There could be simple answer. Possibly, these products are designed not to do well. When you have billions, taxes are a big problem. The launches and ads keep her in the public eye, so they have marketing value for her image, but if they are not profitable as products, she writes the loss off on her taxes. This is one of the way the wealthy dodge the IRS.
Hi! Hm I personally feel like we forget that Beyoncé is the billionaire class. I would not put that past her team. I think referring to her zodiac here, as much as I love astrology is way too personal when thinking of money and business and how people in the billionaire class operate. As the writer wrote, no matter what Beyoncé does, she will always be the musical icon that she is so I don’t feel like her businesses not being culturally/uber successful will hurt her at the end of the day. I don’t think there’s not one business who would hesitate to work or collaborate with Beyoncé for any reason
Hi!! I don’t think anyone forgets that she is in the billionaire class, and even if we did, she will not let us forget it (“Of course sometimes shit goes down when there’s a billion dollars on an elevator”). Again, she could’ve done the same type of write-off with a charity, which many celebs do, and I’m sure BEYGOOD serves that purpose. I also don’t think using astrology is too personal when she has referenced how being a Virgo influences her drive and the intentionality behind her work. With Cecred, it’s focusing on her history of being the child of a salon owner and science-backed hair care. With Sir Davis, it is her story of one of her ancestors being a whiskey distiller and how she submitted it for taste awards before it was publicly available.
If she were going to try to flop, she would have way less intention behind what she was doing from a marketing standpoint (see: Fenty Hair, JLo Beauty, etc.). I could maybe see that argument for Ivy Park (and what later became Ivy Park x Adidas), but even that felt like she was trying to redeem herself from House of Dereon. You could tell she put a lot of effort into it. She was really trying to reimagine athleisure. I don’t see how intentionally starting brands that constantly flop, which doesn’t reflect well on her status as a visionary tastemaker, as this piece so beautifully put, is worth the amount of energy she puts into it when you can find other ways to write off losses with far less time, resources and effort.
Hi again! Thank you for such a thorough response! Reflecting on your words, I think maybe for me I just have a difficult time with praising a perceived amount of effort or resources it takes because at this point in the game, billionaires and megastars are playing with different tools. I don’t think it’s takes an over abundance of effort as we like to give credit for. I think Beyoncé approaches what she does with a level of seriousness and even meticulousness so going to contradict myself and agree with you that yes very Virgo but I don’t think those qualities equate to representing an over abundance of effort on her part. If anything her teams and the workers who bring these ideas to life. With someone at that level, I find it difficult to really care or feel that personally connected to the stories of Cecred and Sir Davis. No matter the history/story behind them, to me they all feel like money grabs. This critique isn’t unique to Beyoncé but personally it would be nice for celebrities to do something besides inspiring the masses to engage in more than just consumerism which generates so much waste and consumption. For 99% of celebrities, these ‘passion projects’ feel shallow. I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but Tee Noir (a Beyoncé fan) created an excellent video essay called Cash Grab Carter: A Parasocial Introspection and I feel like she quite expertly explains the way Beyoncé moves in regards to capital, her fans, and the way she specifically presents herself which I think echoes certain points of this article really well if you’re interested https://youtu.be/99W79ED4hCE?si=2pZSO3gK9_tW_Xq0
I am not moved by the personal stories either (also, my hairstyle said Cecred's products are trash) but her core fan/consumers base eats it up. I also do not disagree with you at all about the money grabbing she does (I have made similar critiques about Rihanna https://substack.com/@lachellerising/p-145648149) but I think what makes Beyoncé different than other celebs who are greedy is that she seems to convince not just her fan base but herself that what she is doing is purposeful-- I mean this even comes down to her music. Cowboy Carter is her way of convincing herself that she is trying to uplift the culture and highlight the ways Black Americans endure pigeonholing, etc. when really it's just another display of how disconnected from the culture she actually is because if she were connected to it, she wouldn't be moving this way (I have more thoughts on this but will save it). She feels justified in her capitalism because of her intentions, whether they are flawed or not. I also know people who have worked with her and while yes, 100% there are teams of people executing, she is still very involved in each step of the process and it does require more effort than something that is akin to a celebrity brand where people just slap their name on something like a fragrance line for example. My point is, she does not have to create flop brands for a tax write off. I think she wants to make money and wants her brands to be successful. It is a bit paradoxical to acknowledge that she is a capitalist billionaire and assume that she doesn't want to make money off of all of the time and effort (whether she worked up a sweat or not), she's putting into her most recent product launches.
