Which Beyoncé album is also known as Act I of a planned trilogy?

Renaissance is also known as Act I of a planned trilogy by Beyoncé.

Beyoncé released Renaissance in 2022 and described it as the first act of a three-part project. The album’s sound centers on dance music, house, disco, funk, and electronic influences. Its songs were designed to create a continuous, club-oriented listening experience rather than a collection built around one genre.

The trilogy structure became clearer when Act II was released in 2024 under the title Cowboy Carter. That album explored country, Americana, rock, blues, and related traditions while also challenging narrow ideas about who belongs in country music. The connection between the projects is expressed through the act numbering and Beyoncé’s broader conceptual approach.

Renaissance is sometimes called simply a dance album, but its formal place in the trilogy is more specific: it is Act I. Cowboy Carter is Act II, not an alternative title for Renaissance.