Beyoncé had the grace to look completely shocked at winning Album of the Year at this year’s Grammys. Having been nominated six times, it seemed odd that she would win the coveted gong for her first foray into country music and perhaps why she failed to thank her husband Jay-Z in her speech.
However, friends say music isn’t the only path the 43-year-old mum-of-three is straying from. Her 25-year relationship with hubby Jay-Z, 55, is facing its biggest challenge yet after he was accused of having sex with a minor in a devastating court case filed late last year.
The lawsuit has since been dismissed, but the damage has been done, with both him and his wife receiving death threats amid the negative publicity.
An insider says, “It’s not a good look and Beyoncé’s in a nightmare situation. There’s not one area of her world that Jay isn’t involved in. Regardless, already she’s taking steps to protect herself, her reputation and her kids’ futures.
“It’s why she’s made it clear he won’t be joining her on her upcoming tour. Solange is playing a key role in all this.”
No one can forget the 2014 Met Gala, when Bey’s sister Solange Knowles raged at Jay in an elevator following claims of his infidelities, including one mystery woman Beyoncé herself made infamous with her “Becky with the good hair” lyric.
“Jay’s been an incredible creative partner and a generous father but not a great husband,” adds our source. “Beyoncé is not going to walk away just yet. She has to – again – give him the benefit of the doubt, but this time it’s hard.
“She’s barely had time to start patching up the damage done from the Becky saga, so she still has trust issues with him. This scandal really couldn’t have come at a worse time for their already fragile marriage.”
When Jay-Z first met Beyoncé in March 2000, he would later rap how he “knew straight away” she was the one for him. There was just one problem – she simply wasn’t that into him.
Despite performing in front of 85,000 people at MTV’s Spring Break Festival, Jay-Z failed to make an impression on the gorgeous 18-year-old singer from Houston on the flight home from Cancún.
“They sat next to each other and had the whole flight to talk,” says a longtime pal. “She’d been singing with Destiny’s Child already for four years, and thought he was a bit awkward and odd. Neither of them knew he’d be unable to get her out of his mind.”
It would take him another 18 months before he plucked up the courage to ask her out on a real date. But by that time, they’d become firm friends and had already formed a strong bond through music.
“We were friends first for a year and a half before we went on any dates,” Beyoncé told Oprah Winfrey in a 2013 interview.
“He took her to Nobu [a posh LA restaurant favoured by celebrities], of course,” adds the pal. “The fact that two years later they released Crazy In Love sums up just how well that first date went.”
After proposing with a $5 million 24-carat diamond ring on his 4 December birthday in 2007, Jay and Beyoncé tied the knot in a secret ceremony at his Manhattan penthouse the following April.
An insider shares, “It was a very emotional wedding – lots of crying – and really very spiritual.”
It was also the start of what would turn into a $3 billion union as, with Jay by her side, Beyoncé’s solo career continued to thrive. It established her as one of the most respected artists of her generation.
In 2012, it seemed they had it all when Beyoncé gave birth to their daughter Blue Ivy. A year later, they marked their achievements with their first joint On The Run Tour and her autobiographic documentary Life Is But A Dream.
But behind closed doors, life for Beyoncé was anything but a dream. Alongside persistent rumours Jay-Z was keeping a mistress – having been linked to everyone from Rita Ora to Rihanna and fighting off several lovechild allegations – the rapper was hit with a new paternity lawsuit from Trinidadian model Shenelle Scott shortly after Blue Ivy’s birth.
“It was a dark time and we all saw Beyoncé struggle with it,” says our source. “She was a new mum all of a sudden discovering her husband was not who she thought he was. It was absolutely devastating and it’s a miracle they didn’t end up in the divorce courts.
“No one can believe they’re still together, especially after it all came to a head in 2014 with Solange and Jay in that elevator ride – and Beyoncé watching along coolly.”
The trio would later release a joint statement. In it, they said, “Jay and Solange each assume their share of responsibility for what has occurred. They both acknowledge their role in this private matter that has played out in the public. They both have apologised to each other and we have moved forward as a united family.”
However, the damage to their picture-perfect image was irreparable.
“This started a host of new problems for them, including claims their marriage was a sham,” adds the family insider. “But for Beyoncé, her heartache was real. Six months later, things went from bad to worse as someone filmed her looking completely spaced out, rocking back and forth at a basketball game. It set off alarm bells that she was miserable.”
The shocking clip shows a pale Beyoncé courtside with Jay, seemingly swaying to nonexistent music, while staring gormlessly into space.
“She was in bad shape by the end of that year,” adds the source. “There was no hiding that pain, but like most artists, she found her way back through composing. She spent the next year pouring her heart out in her infamous revenge album Lemonade.
“It was incredible because it asserted her dominance over the situation. It gave her her dignity back and, most importantly, made Jay confront his issues.
They went through some intensive couple’s therapy in 2015 and he was upfront about his bad behaviour. He even apologised to Bey through his own music.
“The twins’ arrival was a clear signal to the world that their marriage was solid and they were moving forward. Jay was even changing diapers this time around.
“Not only did it make Blue Ivy’s sibling dreams come true, but it also got Mum and Dad back in the studio making sweet music together again.”
In 2018, the couple released their joint album Everything Is Love and rebooted their On The Run Tour. On said tour, they’d light up the stage with the quote: “Forgiveness is the final act of love.”
In 2021, they co-starred together in an advert for Tiffany & Co called “About Love”. The ad allowed Beyoncé to wear the 128-carat diamond worn by Audrey Hepburn in Breakfast At Tiffany’s.
But it wasn’t until she dedicated her Renaissance album to Jay and their three kids that friends started to believe they were back on track.
Our insider adds, “It was incredible to see her go through that terrible time. She will never be the same, but these new allegations are different to any random ‘Becky with the good hair’.
“Beyoncé was already on edge when Diddy was jailed, but she never thought Jay may be involved too. It’s an absolute disaster for her to be associated with anything to do with it. Particularly as a mum to three young kids.
“No one thinks Bey will be able to turn a blind eye this time. She was taking a risk having him there at the Grammys with them. But it was very revealing that she took Blue Ivy on stage with her and excluded her husband.”
The kids are alright
There’s no doubt Blue Ivy plans on following her famous folks into show business. But, friends say to expect the unexpected when it comes to Bey and Jay’s eldest child.
“Blue’s got more confidence than her mum sometimes,” says an insider. “She’s an all-rounder – music, dance and theatre. She really wants to go into live musical theatre, but her dad thinks she’s way too bossy for that and might be more comfy in the director’s chair.”
The only people able to get their way with Blue are her two most treasured siblings.
“Blue waited so long for a sibling, she was in absolutely heaven when she got two,” adds our source. “Sir Carter and Rumi are seven now, and really starting to show their different personalities.
“Carter’s already showing incredible talent for design, building and engineering. He loves maths and science, and his curious mind always gets him into trouble for unscrewing speakers, bikes, toys and trying to put them back together.
“Rumi’s completely obsessed with her big sister. She’s definitely got the same show-off gene and is already taking singing lessons. All the kids have music and singing classes, and they all play rudimentary piano, although Rumi wants to take up the saxophone as soon as she’s big enough.”
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