Entertainment
Who runs the world? Beyoncé, obviously.
No, no-one needs a reminder that Queen Bey is probably one of the greatest humans this planet has been graced with, but I'm here to give you one anyway. The 36-year-old singer and businesswoman only recently blessed us with her incredible sets at Beychella – sorry, Coachella – and is now pressing on with her highly anticipated On The Run II tour. It's the second time she's co-headlined a stadium tour with her rapper husband Jay-Z, with the first On The Run tour taking place in 2014.
They celebrated their ten-year wedding anniversary in April, and now, the couple is 'On The Run' yet again, with the first few shows taking place in the UK. Things kicked off in Cardiff, Wales and fans were not left disappointed.
Predictably, Beyoncé wowed everyone with no less than seven dazzling costume changes and the standard "how-does-she-do-it" dance choreography. Plus, she (as per usual) took the time to weave in a few important messages between songs, asking the crowd "Ladies, are we smart? Are we strong? Have we had enough?", before performing Me, Myself & I.
But as well as her reminder about the importance of self-reliance and empowerment, she and Jay also revealed the softer side of their relationship. They spoke about their lives and their marriage, sharing footage of a recent vow renewal ceremony. Fans were also given a special viewing of images of their three children: six-year-old Blue Ivy and Rumi and Sir, 11 months old.
But people were most surprised by just how much the couple revealed of their most intimate moments, thanks to the tour book that was sold amongst other merch. The On the Run Tour Book shared pictures of the pair that appear to be from the quietest, most private moments of their marriage, including one steamy pic of Beyoncé reading a newspaper's comic strips in bed with her husband, lounging around in nothing but a thong.
Err, please give us some warning next time you drop a bunch of saucy pics like this on us.
The pair appeared super loved-up on stage together too, though there were several tongue-in-cheek hints at their well-publicised strife of the past few years. Last year, Jay Z finally admitted to cheating on Beyoncé, which was what many people assumed inspired a few tracks from her 2016 album Lemonade.
Rumours started thanks to footage of Bey's sister Solange attacking the rapper in an elevator that emerged in 2014. The couple gave a subtle nod to #elevatorgate last week by choosing to be delivered to the stage together via an elevator-like contraption.
In this ways and in others, it seems that the couple has been able to work past Jay Z's cheating, though they're not afraid to reference the difficult journey it required. Both musicians have hinted at marital problems and infidelity in the lyrics of their respective musical pursuits.
Well, despite all that, it seems that Jay Z and Beyoncé are doing very well at the moment, and they've got the steamy pics to prove it.