Just a random thought I had but along with the idea of celebrity brands and what makes certain brands successful (Fenty, Skims), I’ve seen various reflections on them being deeply authentic to the person and who they represent themselves as. I feel like if Beyoncé ever leaned into anything singing related such as founding a private performance art school or program$$$ that would feel so authentic and ingrained into who we know her as. Since she has a private persona, leaning into what we actually associate her with publicly makes sense. Especially as someone with kids (ie education). Yes she grew up in a beauty salon and her grandfather may have made whiskey but those just fall so shallowly to me when it comes to launching an entire brand. It’s like I can imagine those being presented in a sterile board room/business meeting.
I agree. Most brands by celebrities are to park their taxes and be safe. Some brands might be intentional and do work effectively among consumers with good reviews. Others are only working because it's associated with a “celebrity” and in reality might be worst, but nobody cares since they get to cut on taxes.
Her brands are failing because she has no clue who she’s selling to. Also, because we don’t really know her (like we “know Rihanna”) we’re not convinced she would even use the stuff she is selling us. Still gone stan the queen.
Love this piece. As much as I like Beyoncé, what annoys me the most is how everything about her in the media is controlled. Every emotion is an act. I remember one documentary where she's on camera, being "vulnerable" and saying how much she misses her man and omg I felt uneasy, it was so awkward to me coz it didn't look natural. Anyway, that's why she's not relatable to me. I truly don't how when she is truly herself, it's all an act when the cameras are on. But I'd dance to any of her songs like my life depends on it
that’s understandable but at the same time, I think a lot of it comes from her genuinely not wanting to share so much of her life in the spotlight especially considering the fact that people who have every ounce of their lives broadcasted to the world can’t find peace in their surroundings and themselves… Same thing with Rihanna, there’s so much around both of them that we don’t know and they’ve pushed a standard about celebrities not losing their privacy if they don’t have to sit and talk in every interview, speak about personal matters and flaunt unnecessary things that not everyone NEEDS to see to begin with because it’s kind of pointless. But they are fully aware of what goes on in the media, and what people say, they just don’t cater to always being the spokesperson about details because why should they?
This was so well written! And when I read it, it kinda made me think of the (actual) queen of Norway (I’m norwegian if that’s not already obvious). How you’re describing Beyoncé could also describe actual queens. They are doing their jobs well, they live in great wealth but we have no idea about their personal life. I know when the queen did her job and met for an event, but is she relatable? No. Do I know what she likes to eat for dinner or what her favourite colour is? No. Do I like her though? Yeah. So my thoughts after this piece are that Beyoncé has perhaps managed to become a queen in the truest sense. But to keep a brand thriving you need more influenser and less queen I guess.
wow this is so good. like she's a queen. she actually is one of a kind. and like I said its made he so successful in one way but is also a massive barrier in this new phase of life she seems to be moving toward
Beyoncé is an undisputed queen. When she wants you to know her, it’s carefully edited. When she doesn’t want you to know her, you have no idea where she is on planet earth — it’s honestly pretty impressive, and makes it so obvious that other celebs call the paparazzi all the damn time.
But to sell products, celebs need to be relatable! And to be relatable, you need to show vulnerability. I certainly haven’t followed every step of her artistry, but it seems like the last time she was truly vulnerable was Lemonade and Becky with the good hair. Since then it’s all about asserting vision and artistry, which good for her mogul-ness! However, I don’t think you can have both.
