Everything About Beyoncé’s New Perfume Was Curated By The Superstar Herself

Oh, the sweet smell of superstar success. For years, the internet’s chattered and speculated about Beyoncé’s signature scent, but no one guessed that she was quietly hard on work on a totally new fragrance designed to capture the spirit of her multimedia Renaissance project. Beyoncé’s Cé Noir perfume — her first release in this product category in more than six years — was only just formally announced on the singer’s Instagram page, but the early fan reactions alone are already enough to cement the scent as a 2020s classic.

In true Beyoncé fashion, this release is one she’s been cryptically teasing for a while now. At one Renaissance World Tour date earlier this summer, members of her team passed out itty-bitty samples of the then-yet-to-be-revealed perfume while Beyoncé sang. Later that evening, a new, tiny section of her website mysteriously alluded to an upcoming release. Now, though, all the details are finally coming into focus. Cé Noir — which means “this black” in French — is an olfactory representation of her Renaissance album and tour, from the name to the featured notes and even the sharp, mirrored packaging. The silvery, mirrored box feels as much like a vessel from space as anything, reflecting the Afrofuturism themes of her groundbreaking album cycle and concert series.

As the “Cuff It” singer’s first fragrance since 2017, Cé Noir feels like a reset for Beyoncé’s entire perfume empire — this newbie makes her 15th scent ever. Her website reveals the symphony of notes that put Cé Noir in a league of its own. The fragrance’s base in a heady, warm amber mixed with Namibian myrrh, while its heart is romantic rose and jasmine sambac. The top, initial notes feel the most signature, though — you’re instantly greatest by zesty clementine and (drumroll, please) golden honey. The honey probably isn’t sourced from Bey’s at-home hive — she does keep around 80,000 of them at her home, though — but this is basically the next best thing.

Beyoncé is a benevolent queen, too — she’s making sure the preorder, available now, ship out in November, just in time for the holiday party circuit. She once sang “it’ll cost a billion to smell this good” on “PURE/HONEY” but, fortunately, her superstar scent is priced much more accessibly than that at $160.