ENERGY

“ENERGY” is one of two tracks on RENAISSANCE to have a featured artist. This also marks the first collaboration between BEAM & Beyoncé although BEAM lends additional vocals on “HEATED” & “CUFF IT”.

The track boasts several beat changes in which the second change pays homage and similarity to “Don’t Jealous Me” off the Beyoncé-produced and curated album The Lion King: The Gift. The backend of the song overlays the vocal sample of Big Freedia’s “Explode” used in “BREAK MY SOUL” to create a seamless transition.

The song stirred up controversy before its release on July 29, 2022, when the composer credits were released showing Kelis as a writer for “ENERGY” as it interpolated her hit “Milkshake”.

This took Kelis by surprise, as beforehand nobody had notified her that her song was going to be interpolated on “ENERGY”. While this is mainly the cause of a contract Kelis had signed when she was still new and young in the industry, that in the end gave her nearly no say in the ownership of her own songs, she was still disappointed in Beyoncé for not contacting her personally.

On the 3rd of August, following Kelis' vocal displeasure on social media, Beyoncé updated the track on all streaming services removing the interpolation of “Milkshake”.