Beyonce 'mortified' at Jay-Z's 'dangerous' speech as he tries to defend his wife
Beyonce was "mortified" at her husband Jay-Z's "dangerous" speech aimed at defending her during the Grammy Awards, a body language expert has said.
The "Crazy in Love" and "Single Ladies" singer showed up with beautiful, platinum blonde hair with a white cowboy hat, and wore white collared button-up, layered with a black leather jacket. Her husband was honoured with the Global Impact Award at the event and used his acceptance speech to say his wife deserved more awards.
The rapper stood beside his daughter, Blue Ivy, as he addressed the crowd after being given the award. But when he mentioned his wife, her "frozen-looking, symmetric smile" showed she was uncomfortable, body language expert Judi James told The Mirror.
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Rapper Jay-Z accepts the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award on stage during the 66th Annual Grammy Awards at the Crypto.com Arena in Los Angeles (AFP via Getty Images)In a lengthy speech, Jay-Z said his wife has never won album of the year, despite her many other accolades. He said: "Think about that. Most Grammys, never won album of the year ... Some of you gonna go home tonight and feel like you've been robbed, some of you may get robbed. Some of you don't belong in the category ... Now, when I get nervous I tell the truth. But outside of that, outside of that, we gotta keep showing up."
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Jay-Z's speech quickly deviated away from the award show itself. He reached out to hold his daughter's hand as he continued on, saying: "And forget the Grammys for a second, just in life as my daughter sits and stares at me just as nervous as I am. Just in life, you gotta keep showing up, just keep showing up. Forget the Grammys you gotta keep showing up until they give you all those accolades you deserve. Until they call you chairman. Until they call you a genius. Until they call you the greatest."
But according to Ms James, the speech was "dangerous" even if it was aimed at showing the rapper's love for his wife. The expert said: "That wide brim of Beyoncé’s white Western hat might have come in handy to partly hide her facial response as her husband Jay Z used his acceptance speech to rail against the way she has never won album of the year despite all her other accolades.
"A loyal husband can be a dangerous thing, no matter how much they show love plus an intrinsic drive to defend and protect. Firstly there’s the fact that most women would prefer to stand up for themselves. You can argue Jay-Z has his heart somewhere in the right place in terms of valour but Beyoncé’s frozen-looking, symmetric smile seems to hint that she might just be feeling as mortified as many women would.
"He even called her ‘young lady’, which again I’m sure he felt was flattering but the sentence was ‘I don’t want to embarrass this young lady...’, meaning he provided his own clues in terms of how he might make her feel. Moaning about not getting an award means next years awards will be poignant for Beyonce. If she fails again she’ll be hurt but if she wins it, the hint will be that Jay-Z nailed it for her, rather than her own talent."
Jay-Z with his daughter Blue Ivy on stage (AFP via Getty Images)But Ms James said despite this, Jay-Z looked "mightily pleased" to accept his own award even drinking from it to celebrate. She added that while accepting the award and making his speech, Jay-Z showed "high levels of good humour, despite his words which, taken out of context, have understandably been described as a rant."
The expert added that initially, Beyonce was looking at her husband "with an expression of delight and devotion" and that she kept smiling even after he started to reference boycotts. As for the rapper's body language, Ms James said it showed he was aware that the speech might be controversial.
Ms James said: "Jay-Z’s body language as he accepts his award and makes his speech suggests high levels of good humour, despite his words which, taken out of context, have understandably been described as a rant. He stands with one hand in his pocket to suggest a relaxed, laid-back vibe and his beaming smile softens his face in a way that his signature scowl doesn’t. He is funny and also self-effacing.
He used his acceptance speech to defend his wife (Billboard via Getty Images)
Jay-Z said Beyonce deserved more awards (Billboard via Getty Images)"Beyonce watches initially with an expression of delight and devotion. Her fond smile signals pride and she steeples her fingers and places them over her mouth to suggest her pride could convert to tears. Even when Jay-Z begins to reference historic boycotts he retains the humour and the joyful smiles, making the audience laugh with his small punchlines.
"When he gets onto the subject of his wife though his gestures do change slightly. He drops his chin and scrunches his eyes as though aware he might be more controversial at this point. When he says ‘I don’t want to embarrass this young lady' (although he clearly is about to) he touches his forehead and throws his splayed hand out in a gesture that signals confusion, which related to his confusion over why Beyonce never got Best Album. His mood barely dips from funny and good-tempered but he makes his point and the camera suddenly shows Beyonce no longer smiling, standing with her hands clasped in front of her torso in a barrier gesture.
"His words made her global reaction so difficult thanks to hints of being a ‘sore loser’, no matter how justified his comments. She must have been grateful for the wide brim on her huge cowboy hat."
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