Beyoncé closed out her Cowboy Carter Tour in Paris with a cigarette in hand, her husband Jay-Z by her side, and a whole lot of fan speculation.
During her final stadium show over the weekend, the superstar stunned the crowd by pretending to smoke onstage in a theatrical moment that lit up social media.
Moments later, Jay-Z made a surprise appearance. It was the couple's first joint performance in seven years, and it renewed rumors of a rift with Kanye West.
Highlights
- Beyoncé stunned fans by pretending to smoke onstage during her Cowboy Carter Tour finale in Paris.
- Jay-Z made a surprise appearance at the event, performing with Bey for the first time in seven years.
- Fans believe Jay threw some shade at Kanye West by changing a lyric mid-performance.
All eyes were also on their daughter, Blue Ivy, who is reportedly preparing to release her own solo music with help from her mom's top collaborators.
Beyoncé's glam moment and special appearances from family members made her final stadium show epic
Image credits: Mason Poole / Getty Images
Wearing a sparkly silver bustier, high-waisted microshorts, and a fur train that trailed behind her like royalty, Beyoncé brought full drama to her last Cowboy Carter concert in the City of Lights.
In the middle of her performance, she pulled out a cigarette prop and pretended to puff on it, giving fans a sultry, cinematic moment that immediately went viral, according to the Daily Mail.
Image credits: beyonce / Instagram
Some netizens did not appreciate Bey’s cigarette prop.
“How NOT to be a role model,” one commenter wrote.
“Wow, talk about going downhill in a big way,” another commented stated.
Image credits: beyonce / Instagram
“Just being a bad influence on the kids” another wrote.
While Bey’s cigarette prop was already controversial, her fake puff came before one of her most talked-about stunts.
As could be seen in fan footage of the show, Queen Bey lit a piano on fire as part of her stage act.
Image credits: Rex Features / Vidapress
Beyoncé performed alongside her daughter Blue Ivy as well, while her mom Tina Knowles and younger daughter Rumi were seen in the audience.
Her son, Sir Carter, did not attend.
Jay-Z's surprise appearance also featured an apparent lyrical shot at Kanye West
Jay-Z's entrance caught fans completely off guard, as it marked the couple's first onstage performance together in seven years.
Jay-Z stayed on to join her in a remix of Drunk in Love, remixed with Partition and Ni***s in Paris, which was originally a collaboration with Kanye West.
However, one small change in the song's lyrics caught fans' attention immediately.
Image credits: beyonce / Instagram
Instead of the original line, "Just might let you meet Ye," Jay-Z rapped, "Just might let you meet Bey."
"That wasn't subtle. He's DONE with Ye," one fan posted.
Image credits: melaniesomers / TikTok
"Talk about my kids, you're d**d to me. Forever," another added.
"He really changed the lyrics. You see he's over Kanye & his mess," another fan wrote.
Image credits: nopoisonclub / TikTok
The lyric swap follows months of tension between Jay-Z and Kanye West after the latter posted disturbing comments about the mental capacities of Beyoncé and Jay's twins, Rumi and Sir, on X.
While the post was eventually deleted, Kanye clarified that he only took it down to avoid being banned by the Elon Musk-owned social media platform.
At the time, insiders told Page Six that the Carters were "discussing how they want to handle this situation, whether that be privately and/or in a legal manner."
The publication's source also claimed that Jay-Z "will absolutely not stand for" how Kanye" has spoken about their children."
Beyoncé has been nailing it with her surprise guests in the final leg of her Cowboy Carter Tour.
A few days before Jay-Z’s surprise appearance, she also set social media ablaze by featuring Miley Cyrus onstage.
Image credits: paolatravell / TikTok
The two icons sang “II Most Wanted” from Bey’s Cowboy Carter album, much to the delight of fans.
Beyoncé's daughter, Blue Ivy, may be prepping for her solo debut
Image credits: pinsondelphine / TikTok
While Beyoncé was taking her final bow on her Cowboy Carter Tour, her eldest daughter might be getting ready for her own debut.
Image credits: beyonce / Instagram
She is reportedly working with some of the best in the business, including The-Dream, Solange Knowles, and Beyoncé's own songwriting team.
"They know the fans want to hear a Blue record," one of the publication's sources said.
"She's writing with Solange, and The-Dream has two or three songs lined up for her already."
The 12-year-old, who was once dubbed "The Most Famous Baby in the World" by TIME, is said to be focused on age-appropriate music, drawing inspiration from artists like Infinity Song, Michelle Williams, and Goapele.
Image credits: beyonce / Instagram
This wouldn't be her first time behind the mic, as Blue Ivy was featured on her dad Jay-Z's Glory just days after her birth.
She later appeared on Beyoncé's song Blue.
While some netizens called out Beyoncé's cigarette stunt as a bad influence on young fans, others argued that smoking should not be controversial at all
