Beyonce Appears To Be Updating ‘Renaissance’ To Remove The Contested Kelis Sample On ‘Energy’

Life comes at you fast. And Kelis might be getting what she wanted.

Last week, when Beyoncé’s Renaissance came out and immediately became the most talked-about album in the world, Kelis made it abundantly clear that she did not grant permission for samples — albeit very brief ones — from her songs to be used in Beyoncé’s “Energy.” Kelis’s anger was directed mostly at Pharrell and Chad Hugo, who as The Neptunes, wrote and produced the two Kelis songs in question, “Milkshake,” and “Get Along With You,” and hence, owned the publishing rights holders who could clear the use of those samples for “Energy” (which they also co-wrote).

“My mind is blown too because the level of disrespect and utter ignorance of all 3 parties involved is astounding,” Kelis said on Instagram, later adding in a video that, “Chad really is like an amoeba, he’s spineless. It’s a miracle he can keep his neck up, but Pharrell knows better. This is a direct hit at me, he does this stuff all the time. It’s very petty — very, very, very — and the reality is that it’s frustrating.”

Well, the issue looks to be coming to a head, as the Kelis samples seem to be getting slowly removed from “Energy” across streaming platforms from “Energy.” At press time, the end of “Energy” on Tidal was playing just Kelis’ isolated sample. Spotify was having intermittent issues loading both Beyoncé’s Renaissance tracks and Kelis’ discography. Users online are claiming that Kelis’ writing credits are missing, although only Pharrell and Hugo would have had their included, to begin with.

Update: According to music industry veteran Naima Cochrane, the drum interpolation still appears on the track, while a vocal section that some fans incorrectly attributed to Kelis has been removed.

Editor’s note: This story may be updated as the situation changes.