If you live on Earth and are even slightly interested in music, you’ve probably heard (be it through screams or social media) about Beyoncé’s upcoming album “Renaissance”.

A new era for Beyoncé, whose name has become globally synonymous with perfection and excellence, reveals an imperfectly candid side to her we simply did not think existed. With the release of the first single from her upcoming project, “Break My Soul”, Beyoncé expressed her desire to “create a safe space” through the music on her project “free of perfectionism and overthinking”. She wrote,

“Creating this album allowed me a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world. It allowed me to feel free and adventurous in a time when little else was moving.”

It seems this safe space applies not only to her sound and subject matter but to her collaborators too. The New York Post shared a report with claims that Beyoncé and her team are vetting collaborators in a very specific way. According to the outlet, they are “reportedly running #MeToo checks on everyone involved in her new album” with two songs from high-profile artists already being rejected due to allegations they are facing. Although neither party has been found guilty, it was enough for Beyoncé to pull the plug. It’s been said she “wants to set an example”, and “doesn’t care” how people react to her decision.

Allegedly the decision to run these extensive checks stems from Beyoncé’s previous work with producer Detail, who co-wrote “Drunk in Love”. After the massive success of the track, Detail, real name Noel Fisher, was accused of sexual harassment, rape, and using his fame to coerce women. He has denied the allegations against him. A source told The Sun “She stopped working with him and her team now run #MeToo checks on any potential collaborators” insisting the singer “wants to set an example that any abuse shouldn’t be normalised.”

My first thought when hearing this was how are these people still even in a position to have an opportunity to work with Beyoncé? Surely she’s not the first to hear about these accusations? This only seems to highlight a growing pattern of abusers being enabled and overlooked by their peers, never truly having to be accountable or suffering any real consequences. If this is the case, influential creators like Beyoncé are needed now more than ever. We only hope others follow her lead.