Beyoncé’s self-titled album appeared without advance announcement in December 2013.
Beyoncé was released digitally through the iTunes Store on December 13, 2013. The surprise release was accompanied by music videos for every song, leading the artist and her team to describe it as a visual album.
The project’s unexpected arrival changed the way major albums could be marketed. Instead of a long promotional campaign with announced singles and a fixed release schedule, Beyoncé presented the album as a complete artistic statement.
Its tracks included “Drunk in Love,” “Partition,” and “Flawless.” The album is often called the “visual album” to distinguish its integrated music-video component, but its official title is simply Beyoncé, stylized in some contexts with a caret over the final e.