The Beyhive has been buzzing that a new Beyoncé album is imminent. But fans eagerly awaiting Act III of her trilogy will have to wait, TODAY has confirmed.
Recent Instagram posts by the singer as well as her duties as a co-chair of this year’s Met Gala have prompted fans to develop a theory that she will release a new album on May 4. But a source close to Beyoncé with direct knowledge of the situation told TODAY that Act III will not be released next week.
Additionally, on April 27, Beyoncé’s publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, took to X to deny a forthcoming album. A fan account had alleged in a post that the album will be announced during the week of the Met Gala, and released in the summer.
“This is unequivocally false!!” Noel-Schure commented on the post.
Beyoncé revealed in 2022 that her album “Renaissance” was the first of an album trilogy. She followed the disco and dance-influenced album with Act II, the country music-inflected “Cowboy Carter“ in 2024. The progression has now led fans to believe the third album of the trilogy will have a rock music theme.
TODAY Digital Executive Editor Arianna Davis Santana dissected the fan theory on TODAY with Jenna & Sheinelle on April 27, noting how a series of photos Beyoncé recently posted on Instagram of herself in a purple dress appeared to be “very Prince-coded, very ‘Purple Rain.’” Her look has fueled the speculation that the new album will be rock-influenced.
She also noted that the Met Gala falls on May 4, and that four is Beyoncé’s favorite number.
Santana also noted that on April 24,an Instagram post by Beyoncé showed her holding up three lemons, in celebration of the 10th anniversary of her album “Lemonade.” Fans also took the number of lemons — 3 — as a hint that Act III is on the way.
Jenna Bush Hager and Sheinelle Jones were not convinced that Beyoncé would use the Met Gala as a forum to promote a new album.
“This is what I think. I know people may disagree. I feel like that’s like proposing at someone’s wedding,” Sheinelle said on TODAY April 27.
“One hundred percent,” Jenna added. “She’s not going to Anna Wintour’s party and saying, ‘Let’s talk about me.’”
The theme for the 2026 Met Gala will be “fashion is art,” according to the event’s committee. Guests are invited to express their own relationship to fashion as an embodied artform, according to a statement by Vogue.
Beyoncé, tennis legend Venus Williams and Oscar winner Nicole Kidman are joining Vogue’s Anna Wintour as co-chairs of this year’s gala. The iconic fashion event serves as a fundraiser, and last year it brought in a record $31 million for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute.
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