Beyoncé is officially back on the grid. Not that she is ever really capable of leaving the collective consciousness, but the star has been laying relatively low for the last few years. Given that her last studio album was released in 2016, there have been rumblings of new music on the horizon for a while now and finally, she’s confirmed that her next album is on the way. The reveal of Beyoncé's British Vogue cover story, which hit Instagram this morning, has fans buzzing for more than one reason. Not only have they been promised a new Bey album (coming on July 29), but her jaw-dropping looks for the magazine — including an eye catching gold lipstick moment— are teasing a new futuristic era for the star.
The cover itself features Beyoncé sitting atop a horse wearing a long black gown and a massive circular headpiece, looking like the music royalty she is. The rest of the shoot reinforces the singer’s chameleon-like powers with a variety of bold looks, but a futuristic, regal vibe is the undeniable throughline.
In one shot, Beyoncé wears baby bangs with the rest of her hair slicked back and gold, shimmery makeup to complement her brilliant gold ensemble. In another, she poses in a hot pink latex coat with red sunglasses and matching red lipstick. Her most dramatic look shows the star draped over a motorcycle wearing black lipstick and a braided leather headpiece.
Needless to say, there are a lot of beauty trends at play here, but Bey manages to make it look cohesive. Of course, her glam team plays a massive role in this — as you might be able to guess, Beyoncé’s makeup was courtesy of her longtime makeup artist Sir John. Her array of hairstyles were created by Jawara in collaboration with her personal hairstylist, Nakia Rachon.
Because her hands are largely covered with gloves, it’s difficult to tell what manicures nail artist Miho Okawara created for Bey, but she’s known to create colorful, 3D looks for stars like Lady Gaga and Miley Cyrus.
From Ariana Grande’s space-themed r.e.m. beauty launches to the out-of-this-world looks that helped make HBO’s Euphoria a cultural sensation, it seems like futuristic beauty may very well be, well, the future. If Beyoncé British Vogue cover is any indication of what her take on the phenomenon will look like, the world is simply not ready.