Compare her to Taylor Swift, who spills every insecure thought into her lyrics. She cares deeply about relating to her fans, and it’s got a pick-me energy. But she’s not even shilling product, only music (though the 5,000 album variants should be considered product at this point). And yet she is heavily criticized for that exact pick-me energy that makes her relatable, which is ironic because wanting to be seen / liked / appreciated is the most common thing all humans share.
Beyoncé doesn’t make it known that she cares about what her fans think of her — and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way like she should, but in that she simply seems above the fray. If you want to set culture without any feedback or interaction from the plebes, then you don’t get to fool us into buying your plebeian products.
As I’m typing this, I wonder if this requirement to be relatable in order to sell product is a double standard for women. Men shill alcohol all the time; I drink George Clooney’s Casamigo without a single critical thought because it tastes good. But that man doesn’t tell us much either, other than he scored a worldly and beautiful wife out of his league. Same with Ryan Reynolds and all his insufferable products — that man is definitely edited and calculating. What a world we live in.
lemonade!!! that was iconic. the thing about Taylor swift is that her music IS the product, which is so interesting. they definitely have very different approaches to what they expose through their music and how they deal w the media/public. I think it's different when you are selling to a male and female audience, and what kind of success you want your brands to have you know?
I think Taylor has very purposely avoids anything commercial other than music because she keeps a very small inner circle and she almost has a puritanical attachment to “I’m a songwriter”, so you’re totally right that her product is her music (and the bajillion album variants and merch). But notably she works with a stylist who seemingly doesn’t work with anyone else. Most of her team exclusively works with her, so they’re probably well connected, but don’t explore the industry as much as someone who has multiple clients.
I bet Jay-Z really influences Beyoncé here. He’s always been business minded and he’s probably much wealthier off those endeavors vs. his music career. A whiskey brand seems like his brainchild but they both know she’s more marketable so she’s the face of it.
Same with Ryan Reynolds / Blake Lively and A Rod / J Lo — other couples that definitely influenced each other to do more product / sponsorship / business outside their core. In all these instances, I think the men were more business minded to start.
Oof, that line about wanting to set culture without feedback or interaction — sooo true!
I also agree re: double standard for women, but it could also relate to the fact that (most) of the celeb women are also selling products tied to expressing/increasing our self worth/beauty: makeup, skincare, etc. TBH, most of them (apart from new innovations) aren’t doing anything different from existing products.
That’s a great point about female celebs’ products mostly being about appearance, whereas male celebs’ products are mostly about toys and fun — alcohol, cars, sports, etc.
I struggle with this one because fashion and makeup present such a commercial opportunity unique to women — the brand deals for many actresses make them more money than any movie ever would. It’s also the one area in Hollywood where female earning power exceeds male, by a lot and consistently.
But their efforts are undoubtedly setting homogeneous beauty standards and unattainable levels of physical perfection, which also hold women back.
Wow. Yes. I’ve felt this way for a while. Like yourself, I like Beyoncé but I’m not a fan. I was more into destiny’s child’s Beyoncé than this one. It just seems very manufactured for the sake of fame and/or relevance. She’s an amazing entertainer but like... I don’t believe she drinks whiskey or even cares about the art and craft of alcohol. She’s certainly not drinking when she’s preparing for dem tours and we’ve clearly seen LOL
I don’t know mang. I’m just not buying anything that’s happening there these days.
Glad you liked the piece has agree w everything you’ve said. All of it feels manufactured, and at this point consumers are so used to sniffing that stuff out
I just want to say that I related to the “destiny’s child vs like Beyoncé comment” same! I’ve always felt she is more calculated to the goal that really being herself.
Hi! I have just discovered your substack and I loved this piece! It was so interesting!
I would like to add that I am a HUGE Beyonce fan, she is literally my profile picture on this app. But I am not wasting my money on products that are most likely of terrible quaility and made under exploitatives forms of labor lmao. Regardless of how much I adore her music, I am never losing sight from the fact that Beyonce is a capitalist. The Ivy Parks factories where located in Sri Lanka and many news outlets reported on the incredibly low wages the workers received.
