In Jay-Z’s 2003 “Public Service Announcement,” for instance, he lists his many achievements, including “Got the hottest chick in the game wearing my chain.” And the Jay-Z of today seems to have found a way to gloat about his skills in realms typically associated with women. At this stage in their relationship it’s hard to imagine the couple reducing Beyoncé’s sexuality to an ornamental prop as they have in the past. Everything Is Love is sprinkled with lyrics that revel in gentleness, most notably on the song “Summer” when Jay-Z says, “We hugged, made love, on the seats … We watched the sky turn peach … She taste like Corona Light-sweet.” Beyoncé adds that they should “make plans to be in each other’s arms.” These scenes mark a dramatic departure from the more aggressive sexual dynamic of earlier music videos like “ Déjà Vu” from Beyoncé’s B’Day in 2006, or “ Partition” from her self-titled 2013 album. Similar moments of mutual tenderness show up throughout the Carters’ work, suggesting a personal resonance for the duo. When the two are kissing and caressing one another, they’re at eye level neither is the more dominant. Later in “Apeshit,” a painting of a crying woman clinging from below to a man in anguish (the two trapped in “hell” for adultery) is followed by a contemporary scene of a black man leaning his head peacefully on the chest of a woman as she holds him. The tableau, a political statement of its own, highlights the breakdown of order that can occur when women aren’t respected. It depicts a group of women-who were kidnapped and raped by Roman soldiers in the eighth century B.C.E.-throwing themselves between their captors and the men of their home city in an effort to stop the war. Perhaps the most striking work showing the toll of male violence is The Intervention of the Sabine Women by Jacques-Louis David. The video subtly contrasts paintings of suffering in male-controlled societies, such as ancient Rome, with peaceful, present-day scenes of couples who are presumably equals. In “Apeshit,” classical art helps define the Carters’ vision of how men and women relate to each other.

At times, the dancers’ formation calls to mind a spine. At another point in the video, female dancers lying on the stairs beneath the duo resemble a foundation, lifting up the Carters’ “empire” with pulse-like movements.

The other main artwork that orients “Apeshit” is a statue of a goddess, the Winged Victory of Samothrace, which appears to symbolize their success-as individuals and as a couple. The full-body shot calls attention to Beyoncé’s pants and Jay-Z’s elegant attire as the duo re-create the gaze of the woman in the painting. In the now-iconic first glimpse of the couple, the camera glides toward them as they stand in front of the Mona Lisa, each wearing pastel-colored suits with no shirt underneath. Pei in the museum's exterior.Throughout the video, Beyoncé and Jay-Z borrow inspiration from the strength and grace of women. The video, which dropped in June, featured the couple in front of the museum's most iconic pieces, including Leonardo da Vinci's 'Mona Lisa,' Jacques-Louis David's 'The Coronation of Napoleon,' and the ancient Greek statue 'Winged Victory of Samothrace.' Jay-Z also rapped in one scene in front of the famous glass pyramid designed by I.M. 'Elsewhere in the world, interest in the Louvre was bolstered by the Louvre Abu Dhabi (which recently celebrated its first anniversary),' Louvre staff said, 'and by Beyoncé and JAY-Z’s 'Apes**t' video, with its tribute to some of the museum’s greatest artworks.'

The museum's staff credited the huge boost in visitors to the recovery of tourism in Paris after the 2015 terror attacks, as well as a big exhibition devoted to Romantic artist Eugène Delacroix.īut they also paid credit to the Carters. That's the most visitors ever to any museum in a year. Some 10.2 million people visited the museum in 2018, about 25% more visitors than in 2017, officials at the Louvre announced Thursday. It was one of 2018's most memorable music videos, and now the Louvre says Beyoncé and Jay-Z's 'Apeshit' is also partly responsible for the famed Paris museum welcoming a record number of visitors last year.

Beyonce and jay z apeshit music video