Beyoncé’s 6 Most Iconic Live Performances

Beyoncé Knowles is the best performer of all time. That is something we all need to get used to and accept, because it’s a fact. She has come a long way in perfecting her art and talent since her days as lead singer for R&B group, Destiny’s Child. This has also made it so difficult to compare her performances, because everytime she takes on the stage, they all are different from one another. However, MIHLALI NTSABO has rounded up some of her most iconic live performances from her career as a solo artist.

Beychella

Beyoncé’s most recent live performance at the Coachella Music Festival will definitely go down as the most iconic performance of 2018. Her homecoming themed performance was seen as a challenge to a very white music festival, and some of us still cannot get over that performance.

2016 Super Bowl

Another live performance that seeked to disrupt and challenge whiteness, Beyoncé’s Formation Superbowl performance, was one of the most memorable and iconic things to hit people’s screens and the internet. Highlighting on police brutality in the US (and globally) and paying homage to her icon, Michael Jackson, with her costume, Beyoncé really set the bar high in using art to highlight on social issues faced by people of colour, which was solidified by her critically acclaimed album, Lemonade.

2011 Billboard Performance

A live performance that solidified her as a visual artist, Beyoncé’s Run The World live performance at the Billboard Music Awards back in 2011, was one of the most spoken about performances that night and that year. At this time, little did we know that Queen Bey gave a killer choreo performance while she was pregnant with her first born, Blue Ivy Carter.

2017 Grammy Performance

Her second live performance where she was pregnant again, but with twins this time, goes down as one of the most iconic live performances of all time. She served all sorts of cultural and symbolic references from Virgin Mary, Oshun The African Goddess of Love and Beauty, to even her sister’s Solange Knowles’ A Seat At The Table album that came out in 2016.

The vocals she served while she was heavily pregnant – out of this world!

Lemonade Medley

The Lemonade era is, without a doubt, Beyoncé’s best visual and vocal era. From the Lemonade film that highlighted the many struggles faced by black folk (from infidelity in black marriages and learning to forgive, to police brutality, and a wide range of struggles that women face in society), to the live performances with sickening visuals, the Queen really went all out and outdid herself. Her Lemonade Medley performance at the 2016 MTV Music Video Awards (where she scooped 11 out of the 13 awards she was nominated for) had all our edges snatched. The performance also happened at a time where we thought we would never see Beyoncé perform at an award ceremony before.

Beyonce VMA 2016 from Ruann Araujo on Vimeo.

Formation World Tour

The Formation World Tour has to be the best, well-thought through tour performance by Beyonce. From the state of the art stage, to new and improved choreo and music mashups, no wonder it was the highest grossing tour for 2016.

We’re still mad that the tour also explored African pride and identity, but the sis didn’t even consider touring in Africa.

via GIPHY

We are definitely looking forward to more Beyonce live performances in the future, just so she can snatch our edges with ever-improving vocals and visuals your faves could never reach.

via GIPHY

Featured image screenshot of Formation video