From my point of view, her clothes, her drinks and her hair products are just drops in a overstaturated market, filled to the brim with famous people as advertisers and oppression.
So, while I will absolutely sing her praises regarding her inmense talent, her dedication to her craft, how she just keeps getting better and better, I am no interested in Beyonce the capitalist. I will always want to hear more from Beyonce the artist though.
" her clothes, her drinks and her hair products are just drops in a overstaturated market, filled to the brim with famous people as advertisers and oppression." couldnt have said it better!
The way people are, to this day, WAITING to line up to pay for the visuals from RENAISSANCE which came out two years ago?? She could sell that for the same price as this Sir Davis ploy and probably still make more money
Had to pause when you compared Cecred to Fenty, Pattern, and BLAKE brown beauty???? Pattern was the best comparison. I actually think Cecred IS doing well and has been well recieved unlike Fenty Hair. FB is a makeup brand… Cecred is hair care. And BBB is flopping hard. No thoughts on Sir Davis. House of Dereon was launched pre peak YONCÉ and Ivy Park was technically owned by Adidas despite it’s success so not entirely her product.
I think the products she is launching now are far more mature than House of Dereon and I think we should give her time before comparing them to products that have been on the market for longer.
Thank you for these comments. I also found it weird comparing a brand that came out a few months ago to brands that have been out for years or aren’t even in the same category. And generally, beauty (skin care & makeup) has always outsold hair care.
But I do think Cecred and Sir Davis would both thrive weirdly with less Beyoncé going forward (like in year 3) Kind of like how Serena is kind of letting Rare Beauty be a brand independent of her existence. The products and users have to speak for themselves.
I think before she had kids, she and Jay Z would cruise the Mediterranean every summer and there were always pictures of them jumping off the yacht into the water. I think that’s probably as free as I’ve seen her, and of course she wasn’t really free if the paparazzi were following her.
Ooof I’ve had sooo many thoughts on this and you ended up articulating them all perfectly!
It has never really clicked for me before that she never really “has fun”, because her music is always the go to for me when I’m about to go do something fun… but it makes a lot of sense now why I wanted her to release something like hot sauce. You know? Cuz it’s accessible, unexpected, she’s actually spoken about it before, and it’s something I do believe even “Beyoncé” uses, if she’s serious about getting into her relatability era 😂
*unfiltered, goofy, and weird* - but not really, eh? Polished, calculated and absolutely no spontaneity. Choreo all the way down. And yes, it feels sooooo sad.
Fans do not always equal influence. And even influence does not always equal "this person make me want to buy something". What's funny is that the celebrities that do have that rare "this person make me want to buy something" factor are the ones who act like influencers on social media—whether for their own brands or on their personal accounts. Loved this breakdown.
Truer words haven’t been spoken. I find it interesting how some celebrities insist the brand should stand on its own and then stay completely away. Just doesn’t work. Even non celebrities promote their brands
Really astute and eye-opening essay. It does make one wonder why she bothers with these side gigs - as you noted, for future-proofing her career, I guess?!? Perhaps, at the end of the day, because Beyoncé is her own brand, unlike any other celebrity brand, and that is why the brands that are built upon her "spark" fail to hold a candle to "brand Beyoncé."
There could be simple answer. Possibly, these products are designed not to do well. When you have billions, taxes are a big problem. The launches and ads keep her in the public eye, so they have marketing value for her image, but if they are not profitable as products, she writes the loss off on her taxes. This is one of the way the wealthy dodge the IRS.
Hot take. I wonder if it’s worth the trade off of what it’s doing to her image. She seems like she’d care about that stuff 🤷🏾♀️
Yea a Virgo failing on purpose doesn’t sound likely. She could do the same thing with a charity.
