Grammy winning artist Beyonce revealed the name of her fourth studio album in a Billboard interview, calling the album “4”. This is reportedly Beyonce’s first effort without her father Matthew Knowles as her manager. Despite the shift in management, Beyonce has remained busy, especially in the last couple months. Beyonce celebrated her wedding anniversary with husband Jay-Z in the Bahamas then the couple was spotted in Paris mixing business with pleasure. Beyonce shot an editorial spread for Harper’s Bazaar, worked on some music with Kanye West while also visiting Disneyland with her nephew.
Shortly after her work vacation, Beyonce released a preview to her new single from “4”, Run the World (Girls), earlier today Beyonce released another preview to the single. In an effort to warn of her pending domination, Beyonce sat down for an interview with Billboard magazine,
Whenever you put out a new song, it seems to generate a catchphrase. Is that something you think about?
That’s what I always want to do – I’m attracted to songs that will become a dinner conversation! [laughs] With “Single Ladies,” clearly I’d just gotten married, and people want to get married every day – then there was the whole Justin Timberlake thing [recreating the video] on “Saturday Night Live,” and it was also the year YouTube blew up. With “Irreplaceable,” the aggressive lyrics, the acoustic guitar, and the 808 [drum machine] – those things don’t typically go together, and it sounded fresh. “Crazy in Love” was another one of those classic
moments in pop culture that none of us expected. I asked Jay to get on the song the night before I had to turn my album in – thank God he did. It still never gets old, no matter how many times I sing it.
The new single, “Run the World (Girls),” is a very bold statement for you.
It’s definitely riskier than something a bit more…simple. I just heard the track and loved that it was so different: it felt a bit African, a bit electronic and futuristic. It reminded me of what I love, which is mixing different cultures and eras — things that typically don’t go together — to create a new sound. I can never be safe; I always try and go against the grain. As soon as I accomplish one thing, I just set a higher goal. That’s how I’ve gotten to where I am.
Beyonce also shared with Billboard why she chose to name her new album “4”,
“We all have special numbers in our lives, and four is that for me,” the singer told Billboard. “It’s the day I was born. My mother’s birthday, and a lot of my friends’ birthdays, are on the fourth; April 4 is my wedding date.”
Will Beyonce’s “Run the World” rule the summer?
