Concert stage with dramatic lighting

Photo by Yvette de Wit on Unsplash

Listen. Beyoncé has 35 Grammy Awards. More than anyone else in history. Shes been nominated for Emmys ten times and never won. TEN TIMES. So when the Television Academy announced this week that Queen Bey finally took home her first Emmy I may have screamed in my apartment at an unreasonable volume.

The win came for Outstanding Costumes for Variety, Nonfiction or Reality Programming for the “Beyoncé Bowl” – that legendary NFL Christmas Day halftime show on Netflix where she performed songs from Cowboy Carter in her hometown of Houston. According to ESPN’s coverage, over 27 million viewers tuned in making it one of the most-watched halftime shows ever.

She shared the win with costume designer Shiona Turini, assistant designers Erica Rice and Molly Peters, costume supervisor Chelsea Staebell, and head of workroom Timothy White. The Western-inspired all-white looks they created were genuinely stunning – rhinestoned fringe, wide-brimmed cowboy hats, the whole country glamour aesthetic that made Cowboy Carter such a visual moment.

But heres whats really got people talking. With this Emmy win plus her 35 Grammys Beyoncé is now officially halfway to EGOT status. Thats the prestigious achievement of winning an Emmy, Grammy, Oscar, and Tony. Only 19 people in history have done it. Beyoncé already has the E and the G covered. She just needs the O and the T.

The Oscar thing is complicated. She was nominated in 2022 for “Be Alive” from King Richard but lost. Her music has been in plenty of movies but the Academy can be weird about giving awards to people who are already legends. The Tony is actually more achievable – if she ever wanted to do a Broadway show or produce a musical the theater world would absolutely lose their minds.

According to Billboard, Beyoncé is also nominated for Outstanding Directing for a Variety Special and Outstanding Variety Special (Live) for the same Beyoncé Bowl performance. Those awards get announced at the main Emmy ceremony in September. So she could potentially win more.

And heres the wild part – Jay-Z is nominated in the same Outstanding Variety Special category for executive producing Kendrick Lamar’s Super Bowl halftime show. Husband and wife competing against each other for the same Emmy. The power couple dynamics of it all. Either way that trophy is going home to the Carter household.

What I love about this win is that it came for costume design specifically. Beyoncé has always been as much about visuals as music. Her albums are visual albums. Her performances are fashion moments. She treats every stage appearance like a gallery exhibition. So winning for the artistry of the clothes feels right. It acknowledges a part of her creative vision that sometimes gets overshadowed by the vocal performances.

The Beyoncé Bowl itself was a whole experience. Blue Ivy danced alongside her mother. Post Malone and Shaboozey made appearances. The Texas Southern University marching band was there. It was a celebration of Houston, of Black country music, of everything Cowboy Carter represented. And the costumes tied it all together.

Now we wait to see if she takes home more awards in September. And honestly? We wait to see what her EGOT strategy is gonna be. Because you know Beyoncé doesnt leave things to chance. Somewhere theres a whiteboard in her office with a detailed plan for getting that Oscar and Tony. And when she executes it we’ll all act surprised even though we shouldnt be.

Congratulations Queen. 35 Grammys and 1 Emmy. The collection grows.