Hi! Hm I personally feel like we forget that Beyoncé is the billionaire class. I would not put that past her team. I think referring to her zodiac here, as much as I love astrology is way too personal when thinking of money and business and how people in the billionaire class operate. As the writer wrote, no matter what Beyoncé does, she will always be the musical icon that she is so I don’t feel like her businesses not being culturally/uber successful will hurt her at the end of the day. I don’t think there’s not one business who would hesitate to work or collaborate with Beyoncé for any reason
Hi!! I don’t think anyone forgets that she is in the billionaire class, and even if we did, she will not let us forget it (“Of course sometimes shit goes down when there’s a billion dollars on an elevator”). Again, she could’ve done the same type of write-off with a charity, which many celebs do, and I’m sure BEYGOOD serves that purpose. I also don’t think using astrology is too personal when she has referenced how being a Virgo influences her drive and the intentionality behind her work. With Cecred, it’s focusing on her history of being the child of a salon owner and science-backed hair care. With Sir Davis, it is her story of one of her ancestors being a whiskey distiller and how she submitted it for taste awards before it was publicly available.
If she were going to try to flop, she would have way less intention behind what she was doing from a marketing standpoint (see: Fenty Hair, JLo Beauty, etc.). I could maybe see that argument for Ivy Park (and what later became Ivy Park x Adidas), but even that felt like she was trying to redeem herself from House of Dereon. You could tell she put a lot of effort into it. She was really trying to reimagine athleisure. I don’t see how intentionally starting brands that constantly flop, which doesn’t reflect well on her status as a visionary tastemaker, as this piece so beautifully put, is worth the amount of energy she puts into it when you can find other ways to write off losses with far less time, resources and effort.
Hi again! Thank you for such a thorough response! Reflecting on your words, I think maybe for me I just have a difficult time with praising a perceived amount of effort or resources it takes because at this point in the game, billionaires and megastars are playing with different tools. I don’t think it’s takes an over abundance of effort as we like to give credit for. I think Beyoncé approaches what she does with a level of seriousness and even meticulousness so going to contradict myself and agree with you that yes very Virgo but I don’t think those qualities equate to representing an over abundance of effort on her part. If anything her teams and the workers who bring these ideas to life. With someone at that level, I find it difficult to really care or feel that personally connected to the stories of Cecred and Sir Davis. No matter the history/story behind them, to me they all feel like money grabs. This critique isn’t unique to Beyoncé but personally it would be nice for celebrities to do something besides inspiring the masses to engage in more than just consumerism which generates so much waste and consumption. For 99% of celebrities, these ‘passion projects’ feel shallow. I don’t know if you’ve seen it, but Tee Noir (a Beyoncé fan) created an excellent video essay called Cash Grab Carter: A Parasocial Introspection and I feel like she quite expertly explains the way Beyoncé moves in regards to capital, her fans, and the way she specifically presents herself which I think echoes certain points of this article really well if you’re interested https://youtu.be/99W79ED4hCE?si=2pZSO3gK9_tW_Xq0
I am not moved by the personal stories either (also, my hairstyle said Cecred's products are trash) but her core fan/consumers base eats it up. I also do not disagree with you at all about the money grabbing she does (I have made similar critiques about Rihanna https://substack.com/@lachellerising/p-145648149) but I think what makes Beyoncé different than other celebs who are greedy is that she seems to convince not just her fan base but herself that what she is doing is purposeful-- I mean this even comes down to her music. Cowboy Carter is her way of convincing herself that she is trying to uplift the culture and highlight the ways Black Americans endure pigeonholing, etc. when really it's just another display of how disconnected from the culture she actually is because if she were connected to it, she wouldn't be moving this way (I have more thoughts on this but will save it). She feels justified in her capitalism because of her intentions, whether they are flawed or not. I also know people who have worked with her and while yes, 100% there are teams of people executing, she is still very involved in each step of the process and it does require more effort than something that is akin to a celebrity brand where people just slap their name on something like a fragrance line for example. My point is, she does not have to create flop brands for a tax write off. I think she wants to make money and wants her brands to be successful. It is a bit paradoxical to acknowledge that she is a capitalist billionaire and assume that she doesn't want to make money off of all of the time and effort (whether she worked up a sweat or not), she's putting into her most recent product launches.
