Things Beyonce has removed from her album after criticism

MAUREEN WARUINGE ENTERTAINMENT JOURNALIST

03 August 2022

• Beyonce has had to make edits to songs following complaints.

• From spaz to milkshake, Beyonce has faced criticism from several quarters.

Beyoncé is reportedly making a change to her recently released "Renaissance" album. The record which is Beyonce's seventh studio album is attracting criticism.

Beyonce has been accused of using offensive lyrics with the word Spaz has offending music fans who say it degrades people with mental health and demanding the superstar make changes.

The derogatory term, often used to demean people with spastic cerebral palsy, occurs twice in the song Heated, co-written by Drake.

Beyonce's fans claim the insult has different connotations in the US - where it is often used to mean "freaking out" or "going crazy".

Beyoncé has also removed the usage of “Milkshake” from her new song “Energy” after Kelis proclaimed it was an act of “thievery.”

The R&B singer says Beyonce and producers The Neptunes are stealing by sampling her 2003 hit "Milkshake" without notifying her.

Kelis says her anthem Milkshake had been interpolated on a song called Energy (interpolation is when one song references another, without directly sampling it).

Kelis said she had not been informed in advance, and that her "mind is blown " by the "level of disrespect".

"It's not hard. She can contact me, right?" Kelis said on Instagram. "It's common decency."

The controversy between the two artists kicked off hours before the album’s official drop when Kelis used her chef’s Instagram account to voice her frustration.

She complained that her song was being used without her being given the courtesy of a heads-up, much less being asked for her blessing. “It’s not a collab, it’s theft,” she wrote.

Monica Lewinsky also wants Beyoncé to alter lyrics referencing former President Clinton's affair.

Monica Lewinsky voiced concern that her name has been dropped in a song and says Beyonce should remove a lyric about her from her 2013 song ‘Partition.’

The quoted lyrics say, “He popped all my buttons, and he ripped my blouse/ He Monica Lewinsky-ed all on my gown.”