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Beyoncé Recorded 80 Songs for Surprise Album

Beyonce KnowlesBeyonce recorded "about 80 songs" for her surprise album.

The 32-year-old singer released her self-titled record earlier this month following a year of hard work, and she admits she had a hard job of whittling the tracks down to a selected amount.

Speaking in her Part 3 Run 'N Gun video chat on YouTube, she said, "When I started picking the songs that I gravitated towards, because I recorded about 80 songs, it was the songs that were more effortless to me that stuck around." The album features a collaboration with her husband Jay Z - whom she shares two-year-old daughter Blue Ivy with - on the song "Drunk in Love," and she believes the track worked well because they just had fun: "I kind of free-styled the verse, and Jay went in and he started flowing out his verse. We just kinda had a party. It was so great, because it wasn't about any ego, we weren't trying to make a hit record. we were just having fun. and I think you can hear that in the record."

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Beyoncé: I Was Really Nervous About Releasing New Album

BeyonceBeyonce was "really nervous" about the surprise release of her self-titled LP.

The "Drunk in Love" singer, who is celebrating selling more than one million copies of her fifth studio record, admits it was a "huge risk" releasing it without any prior promotion. She answered fans' questions via her Instagram account at the weekend at a screening for the record's accompanying music videos.

"I was terrified. I was so scared. I already envisioned like the worst things that could happen. Honestly, I was at a point where I felt like, you know, everything feels the same. That's how I felt and if I could not challenge that, then maybe it's time for me to do something else or develop more artists, which is something I want to do," she posted. "I just hope that I continue to move forward and challenge myself, and I think now that I've become a mother, I just want my legacy to inspire people."

Meanwhile, retailers such as Amazon and American company Target are refusing to stock Beyonce after it was released exclusively on iTunes. The digital giant were given a one week exclusive window to sell the 14-song, 17-video album, which features contributions from Drake, Jay Z and Justin Timberlake.


Beyonce’s Album Smashes iTunes Record

BeyonceBeyonce's surprise fifth album has become the fastest-selling record in iTunes history.

The self-titled record, which was released without any warning last week, shifting 828,773 copies in just three days. The majority of those sales came from America, where it has racked up 617,213 sales since Friday.

Beyonce's own first-week sales record was also broken, after her 2006 second record B'day sold 541,000 copies in seven days.

The "Love On Top" hitmaker stealth-released the record exclusively on iTunes, shocking fans by unveiling 14 new songs and 17 videos without any promotion.

The 31-year-old said she was inspired by Michael Jackson's Thriller video premiere in 1983, which is why she made such a "visual" record: "I miss that immersive experience. Now people only listen to a few seconds of a song on their iPods and they don't really invest in the whole experience. It's all about the single, and the hype. I felt like, I don't want anybody to get the message when my record is coming out. I just want this to come out when it's ready and from me to my fans."

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Beyonce Releases New Album on iTunes

BeyonceBeyonce has surprised fans by releasing her fifth studio album on iTunes today.

The "Grown Woman" singer shocked her loyal fan base - who have been eagerly anticipating her new record for some time - by unveiling her self-titled "visual album" exclusively on iTunes in the early hours of Friday morning.

The record, which is being labelled as Part 1, features 14 songs and 17 accompanying music videos. Collaborations on the album include Beyonce's husband Jay-Z, her daughter Blue Ivy Carter, rapper Drake, Justin Timberlake, and her former Destiny's Child bandmates Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams.

Beyonce announced the album on Instagram with a teaser video, which she simply captioned, "Surprise!"

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Beyonce Treats Jay Z to Vegan Birthday Feast

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Music, Birthdays,

Beyonce and Jay-ZBeyonce Knowles treated Jay Z to a vegan feast for his 44th birthday on Wednesday.

The "Love On Top" hitmaker took her rapper husband, who has vowed to stick to a plant-based diet until Christmas Day, to the popular organic restaurant, Cafe Gratitude, in Los Angeles. The couple, who left their 23-month-old daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, at home for the occasion, tucked into a range of meatless dishes including marinated kale salad, Indian curried lentils and corn tacos with chipotle butternut squash, according to gossip website TMZ.com, before enjoying vegan chocolate truffles for dessert.

Oscar-winning actress Anne Hathaway and singer Ariana Grande were also dining in eatery at the time.

Their outing came just one day after Jay Z revealed that he and his wife were inspired by a close friend to give up animal food products until December 25. "Psychologists have said it takes 21 days to make or break a habit. On the 22nd day, you've found the way. On December 3, one day before my 44th birthday I will embark on a 22 Days challenge to go completely vegan, or as I prefer to call it, plant-based! This all began a few months back when a good friend and vegan challenged me to embrace a 'plant-based breakfast' everyday. It was surprisingly easier on me than I thought," the "Holy Grail" hitmaker wrote on his Life and Times Blog on Tuesday.

