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Larry Busacca/Getty Images for CoachellaIt goes without saying that Beyoncé had a tremendous year in 2018. Queen Bey reemerged after giving birth to twins Sir and Rumi Carter, to gift fans with new music and dominate the stage once again.
In March, Bey kicked things off by joining her husband JAY-Z on the DJ Khaled-produced single “Top Off.” A few days later, The Carters announced they would be hitting the road for the second installment of their On The Run II tour come June. That tour became the third highest-grossing trek of the year, taking in more than $253 million.
In April, Beyoncé became the first black woman to headline the Coachella Music & Arts festival, and her landmark performance was hailed as one of the greatest of all time. Her set emphasized her support for HBCUs, and featured a reunion with her Destiny Child band mates, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.
Beyoncé’s Coachella performance was lauded by fellow artists, fans and others alike for its strong cultural reference points and musicianship. Chance the Rapper even went on to proclaim Bey’s set as being “better than any performance Michael Jackson ever did.”
Building off the momentum of her historic set, Beyoncé and JAY Z dropped a surprise album, Everything Is Love. The first single, “APE S***”, came with a video of The Carters taking over the iconic Louvre Museum in Paris, France.
Bey went on to cover the September issue of Vogue, for which Tyler Mitchell shot the cover. He was the first black photographer in the magazine’s 126-year history to do so. In the revealing cover story, Beyonce revealed that she needed emergency surgery to deliver Sir and Rumi.
In early December, Beyoncé and Taylor Swift were the only two singers to make Forbes’ annual World’s 100 Most Powerful Women list. Taylor ranks #68, and Beyoncé’s #50.
A few days later, Beyoncé earned three Grammy nominations: Best Urban Contemporary Album for Everything Is Love, Best Music Video for “APE S***” and Best R&B Performance for “Summer.”
Plus, Bey’s protegees Chloe X Halle were nominated for Best New Artist and Best Urban COntemporary Album for their debut The Kids Are Alright.
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