Photo Credit: YouTube It finally happened. After much speculation, JAY-Z and Beyoncé have released a joint album, entitled EVERYTHING IS LOVE. The nine-song surprise album is currently an exclusive on TIDAL. The myth of a joint album has surrounded JAY-Z and Beyoncé for years. The project felt possible, but also fan-fiction; especially since no rumor was ever followed by anything official. EVERYTHING IS LOVE isn’t a total surprise, the album has been expected for some time, but the lack of forewarning and the fact that it actually, finally happened does have some shock value. I wonder why they decided to drop EVERYTHING IS LOVE after the start of their joint On The Run Tour II? That would’ve been expected, though. No one thought on this easy-going Saturday that a JAY-Z and Beyoncé album would suddenly surface. The Carters are masters of capturing the world’s attention when we least expect them to. I have no idea what awaits me. Let’s see if this power couple made an album that can measure up to their solo acclaim. In usual 1-Listen fashion, the rules here are the same: no skipping, no fast-forwarding, no rewinding and no stopping. Each song will receive my gut reaction from start to finish. 1. "SUMMER" The album art is museum worthy. Beyoncé is the Mona Lisa of pop culture. Who’s voice is this? I don’t immediately recognize it. A sound this lovely should be heard every day. Beyoncé's voice is played in the bedrooms of baby angels. Hov saying “Let It Breath.” Just a background voice for now. I'm really enjoying this groove. It has the elegance of a swimming pool full of mermaids. Live instrumentation can be such a reward. The warmth is truly the feeling of summer personified. Hov rapping. I like the imagery. I can’t believe this is the same guy who made Reasonable Doubt. The family man who is making beach vacation in a foreign country music with his wife. Beyoncé’s dominating presence makes this feel like a solo record with a strong Hov feature. It’s a nice intro. The four-minute length is pleasant. Loving these strings. 2. "APESHIT" The vibe has changed. TRAP BANGER. RAPPING BEYONCE! Quavo doing ad-libs. A nice knock. Why is Beyoncé the greatest trap rapper ever? Her flow is very well delivered. She makes fun, trap music. Banger. I’m so impressed. Like, if she was an unknown artist, this is the kind of song that would get her signed to QC. Okay, Jay’s here. He sounds lively. The Chief Keef and Lion King bars got me hype. Jay is the elder statesman who still has the energy to keep up with the young gunners. I wonder who made this beat? Sorta feels like Mike WiLL, but not quite. I wish it hit a bit harder, but this one is infectious. Beyoncé’s third verse is a crazy double-time flow. She just knocked my glasses off my face. WOO!!!! She took off from the free-throw line. This one is going to be a big performance record. Summer smash. I wish we had a better title than apeshit. Has anyone ever seen an ape take a shit? Not that exciting. 3. "BOSS" Beyoncé has a very natural swagger. It's so effortless. Nice loop with some decent claps. I love the horn riffs. Beyoncé rapping isn’t what I expected. She is holding her own, though. She's really creating a nice space for herself. Jay’s flow is a little shaky. Production is superb, though. Okay, he found his pocket. “Everybody bosses until it’s time to buy pay for the office.” This is shaping up to be an album of anthems. I can see so many Instagram captions in these bars. Beyoncé dropping Blue Ivy off at school is so insane. What is Beyoncé’s day-to-day like? She is such a mystical person from afar, it’s easy to forget she’s a goddess to the public, but she's actually just another person doing regular people things in private. I like the production more than the lyricism, but I can see it growing on me. 4. "NICE" Aww. There was a Blue outro. Who is this singer? Some nice vocals. The beat is a trampoline to bounce on. Jay! Now this is a FLOW! THIS IS A FLOW. He’s doing wheelies on a expensive Harley. YEP! YEP! THIS IS HOV! I’m being uplifted. I could do without Jay’s repetitive bridge. Beyoncé’s melodic flow is a stunt. She’s enjoying herself. This is fun. So much fun. Why is she so good at transforming into a rapper and finding a pocket to pounce on? The Blue freestyle verse nod is smooth. Never seeing a ceiling was really a next level bar. Beyoncé said she’s better than the hype, and that’s a boast very few artists can make. Another anthem for the summer. This is music to rule the world to. Skateboard P! He caught the baton from B and took it home strong. Currently my favorite. Yeah, Jay's repeating pattern isn't terrible, but still a no. 5. "713" The summer of 2018 has been such a pleasant year for production. The Jigga verse was a swift one, but it wasn’t bad. Beyoncé is representing. I can’t wait to see what the visuals will be like for this record. We know they're coming. Jay’s second verse is so good. This rapping could’ve been on 4:44. The storytelling. The smooth delivery. He's still one of the most exciting rappers when he’s in this mode. Love the way Beyoncé delivers this hook. It’s very throwback. YEP! Another winner. JAY-Z and Beyoncé have found the middle ground. I was never a big fan of their collaborations, but I’m pleasantly surprised by their synergy. They are finding their stride as a union and it’s a sight to see. 6. "FRIENDS" Keys. Slow build up. Some trap hi-hats. Beyoncé singing. This feels rather modern. The kind of song Beyoncé would