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Beyonce Kicked Out of the Pyramids?

Posted by Andru Edwards Categories: Music, Rumors,

Beyonce

Beyonce Knowles has hit back at allegations she was kicked out of the Pyramids in Egypt for being "rude."

The "Love On Top" hitmaker, who has a 22-month-old daughter, Blue Ivy Carter, with her rapper husband Jay Z, was reportedly told to leave the popular tourist attraction in 2009 by infamous archaeologist Dr. Zahi Hawass, who is known as "Egypt's Indiana Jones" because he was unimpressed with her behavior. "Most people I take on tours are very nice and we become friends. But this lady... She said she would come at 3 p.m. but she came late. I said 'You have to say I'm sorry I'm late.' But she didn't open her mouth. I brought a photographer and she also had a photographer and a guard. When my photographer started to shoot, he said 'No, Stop! I am the one who says yes or no, not you.' I said, 'In that case since you almost hit my photographer and you are not polite - out! I am not giving you the privilege of having you on my tour.' I said Beyonce was stupid and I left," the former Egyptian antiquities minister told The Independent newspaper.

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‘Forbes’ Names Madonna Highest-Paid Musician

MadonnaMadonna has topped Forbes' list of highest-paid musicians.

The 55-year-old singer is still the queen of pop according to the magazine, earning $125 million from June 2012 to May 2013 thanks to her sell-out MDMA Tour, miles ahead of her nearest rival Lady Gaga, who raked in $80 million. Rockers Bon Jovi and country singer Toby Keith were next, with Coldplay coming in fifth place.

Despite lackluster sales of her latest album, Madonna made her fortune from fans paying $100 a ticket to see her tour - which grossed $305 million - as well as from merchandise sales, a clothing line, fragrance and investments in companies like Vita Coco. This comes as little surprise, since Madonna had already been crowned the world's highest-earning celebrity by Forbes in August, with filmmaker Steven Spielberg, author E.L. James, radio personality Howard Stern and X Factor boss Simon Cowell rounding out the top five.

However, the magazine estimates Lady Gaga could easily top the highest-paid musicians list next year because her current earnings were affected by her hip injury, which forced her to cut her Born This Way Ball tour short. Had she completed the tour, she could potentially have made $200 million.

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Beyonce’s Album Near Completion

BeyonceBeyonce's album is "almost done."

Producer Pharrell Williams has been working with the "Bow Down" hitmaker on her fifth album - which has been rumored for release throughout 2013 - and says she is nearing completion. "B's album is crazy. Let me tell you what it is. She's very particular. She's a Virgo. And she's not going to put it out until it's ready and feels like it's right to her. She's got a very specific taste. I guess that's the reason she's Beyonce. Her name is recognizable around the globe and that's huge. That comes from someone that has very particular taste. When you know what you want, you won't stop until you get it. [Other people are hearing her album] and are like 'Whoa!' And she's like, 'Yeah, I'm almost done.' And she's the queen," he said.

So far new tracks released by Beyonce in 2013 include "Standing on the Sun" and "Grown Woman," which were used in adverts, and she previewed another composition, "Bow Down / I Been On" on her blog, but the album is yet to get a title or release date.

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Beyonce Inspires Paul McCartney

Beyonce and Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney is influenced by Beyonce. The 71-year-old singer/songwriter makes a point of checking out the live shows by current chart artists because he wants to make sure his own concerts don't seem "old fashioned."

"If I'm gonna do a tour I like to go and see what other people are doing. I don't wanna bring my tour out and be amazingly old-fashioned. So if people are going, 'Oh man Beyonce, she was killer!' I like to go there and go, 'Yeah, we can do better than this.'"

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Kimye to Forgo Money for North Photos, Will Unveil Them Online

Kanye West and Kim KardashianIn a not-so-surprising turn of events, Kanye West and Kim Kardashian are rumored to be following in the footsteps of their besties Jay-Z and Beyonce.

The new parents of one are rumored to be ditching the lucrative deals thrown at them by the likes of Vanity Fair so that they can post photos of their firstborn, North, through a social media site.

Whether it's because West doesn't want to "pimp out" his child (as UsMagazine reports he said) or because Kimye wants so hard to be like beloved power couple Jay-Z and Beyonce, it's unfair that the supposed $4 million offered to them for North's photos will no longer go towards a charity, as momager Kim Jenner previously stated it would.

I guess we'll just have to keep our eyes peeled and glued to Kanye's and Kim's Twitter accounts to find out their final decision.

Read More | Daily Mail

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