Just a random thought I had but along with the idea of celebrity brands and what makes certain brands successful (Fenty, Skims), I’ve seen various reflections on them being deeply authentic to the person and who they represent themselves as. I feel like if Beyoncé ever leaned into anything singing related such as founding a private performance art school or program$$$ that would feel so authentic and ingrained into who we know her as. Since she has a private persona, leaning into what we actually associate her with publicly makes sense. Especially as someone with kids (ie education). Yes she grew up in a beauty salon and her grandfather may have made whiskey but those just fall so shallowly to me when it comes to launching an entire brand. It’s like I can imagine those being presented in a sterile board room/business meeting.
I agree. Most brands by celebrities are to park their taxes and be safe. Some brands might be intentional and do work effectively among consumers with good reviews. Others are only working because it's associated with a “celebrity” and in reality might be worst, but nobody cares since they get to cut on taxes.
Her brands are failing because she has no clue who she’s selling to. Also, because we don’t really know her (like we “know Rihanna”) we’re not convinced she would even use the stuff she is selling us. Still gone stan the queen.
Love this piece. As much as I like Beyoncé, what annoys me the most is how everything about her in the media is controlled. Every emotion is an act. I remember one documentary where she's on camera, being "vulnerable" and saying how much she misses her man and omg I felt uneasy, it was so awkward to me coz it didn't look natural. Anyway, that's why she's not relatable to me. I truly don't how when she is truly herself, it's all an act when the cameras are on. But I'd dance to any of her songs like my life depends on it
Agree. Media trained from the womb lol. I think I get it though. Like she wants to protect her peace. But does make it hard to connect
I kinda do but it's scary !
that’s understandable but at the same time, I think a lot of it comes from her genuinely not wanting to share so much of her life in the spotlight especially considering the fact that people who have every ounce of their lives broadcasted to the world can’t find peace in their surroundings and themselves… Same thing with Rihanna, there’s so much around both of them that we don’t know and they’ve pushed a standard about celebrities not losing their privacy if they don’t have to sit and talk in every interview, speak about personal matters and flaunt unnecessary things that not everyone NEEDS to see to begin with because it’s kind of pointless. But they are fully aware of what goes on in the media, and what people say, they just don’t cater to always being the spokesperson about details because why should they?
I don’t want to pity Beyoncé; she’s Beyoncé. - I felt that too. So well written
Thank you!
This was so well written! And when I read it, it kinda made me think of the (actual) queen of Norway (I’m norwegian if that’s not already obvious). How you’re describing Beyoncé could also describe actual queens. They are doing their jobs well, they live in great wealth but we have no idea about their personal life. I know when the queen did her job and met for an event, but is she relatable? No. Do I know what she likes to eat for dinner or what her favourite colour is? No. Do I like her though? Yeah. So my thoughts after this piece are that Beyoncé has perhaps managed to become a queen in the truest sense. But to keep a brand thriving you need more influenser and less queen I guess.
wow this is so good. like she's a queen. she actually is one of a kind. and like I said its made he so successful in one way but is also a massive barrier in this new phase of life she seems to be moving toward
Yeah! Exactly!
And Queens are not supposed to have brands.. it just doesn’t track.
Beyoncé is an undisputed queen. When she wants you to know her, it’s carefully edited. When she doesn’t want you to know her, you have no idea where she is on planet earth — it’s honestly pretty impressive, and makes it so obvious that other celebs call the paparazzi all the damn time.
But to sell products, celebs need to be relatable! And to be relatable, you need to show vulnerability. I certainly haven’t followed every step of her artistry, but it seems like the last time she was truly vulnerable was Lemonade and Becky with the good hair. Since then it’s all about asserting vision and artistry, which good for her mogul-ness! However, I don’t think you can have both.
Compare her to Taylor Swift, who spills every insecure thought into her lyrics. She cares deeply about relating to her fans, and it’s got a pick-me energy. But she’s not even shilling product, only music (though the 5,000 album variants should be considered product at this point). And yet she is heavily criticized for that exact pick-me energy that makes her relatable, which is ironic because wanting to be seen / liked / appreciated is the most common thing all humans share.
