Everyone has been talking about Beyoncé lately – whether it’s about her GQ cover, her upcoming Super Bowl halftime performance, or her new ‘mysterious’ album. Specifically, with the latter topic, many of Bey’s fans have been anxiously awaiting confirmed details about her upcoming fifth studio album. Well, there’s good news. The 16-time Grammy Award winner has finally opened up about her new album. In a recent interview with Amy Wallace of GQ, Beyoncé reveals some people she collaborated with for the album – set to release in April, her songwriting process, and the album’s influences.
On her collaborators: “I’ve been working with Pharrell and Timbaland and Justin Timberlake and Dream. We all started in the ’90s, when R&B was the most important genre, and we all kind of want that back: the feeling that music gave us.”
On songwriting: “I used to start with lyrics and then I’d find tracks—often it was something I had in my head, and it just so happened to go with the melody. Now I write with other writers. It starts with the title or the concept of what I’m trying to say, and then I’ll go into the booth and sing my idea. Then we work together to layer on.”
On the album’s influences: “Mostly R&B. I always have my Prince and rock/soul influences. There’s a bit of D’Angelo, some ’60s doo-wop. And Aretha and Diana Ross.”
On her inspirations: “Even the silliest little thing that you hear on the radio, it comes from something deeper. ‘Bootylicious’ was funny, but it came from people saying that I had gained weight and me being like, ‘I’m a southern woman, and this is how southern women are.’ My motivation is always to express something or to heal from something or to laugh and rejoice about something.”