make after listening to Free 6lack. I’m digging this, but I’m not looking forward to this Hov verse; this is not really his sound. Nevermind, he's much better than I thought. Yeah, he’s really putting effort into these verses. I was worried that he wouldn’t be this enthralling after pouring so much out with the last album. I like how these songs sound very carefully crafted. These aren’t a bunch of throwaways. Meek nod. This is a verse! I wish the beat was a little more intense because Jay is letting it all go. That bar about the house being on fire. I have to rewind when I'm done here, but if there is a song with any mention of Kanye, it would come on “FRIENDS.” Shout out to my friend Chance who called during this 1-Listen. Beyoncé is on full solo. She showing off now! 7. "HEARD ABOUT US" So far, this is quite the enjoyable project. Beyoncé sounds like she drank pure gold before their studio sessions. If there was a steroid to make greater music, she's taking it. The switch from sung vocals to this flow was so seamless. I can hear the wigs being snatched. Hairlines are being pushed back. This is a groove. Beyoncé music could be described as high self-esteem excellence. “For the thousand time that kid ain’t mine” hahaha. Okay, Hov. He responded to that rumor with the swiftness. And it came before Drake. He’s killing it. This album avoided being cheesy. It’s filled with swagger, sauce, and stunting in the most royal way. It’s the music of royalty who are still congregating among the people. 8. "BLACK EFFECT" A woman is talking about love. She sounds like a wise woman. Very sweet. A sample is playing with soft keys underneath. Hov came in meh; I’m not in love with his delivery. The message is strong, though. Nice nostalgic nod. So many bars. So many names dropped. This is good. “I passed the alphabet boys like an eye test” hahaha. Okay! Beyoncé doing ad-libs is hilarious. “I’m Good!” Beyoncé has so much passion in the raps. She just gave a Shawty Lo shoutout, haha. These two together are something else. Hov came back to deliver more of the real.<doc-sep>While we’re still absorbing the nine songs Jay-Z and Beyonce unexpectedly dropped on Saturday afternoon with their “Everything Is Love,“ on first blush the album seems to be the conclusion of a sort of marriage trilogy. It began with Beyonce’s 2016 album “Lemonade” and her widely discussed stories of infidelity — even a person mistaken to be the real “Becky with the long hair” in “Sorry” was harassed by fans — continued with Jay’s tales of contrition on his “4:44” last summer, and apparently reaches a happy ending with “Everything Is Love.” Not only does everything about the album — its visuals, its lyrics, its shared musical spotlight — telegraph a happy, equal marriage that’s weathered its storms but come out stronger, the lyrics to the closing song “Lovehappy,” with its throwback ‘70s soul chorus, familiar sample and tag-team vocals, could be a wedding song for a new generation. Nowhere are the lyrics shared more equally than on that track, which is basically set up as a look-back conversation between the two: “Happily in love, haters please forgive me,” Jay begins. “I let my wife write the will, I pray my children outlive me.” Beyonce continues: I give my daughter our custom dress, so she gon’ be litty Vintage pieces by the time she hit the city Yeah, you f—ed up the first time, we had to get remarried (Jay: Yo, chill man!) We keepin’ it real with these people right? Lucky I ain’t kill you when I met that b—h Jay: Nah, aight, aight Y’all know how I met her, we broke up and got back together To get her back, I had to sweat her Y’all could make her with a bag, I had to change the weather Move the whole family west but it’s whatever In a glass house still throwing stones Hova, Beezus, watch the thrones Beyonce sings both the chorus and the song’s outro and conclusion: You did some things to me, boy you do some things to me But love is deeper than your pain and I believe you can change Baby, the ups and downs are worth it, long way to go, but we’ll work it We’re flawed but we’re still perfect for each other Sometimes I thought we’d never see the light Went through hell with heaven on our side This beach ain’t always been no paradise But nightmares only last one night Damn, look at us now Pray, pray for the vows Way up now, yes, and a way, long way down We came, and we saw, and we conquered it all We came, and we conquered, now we’re happy in love<doc-sep>Beyoncé and Jay-Z have released their debut full-length collaboration album. Billed as the Carters, the couple premiered Everything is Love through Tidal, the streaming service co-owned by Jay-Z. Its arrival was announced on stage at their On the Run II tour at the London Stadium in the UK on Saturday, where screens projected the message “album out now”. The appearance of the nine-track album confirms the rumours that the Carters were pursuing a joint project. In November 2017, Jay-Z told the New York Times that he and Beyoncé had started working on something as they produced their respective albums 4:44 and Lemonade. “We were using our art almost like a therapy session,” he said. “And we started making music together.” Jay-Z’s 4:44 was widely interpreted as his response to Lemonade, in which Beyoncé appeared to reference his marital infidelity. Everything is Love depicts the couple in a state of romantic happiness, but confirms that they almost split up. “We broke up and got back together,” Jay-Z