Beyoncé was the first Beyoncé album to top the Billboard 200 after a surprise release without a traditional advance campaign. The self-titled visual album arrived on December 13, 2013, exclusively through the iTunes Store.
The release was unexpected because Beyoncé announced neither a conventional lead single nor a standard promotional schedule beforehand. The album contained 14 songs and 17 accompanying music videos, making its visual structure central to the project rather than an optional add-on.
Its songs included “Drunk in Love,” “Partition,” “Pretty Hurts,” and “Flawless.” Jay-Z appeared on “Drunk in Love,” while the album’s themes addressed love, sexuality, identity, and celebrity.
Beyoncé debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and helped popularize the modern surprise-album strategy. Lemonade later used a similarly visual approach, but it followed a different release model and arrived in 2016.