Beyoncé doesn’t make it known that she cares about what her fans think of her — and I don’t mean that in a derogatory way like she should, but in that she simply seems above the fray. If you want to set culture without any feedback or interaction from the plebes, then you don’t get to fool us into buying your plebeian products.
As I’m typing this, I wonder if this requirement to be relatable in order to sell product is a double standard for women. Men shill alcohol all the time; I drink George Clooney’s Casamigo without a single critical thought because it tastes good. But that man doesn’t tell us much either, other than he scored a worldly and beautiful wife out of his league. Same with Ryan Reynolds and all his insufferable products — that man is definitely edited and calculating. What a world we live in.
lemonade!!! that was iconic. the thing about Taylor swift is that her music IS the product, which is so interesting. they definitely have very different approaches to what they expose through their music and how they deal w the media/public. I think it's different when you are selling to a male and female audience, and what kind of success you want your brands to have you know?
I think Taylor has very purposely avoids anything commercial other than music because she keeps a very small inner circle and she almost has a puritanical attachment to “I’m a songwriter”, so you’re totally right that her product is her music (and the bajillion album variants and merch). But notably she works with a stylist who seemingly doesn’t work with anyone else. Most of her team exclusively works with her, so they’re probably well connected, but don’t explore the industry as much as someone who has multiple clients.
I bet Jay-Z really influences Beyoncé here. He’s always been business minded and he’s probably much wealthier off those endeavors vs. his music career. A whiskey brand seems like his brainchild but they both know she’s more marketable so she’s the face of it.
Same with Ryan Reynolds / Blake Lively and A Rod / J Lo — other couples that definitely influenced each other to do more product / sponsorship / business outside their core. In all these instances, I think the men were more business minded to start.
Oof, that line about wanting to set culture without feedback or interaction — sooo true!
I also agree re: double standard for women, but it could also relate to the fact that (most) of the celeb women are also selling products tied to expressing/increasing our self worth/beauty: makeup, skincare, etc. TBH, most of them (apart from new innovations) aren’t doing anything different from existing products.
That’s a great point about female celebs’ products mostly being about appearance, whereas male celebs’ products are mostly about toys and fun — alcohol, cars, sports, etc.
I struggle with this one because fashion and makeup present such a commercial opportunity unique to women — the brand deals for many actresses make them more money than any movie ever would. It’s also the one area in Hollywood where female earning power exceeds male, by a lot and consistently.
But their efforts are undoubtedly setting homogeneous beauty standards and unattainable levels of physical perfection, which also hold women back.
It’s a toughie.
wait loving this conversation. agree w everything being said!
perfect. like spot on
Wow. Yes. I’ve felt this way for a while. Like yourself, I like Beyoncé but I’m not a fan. I was more into destiny’s child’s Beyoncé than this one. It just seems very manufactured for the sake of fame and/or relevance. She’s an amazing entertainer but like... I don’t believe she drinks whiskey or even cares about the art and craft of alcohol. She’s certainly not drinking when she’s preparing for dem tours and we’ve clearly seen LOL
I don’t know mang. I’m just not buying anything that’s happening there these days.
I enjoyed this piece a lot!
Glad you liked the piece has agree w everything you’ve said. All of it feels manufactured, and at this point consumers are so used to sniffing that stuff out
I just want to say that I related to the “destiny’s child vs like Beyoncé comment” same! I’ve always felt she is more calculated to the goal that really being herself.
Hi! I have just discovered your substack and I loved this piece! It was so interesting!
I would like to add that I am a HUGE Beyonce fan, she is literally my profile picture on this app. But I am not wasting my money on products that are most likely of terrible quaility and made under exploitatives forms of labor lmao. Regardless of how much I adore her music, I am never losing sight from the fact that Beyonce is a capitalist. The Ivy Parks factories where located in Sri Lanka and many news outlets reported on the incredibly low wages the workers received.
From my point of view, her clothes, her drinks and her hair products are just drops in a overstaturated market, filled to the brim with famous people as advertisers and oppression.
