Beyoncé Dropped A New Song & A New Album — But There's A Catch

Fans were already expecting some form of greatness from Beyoncé's Netflix documentary Homecoming. Not only would it include the full 2018 Coachella performance that rocked the world, it would take fans behind the scenes and Bey and co. created the historic pop culture moment. The documentary was chock full of personal details and Beyoncé's inspirational voice-overs, but the performer wasn't done delivering gifts.

It's true: Beyoncé also dropped a new album and a new song along with the Netflix doc. Now, don't get too excited. The album is actually just a fantastic recording of her Coachella set, from start to finish. But our girl isn't one to just give us something average, so it also included a new Beyoncé song that also played in the credits of Homecoming.

But once again, I'd caution that you don't get too excited. The song, titled "Before I Let Go," is actually a cover of the original 1981 song by R&B band Maze featuring Frankie Beverly. You can compare Bey's version to the original, below. According to Variety, the song has been featured on Beyonce's mother's Instagram and at one point, a cover was actually recorded by Destiny's Child, though the track was never released. Clearly, Beyoncé has a personal connection to the song.

Of course, in addition to the new track, Queen Bey also delivered a total of 40 new recordings — just under two hours of Beyoncé songs with a big band backing — to fans to listen to at length. And in case that wasn't enough, she didn't restrict this new album to Tidal, as past releases have been. The full Homecoming: The Live Album is available pretty much everywhere, from Spotify to Apple Music and Google Play. Add that to the fact that the doc is available on Netflix and this might be the most generous Bey has been in quite a while.

And while some fans were hoping that Beyoncé would drop an entirely new album — rumours flew in late 2018 about "B7" — that's not exactly what the beloved singer delivered. But still, after years of silence since Lemonade, fans are pretty excited to have at least a little something to bite into — and a new song (cover or not) certainly doesn't hurt.