Beyoncé Appears to Remove Kelis Sample From Renaissance Album Amid Controversy

Beyoncé has seemingly removed an interpolation of "Milkshake" from Renaissance on several streaming services amid criticism from Kelis, who said she was never informed about the sample.

By Gabrielle Chung Aug 03, 2022 2:47 AMTags
Watch: Kelis CALLS OUT Beyonce for Renaissance Sample

It looks like Beyoncé just said bye-bye to the sample of Kelis' "Milkshake" on her new Renaissance album.

Days after Kelis publicly called out the "Break My Soul" singer and producer Pharrell Williams for allegedly not telling her an interpolation of her 2003 single would be used on "Energy," the fifth song off Beyoncé's new LP, Rolling Stone reported that the controversial sampling has been removed from some music streaming services.

Per the outlet, the interpolation is no longer heard if streamed on Apple Music and Tidal. However, as BuzzFeed noted, the track's lyrics video, which was originally uploaded to YouTube on July 28, still includes the sample.

As of Aug. 2, composer credits for "Energy" listed on Beyoncé's official website notes that the song "contains an interpolation of 'Milkshake' written by Pharrell Williams, Chad Hugo and performed by Kelis." It's unclear if it will be changed to reflect the tune's updated version.

E! News has reached out to Beyoncé's rep and her label for comment on the updated version and hasn't heard back.

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As for Kelis? The "Bossy" artist voiced her relief on social media amid reports that the interpolation was being removed from Renaissance. When an Instagram user asked in the comments section of a post if she was "happy Beyoncé took that sample off," Kelis replied, "Yes I actually am."

In a separate comment, Kelis called it "#winning."

Renaissance, Beyoncé's seventh studio album and the first installment of a three-part project she recorded during the pandemic, was released on July 29.

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In a series of Instagram videos shared last week, Kelis said that Beyoncé "should have at least reached out" to her about sampling her song. "It's not about me being jealous. Jealous of someone using my song? That's the dumbest, most ignorant thing I've ever heard," she said. "It has to do with the fact that, from one artist to another, you should have the decency and common sense and the courtesy to call."

Furthermore, she called the perceived snub as a "direct hit at me," saying that "Pharrell knows better."

She added, "I have the right to be frustrated. Why? Because no one had the human decency to call and be like, 'Yo, would like to use your record.'"

E! News previously reached to out Pharrell's rep on the allegation but didn't hear back.