Beyoncé Releases A Surprise EP of Four ‘Break My Soul’ Remixes
LOS ANGELES, CA - MARCH 27: In this handout photo provided by A.M.P.A.S., Beyoncé performs during the ABC telecast of the 94th Oscars® on Sunday, March 27, 2022 in Los Angeles, California.
The Queen of surprises drops just released an unannounced EP of four remixes of “Break My Soul.”
“Break My Soul” is the lead single off of Beyoncé’s latest album Renaissance. The EP features four remixes of the history-making record including guest appearances from Black Eyed Peas’ will.i.am, Chicago house icon Terry Hunter, global electronic DJ and producer Honey Dijon, and New York-bred DJ and producer Nita Aviance.
All four remixes of “Break My Soul” deliver a unique sound complimenting the guest musicians’ artistry. In will.i.am’s remix, the Black Eyed Peas frontman creates an uptempo similar to a club remix adding his own background vocals. In Hunter’s version, the record also relies on the uptempo with added church organs. Aviance’s nine-minute arrangement has a trance-like sound adding extra idyllic elements to double the track’s length. Honey Dijon, who co-wrote “Cozy” and “Alien Superstar” from Renaissance, uses tribal drums throughout her rendition to separate herself from the pack.
Renaissance is the music icon’s seventh studio album and although fans were excited about Beyoncé’s return after a six-year hiatus, the release of the LP had some drama attached to the rollout. Two days before Renaissance’s highly anticipated release the album leaked which ignited a social media debate between the Beyhive and Kelis. The Tasty artist felt as though Beyoncé should have asked permission before interloping her 2003 hit “Milkshake” in her new song “Energy” and that she should have been credited despite not being a writer or producer on the original. Kelis’ interlope on “Energy” has since been removed. Beyoncé also had to remove an ableist slur from the 11th track on the album “Heated.”
Listen to will.i.am’s remix of “Break My Soul” below:
Kelis Accuses Beyoncé Of 'Theft' Over Alleged 'Renaissance' Song Sample
Kelis has called out Beyoncé for allegedly using part of her song “Milkshake” on a song on Renaissance called “Energy.” From a post on the fan page @kellistrends the singer wrote from her verified account for her company Bounty & Full: “My mind is blown too because the level of disrespect and utter ignorance of all 3 parties involved is astounding. I heard about this the same way everyone else did. Nothing is ever as it seems, some of the people in this business have no soul or integrity and they have everyone fooled.” A fan commented, “the collab the world really needs,” and in response, Kelis clapped back writing, “it’s not a collab it’s theft.”
Additionally, the “Milkshake” singer uploaded a video to her account with the caption calling out Beyoncé, “Not only are we Black female artists in an industry where there’s not that many of us, we’ve met each other, we know each other, we have mutual friends. It’s not that hard to contact [me],” she said. “It’s just common decency … even if you’re gonna do it anyway.”
However, the “Bossy” songstress said that the real beef lies between her and Pharrell who she says “swindled” her out of the rights to her music.
“Pharell knows better,” she claimed. “This is a direct hit at me. The reality is, this is frustrating. I have the right to be frustrated.”
In the caption of a second video post Kelis wrote: “I said what I said , cause it’s the truth . You don’t have to like it or agree . Facts are facts . If you’re a sheep keep it movin this convo will be over your head . I didn’t ask for this , but I’m not afraid of it either.”
The singer shared a follow-up to her first video calling out the music industry. “There are bully’s [sic] and secrets and gangsters in this industry that smile and get away with it until someone says enough is enough. So I’m saying it today. I’m coming for what’s mine and I want reparations.”
Renaissance is out now and the full credits reveal that “Milkshake” is not actually sampled; rather, “Energy” uses an interpolation of the record. An interpolation is, per Rolling Stone, when an artist uses a snippet of an already-recorded song in the creation of something new. Beyoncé’s team has not publicly responded to Kelis’ claims.
Take a look at Kelis’ videos and fan takes on the incident below:
Autumn Hawkins is the National Hip-Hop and R&B writer for Beasley Media, currently residing in New Jersey. Prior to working at Beasley Media, she was in broadcast news as an entertainment producer. When she's not impatiently waiting for Beyoncé to drop new music, she is reading, shopping, or planning a vacation.
