Beyoncé’s ‘Lemonade’ Inspired a Specific Reaction in Britney Spears
Beyoncé released many popular albums over the course of her career, however, her album Lemonade is considered one of the best albums of all time. Britney Spears decided to listen to it — even if she was a little late to the party. Here’s what she thought about the album — and what it meant for Beyoncé.
Britney Spears listened to Beyoncé’s ‘Lemonade’ ‘a little late’
Firstly, a little background. Unlike earlier Beyoncé albums like Dangerously in Love and B-Day, Lemonade had a consistent theme. It was a concept album about Beyoncé’s reaction to Jay-Z’s infidelity. Whereas some of Beyoncé’s earlier songs like “Crazy in Love,” “Sweet Dreams,” and “Baby Boy” were more upbeat, Lemonade features a lot of dark and experimental moments.
According to Vanity Fair, Spears opened up about her feelings toward Lemonade. “Generally, I like songs that are bit different and I like moody stuff,” she revealed. “I just listened to Lemonade. I’m a little late on that, but it’s good, really angry, a really hardcore album. There are moments where you feel the light, airy Beyoncé, but most of the time it almost feels like a therapy album. I respect that. She’s an artist and that’s what she needs to touch on at this moment in her life.”
According to USA Today, Spears doesn’t just admire Beyoncé’s artistry — she also draws inspiration from her work. Queen B is such an icon that other show business icons like Spears like her work and draw influence from it. In addition, Spears is not the only one to admire Lemonade. Rolling Stone ranked the album as No. 32 on their list of The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time, above canonical classics like Michael Jackson’s Off the Wall, The Rolling Stones’ Let It Bleed, and A Tribe Called Quest’s The Low End Theory, and David Bowie’s The Rise and Fall of Ziggy Stardust and the Spiders From Mars. Interestingly, Spears’ Blackout ranked at No. 441 on the same list.
Was ‘Lemonde’ Beyoncé’s ‘therapy album’
Spears categorized Lemonade as a “therapy album.” This is entirely accurate, as Jay-Z said Beyoncé used Lemonade and her collaborative album Everything Is Love as a form of therapy. “We were using our art almost like a therapy session,” Jay-Z told The New York Times. “And we started making music together. “And then the music she was making at the time was further along,” he continued. “So her album came out as opposed to the joint album that we were working on.”
How the world reacted to the album
Clearly, Lemonade meant a lot to both Spears and Jay-Z. This raises an interesting question: Did it connect with the public? Lemonade reached No. 1 on the Billboard 200. It became one of Beyoncé’s albums to peak at the top of the chart, alongside her self-titled album, Dangerously in Love, I Am… Sasha Fierce, B’Day, and 4. With Lemonade, Beyoncé had it all — critical acclaim, commercial success, and an endorsement from Spears.
