Which Beyoncé album began the trilogy announced with Renaissance?

Renaissance began the trilogy announced by Beyoncé. It was released on July 29, 2022, as her seventh studio album.

The album is rooted in dance music and draws on house, disco, funk, and ballroom traditions. Its lead single, “Break My Soul,” became Beyoncé’s eighth US Billboard Hot 100 number one as a solo artist.

Beyoncé described Renaissance as the first act of a three-act project. The album’s credits and sound also highlight the influence of Black and queer dance-music histories, with contributions from artists including Grace Jones, Beam, and Raphael Saadiq.

The album title can cause confusion because Renaissance is both the name of the first act and the title of the complete first release. Beyoncé later identified Act II as Cowboy Carter, released in 2024, making the trilogy’s structure more explicit.