers, not as her daughter. She stuck to that promise and did a wonderful job throughout the six-month tour.
At her age, I was probably still playing with my dolls merely pretending they were on a world tour, so I give huge props to Carter for pushing through all the negativity. The only downside to the film was that it had an almost three-hour-long run-time. Other than that, the movie was like reliving my Renaissance World Tour concert experience.
Beyoncé is such an amazing entertainer and I can only hope she goes on many more tours in the future. After this movie, I learned it took four years to create “Renaissance.” Her hard work can be seen so clearly throughout the film and I hope all her fans get a chance to see it in theaters, especially if they never got to see it in person. This is a goodbye to the Renaissance World Tour, but I can’t wait to see what Beyoncé has planned next!
4/5 stars
achaplai@ramapo.edu
Featured photo courtesy of @beyonce, Instagram
