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    Here's Everything You Probably Missed In Beyoncé & Jay Z's "Apeshit" Video

    You may want to watch again after reading this.

    As you probably know, Beyoncé and Jay-Z released an album this weekend called Everything Is Love. In addition to a nine-track disc, they also released a video for the lead single "Apeshit."

    View this video on YouTube

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    It was directed by Ricky Saiz, the former Supreme head designer. He's also worked with Beyoncé in the past for her "Yoncé" video.

    Beyoncé & JAY-Z's #APESHIT was directed by Ricky Saiz. He previously worked with Beyoncé on the "Yoncé" video.

    The video is verrrrrryyy interesting, particularly because it was shot in Paris' famed Louvre museum.

    According to Vulture:

    “Beyoncé and Jay-Z visited the Louvre four times in the last ten years. During their last visit in May 2018, they explained their idea of filming,” a spokesperson for the museum told Vulture. “The deadlines were very tight but the Louvre was quickly convinced because the synopsis showed a real attachment to the museum and its beloved artworks.”

    Fans were obsessed with the breathtaking visuals and, of course, we were wondering what most of the video meant ~below the surface~, so we did a little research and came up with a few things you may have missed if you blinked.

    1. First of all, Beyoncé's verse was written by Migos members Offset and Quavo. If you listen closely you can hear Quavo ad-libbing throughout the song.

    One thing I love about TIDAL is they give you the FULL album credits. Offset and Quavo did Beyonce's verses on APESHIT. This just goes to show people are full of shit. Y'all go crazy for those verses but when I say Migos rap their asses off I get looked at funny.

    2. A quick refresher, Beyoncé and Jay-Z visited the Louvre and shared this photo in front of the Mona Lisa as tourists in 2014. Now they're back in the same position, this time, professionally:

    Jay & Bey stay scheming. #EverythingIsLove

    3. There were deep African story parallels that Bey and Jay have used before:

    So, I think APESHIT ("AS") is intended to serve as the epilogue to Touki Bouki (1973), the Senegalese film that they crafted the narrative of their tour around. A film about escape, Beyonce's singing "I can't believe we made it" in AS feels arrived. Some thoughts: https://t.co/xuH5ZFXJlJ

    4. The entire video was an expression of defiance:

    I fucking LOVE Apeshit (video: https://t.co/18qmOhg1UY). This defiant, timely image especially. Those beautiful black bodies are dancing in front of the Coronation of Napoleon. He brought back slavery and the slave trade to France and its colonies after it had been abolished. https://t.co/b9Ug5SiMp4

    BuzzFeed News reported on the historical significance of the video, speaking with Heidi Herrera, an art history major who offered her expertise on BuzzFeed News' AM to DM.

    5. Herrera explained that in this scene black bodies were used to represent beauty and power:

    10) This can be extrapolated as an allusion to historical white violence against black bodies, specifically sexual violence against black female bodies which are centered in #Apeshit as beautiful and powerful. https://t.co/9GLNzmHifN

    6. Again, beyond the Napoleon reference, this scene went VERY deep:

    7. This particular costume Beyoncé wore in front of this Ancient Greek statue was no mistake:

    4) Winged Victory (Nike) of Samothrace, an Ancient Greek statue of the goddess of Victory. Beyoncé’s costuming mimics the folds of the statues drapery and positions her as Victory. She is clothed in white, imitating the statue’s current bleached state. https://t.co/7tvexxCBbf

    8. Beyoncé's younger sister Solange also broke down stereotypes of blacks in traditionally white spaces when she performed at the Guggenheim museum in New York City...

    ok so, here are some thoughts on the "apeshit" video: first, a question: what does it mean to host a black cultural moment in a traditionally white space? i've been thinking about this since solange's "an ode to" at the guggenheim museum. https://t.co/0qgqcA6Qmg

    9. ...Bey and Jay reaffirmed Solange's notion in the Louvre and solidified a "sense of belonging":

    yes, it affirms that we *belong* in these spaces, but we have to remain curious about this choice. these performances could have been hosted at studio museum, project row houses, art&practice, caam, etc. but these white spaces are the ones that we see... https://t.co/xbIcoM6Dpe

    10. And the scene where Beyoncé is dancing can be compared to black artist Faith Ringgold's 1991 painting:

    "Dancing in the Louvre," Faith Ringgold, 1991 / "Apeshit," Beyonce & Jay Z... @TabloidArtHist

    11. Another painting parallel was this particular piece matched up with Beyoncé's interpretation:

    Marie-Guillemine Benoist 'Portrait d'une Négresse' 1800 Louvre Museum Paris #Painting // Detail of still from 'APESHIT' video 2018 #ArtDirection https://t.co/1wj8MoSEJv

    12. Fashion-wise, Beyoncé's Burberry outfit in this particular scene could be a throwback to the couple's "'03 Bonnie and Clyde" video where Beyoncé also wore Burberry:

    So did anyone recognize the symbolism in the Burberry attire in ApeShit? The first time we saw/heard Hov and Bey on a track together was 03 Bonnie and Clyde. Almost 16 years later and we’re still getting visuals. https://t.co/Z0dICydtJo

    13. The New York Times pointed out that this image "echoes the photography of the French artist Mohamed Bourouissa":

    14. And finally, the song was produced by Pharrell, a longtime friend of Bey and Jay:

    When I first heard Apeshit I didn't know who produced it but I recognized someone's touch on the programming of that sub. Literally just the length of those notes, the pacing. Knew it was someone familiar. Crazy that Pharrell has such a recognizable touch.

    Of course beyond the explanations, fans (particularly the Beyhive) literally went ape shit for this new video:

    THE REAL MASTERPIECE #EverythingIsLove

    So I watched Apeshit twice. Epic location. Dope visuals. Many statements. Deeper than I can reach. They are undefeated. I'm on summer vacation. That's all I got.

    *listening to Apeshit* “Migos wrote on this? I’m not really sure if I can tell—“ BEYONCE: Phillipe Patek “Ok, yup, there it is”

    "to all the good girls that love hustlas, to the mothers that put up with us, to all the babies that suffer cause us, we only know love because of ya... black queen, you rescued us." -hov's love letter to us 👑 #everythingislove https://t.co/tSgXW25bsX

    Still my favorite moment from APESHIT

    Those of us who didn’t listen to that Kanye album and that Nas album being blessed by Beyoncé and Jay for holding out. #EVERYTHINGISLOVE https://t.co/nEM4l9Ni7n

    Migos took the verses on a job interview pitch to Beyoncé way more seriously than anything on Culture II lmfao they really supplied the heat on Apeshit

    Honestly, Beyoncé draped in Versace in the Italian masters wing of the Louvre and her dancing in front of The Coronation of Napoleon gives me hope for the future of art appreciation. 👌 Thanks for bringing it to the children, Bey. https://t.co/hkfYjZ7QU0