Beyoncé opened up about her three kids like never before in a rare and candid interview published by GQ this Tuesday.
The superstar offered some insight into the personalities of her three children—Blue Ivy, 12, and six-year-old twins Rumi and Sir—whom she shares with husband Jay-Z.
“Raising three kids isn’t easy. The older they get, the more they become their own individuals with unique needs, hobbies, and social lives,” she said. “My twins are God-sent. Parenting constantly teaches you about yourself. It takes a lot of prayer and patience. I love it. It’s grounding and fulfilling.”
Of her eldest child, the “16 Carriages” singer reflected on Blue joining her onstage to dance during the Renaissance World Tour, revealing that the tween initiated the conversation about performing.
“Blue is an artist. She has great taste in music and fashion. She is a fantastic editor, painter, and actress. She has been creating characters since she was three,” Beyoncé gushed. “She’s a natural, but I did not want Blue onstage. Blue wanted it for herself. She took it seriously and she earned it. And most importantly, she had fun! We all watched her grow more and more every night before our eyes.”
She added, “My kids come with me everywhere I go. They come to my office after school, and they are in the studio with me. They are in dance rehearsals. It’s natural that they would learn my choreography.”
When it comes to her career, family always takes priority, Beyoncé says. “I build my work schedule around my family. I try to only tour when my kids are out of school,” she continued. “I always dreamt of a life where I could see the world with my family and expose them to different languages, architecture, and lifestyles.”
As arguably the biggest name in music today, Beyoncé is intentional when it comes to protecting her family.
“We live in a world of access. We have access to so much information—some facts, and some complete bullshit disguised as truth,” she explained. “Our children can FaceTime and see their friends at any given moment. My husband and I? We used calling cards and Skype when we were falling in love. I couldn’t afford the international hotel bills, so I literally would get international calling cards to call him.”
While certain advancements in technology allowed loved ones to connect, others also blur the line between reality and fantasy. Beyoncé recalled, “Just recently, I heard an AI song that sounded so much like me it scared me. It’s impossible to truly know what’s real and what’s not.”
These reasons are why the Grammy winner works “extremely hard” to ensure that her “kids can have as much normalcy and privacy as possible, ensuring my personal life isn’t turned into a brand.” She added, “It’s very easy for celebrities to turn our lives into performance art. I have made an extreme effort to stay true to my boundaries and protect myself and my family. No amount of money is worth my peace.”
As an associate editor at HarpersBAZAAR.com, Chelsey keeps a finger on the pulse on all things celeb news. She also writes on social movements, connecting with activists leading the fight on workers’ rights, climate justice, and more. Offline, she’s probably spending too much time on TikTok, rewatching Emma (the 2020 version, of course), or buying yet another corset.
