Beyoncé was the first Beyoncé album to debut at number one on the Billboard 200 without advance promotion.
The self-titled album was released unexpectedly on December 13, 2013, through the iTunes Store. Beyoncé announced it shortly before release, and the project arrived with a video for every song, creating a major shift in how a major pop album could be launched.
It became her fifth consecutive number-one album in the United States. The project includes “Drunk in Love,” “Partition,” and “Flawless,” and its visual format helped popularize the term “visual album” in mainstream discussion.
Lemonade also used a visual presentation, but it was released in 2016 after substantial public anticipation surrounding its HBO premiere. Renaissance was announced and promoted before its 2022 release, so neither fits the question’s specific surprise-release distinction.