raps on Lovehappy. “We came and we conquered/ Now we’re happy in love,” Beyoncé adds. The Carters also released a video for Apeshit, directed by Ricky Saiz and shot at the Louvre in Paris in May. Allow Instagram content? This article includes content provided by Instagram . We ask for your permission before anything is loaded, as they may be using cookies and other technologies. To view this content, click 'Allow and continue'. Allow and continue Everything is Love is not streaming on Spotify or Apple Music. Spotify does not offer any of Jay-Z’s major albums, and offers Beyoncé’s catalogue up to and including Lemonade, which was initially a Tidal exclusive. Beyoncé makes reference to her relationship with streaming platforms on Nice from the new album: “My success can’t be quantified/ If I gave two fucks – two fucks – about streaming numbers/ Would have put Lemonade up on Spotify.” The album was initially expected to arrive around Beyoncé’s headline performance at this year’s Coachella festival in April. On Friday night, the couple dedicated a rendition of Forever Young, the Alphaville song sampled on Jay-Z’s 2009 single Young Forever, to the friends and families of the victims of the Grenfell tower fire. Both Beyoncé and Jay-Z wore green heart pin badges in support of the Justice4Grenfell campaign. Beyoncé and Jay-Z married on 4 April 2008. The couple have three children: Blue Ivy, age six, and twins Sir and Rumi, one.<doc-sep>
With “Everything Is Love,” the three-season musical miniseries about Beyonce and Jay-Z — a.k.a. the Carters — reaches a happy ending. It’s both a completion — of the marriage trilogy that began with Beyonce’s 2016 album “Lemonade” and her widely discussed accounts of Jay’s infidelity — and a continuation, with his tales of contrition on last summer’s “4:44.” As with such a triumphant denouement, everything about this long-rumored tag-team album from America’s first couple, which arrived with little warning on Saturday afternoon, speaks to marital unity, equality, fairness, forgiveness and redemption. It’s officially credited to “The Carters,” which may include their children, who are mentioned in many of the songs. Eldest Blue Ivy even shouts out to her younger twin siblings, Rumi and Sir, between tracks. That message of familial parity carries over to the way the two share the spotlight. Their participation in the visuals, the album’s first video (for the song “Apesh–“) and even the vocals, is almost completely 50-50: If one takes the lead for a song or two while the other adds a verse or hook or bridge, they swap roles for the next. The closing track “LoveHappy,” with a classic soul sample from Phoenix Express’ 1971 song “You Make My Life a Sunny Day” (via Killer Mike’s “Ric Flair”), is a victory lap, with Beyonce singing, “Sometimes I thought we’d never see the light … Damn, look at us now / We came, and we conquered, now we’re happy in love.” It’s probably no coincidence that this family affair dropped during Father’s Day weekend. Before we dive deep into the narratives, most importantly, how does it rate as an album? Solid and generally satisfying, but not the best from either. Both artists’ high standards guarantee that the songs are musically and melodically on point, with a top-shelf team of collaborators that range from established (Pharrell, Cool & Dre, Boi-1da) to left-field (TV on the Radio’s Dave Sitek, who worked on Solange’s 2016 opus “A Seat at the Table”) to relative newcomers (Vory, Jahaan Sweet and Sevn Thomas); Migos guest on “Apesh–.” Jay’s flow and lyrics are smooth as ever, and Beyonce — who never releases an album without giving herself new challenges — is rapping far more often than before, trying on a couple of new voices and even, on “Friends,” using autotune to twist her vocal into new shapes. The album covers a wide variety of styles — from a banger like the single/video “Apesh–” to the soulful “Boss” to the softer “Friends” and “Heard About Us” — over an uncharacteristically brief 40-odd minutes and 10 songs (including “Salud,” a “bonus track” that does not appear in the album’s sequence and is exclusively available on Tidal). The lyrics are more problematic. As always, they’re dense with subplots and deep references and social-media feeding Easter eggs, but they’re also self-referential and uncharacteristically (for Beyonce, anyway) self-obsessed. We get more mea culpas from Jay, more warnings from Bey, and he takes a wistful look back at their long courtship, recalling when they first spent time together on a flight back from a 2000 MTV appearance in Mexico (“We played it cool at the pool of the Cancun, VMA… Fate had me sittin’ next to you on the plane/ And I knew straight away”). There are also references to lyrics from other rappers ranging from Lil Wayne and Chief Keef to Mos Def and Notorious B.I.G., and also some shade apparently thrown Kanye West’s way in “Friends,” with a reference to Jay’s non-attendance at his wedding (“I ain’t goin’ to nobody nothin’ when me and my wife beefin’/ I don’t care if the house on fire, if I’m dyin’, I ain’t leavin’”). Jay also slams the Grammys and the Super Bowl in “Apesh–,” referencing both his refusal to perform during the 2018 halftime show, and him receiving zero Grammy awards despite eight nominations earlier this year: “Tell the Grammys f— that 0 for 8 s— / Have you ever seen the crowd goin’ apes—?” For her part, Beyonce throws shade at various unnamed b—hes and hoes, and in “Nice,” at Spotify.