So, while I will absolutely sing her praises regarding her inmense talent, her dedication to her craft, how she just keeps getting better and better, I am no interested in Beyonce the capitalist. I will always want to hear more from Beyonce the artist though.
" her clothes, her drinks and her hair products are just drops in a overstaturated market, filled to the brim with famous people as advertisers and oppression." couldnt have said it better!
Thank you! And you know what would be a product with incredible demand? That no one else would be able to deliver with the same quality??
The visuals 😒😒😒 but nooo mother wants to play monopoly with our wallets so here we are
The way people are, to this day, WAITING to line up to pay for the visuals from RENAISSANCE which came out two years ago?? She could sell that for the same price as this Sir Davis ploy and probably still make more money
speaking on the quality of products you never used is just…cecred is good, maybe read the reviews
Had to pause when you compared Cecred to Fenty, Pattern, and BLAKE brown beauty???? Pattern was the best comparison. I actually think Cecred IS doing well and has been well recieved unlike Fenty Hair. FB is a makeup brand… Cecred is hair care. And BBB is flopping hard. No thoughts on Sir Davis. House of Dereon was launched pre peak YONCÉ and Ivy Park was technically owned by Adidas despite it’s success so not entirely her product.
I think the products she is launching now are far more mature than House of Dereon and I think we should give her time before comparing them to products that have been on the market for longer.
Thank you for these comments. I also found it weird comparing a brand that came out a few months ago to brands that have been out for years or aren’t even in the same category. And generally, beauty (skin care & makeup) has always outsold hair care.
But I do think Cecred and Sir Davis would both thrive weirdly with less Beyoncé going forward (like in year 3) Kind of like how Serena is kind of letting Rare Beauty be a brand independent of her existence. The products and users have to speak for themselves.
I think before she had kids, she and Jay Z would cruise the Mediterranean every summer and there were always pictures of them jumping off the yacht into the water. I think that’s probably as free as I’ve seen her, and of course she wasn’t really free if the paparazzi were following her.
good point. I can barely remember far back. honestly she might have just gotten tired of the whole thing. which is fair enough
Ooof I’ve had sooo many thoughts on this and you ended up articulating them all perfectly!
It has never really clicked for me before that she never really “has fun”, because her music is always the go to for me when I’m about to go do something fun… but it makes a lot of sense now why I wanted her to release something like hot sauce. You know? Cuz it’s accessible, unexpected, she’s actually spoken about it before, and it’s something I do believe even “Beyoncé” uses, if she’s serious about getting into her relatability era 😂
haha I feel you. I wonder how her music and brand will evolve in the next few years
"The very thing that enabled her to reach a level of success in one area will so thoroughly inhibit success in another." so well put!
Thanks! 😊
*unfiltered, goofy, and weird* - but not really, eh? Polished, calculated and absolutely no spontaneity. Choreo all the way down. And yes, it feels sooooo sad.
Haha yeah low key it was choreod wasn’t it? 😂 still nice to see her looking like she’s having fun though
as always, you've taken my unintelligible thoughts and put them into brilliant sentences
My pleasure girly!
Fans do not always equal influence. And even influence does not always equal "this person make me want to buy something". What's funny is that the celebrities that do have that rare "this person make me want to buy something" factor are the ones who act like influencers on social media—whether for their own brands or on their personal accounts. Loved this breakdown.
Truer words haven’t been spoken. I find it interesting how some celebrities insist the brand should stand on its own and then stay completely away. Just doesn’t work. Even non celebrities promote their brands
She’s such an old school celeb. I have nothing more to add to this BBB (brilliant beyonce breakdown)
BBB. Wow I love it!
Really astute and eye-opening essay. It does make one wonder why she bothers with these side gigs - as you noted, for future-proofing her career, I guess?!? Perhaps, at the end of the day, because Beyoncé is her own brand, unlike any other celebrity brand, and that is why the brands that are built upon her "spark" fail to hold a candle to "brand Beyoncé."
Exactly. I think what she’s doing it diluting her brand at the end of the day. If anything it’s dimming the candle