Beyonce Addresses Fashion Designer Who Claims He Wasn’t Paid for Work on ‘Renaissance’ Album Art

Beyoncé and her team have thoroughly shut down allegations that Nusi Quero wasn’t paid for his work on styling the singer in her Renaissance album artwork.

After the designer claimed in now-deleted Instagram posts that Bey’s team — specifically her stylist Marni Senofonte — had never compensated him for his contributions to the “Break My Soul” vocalist’s high-fashion album photo shoots, an official statement denying all of Quero’s “troubling” allegations was shared Thursday (Oct. 13) with Entertainment Tonight.

“It is deeply troubling that designer Nusi Quero has posted damaging statements about Marni Senofonte regarding non-payments for work completed,” said Beyoncé’s rep in the statement. “In fact, he was paid for his work, and there is proof of all payments made.”

The statement continued to divulge specific details about the alleged timeline of payments made by the 28-time Grammy winner’s camp to Quero.

“We have been in communication with his team and there were three payments made to him,” it reads. “The first payment was made on May 9, 2022. The second payment, a fifty percent down payment on the agreed cost, was made via wire on July 8, 2022. The third and final payment was returned when he changed his account number. It was returned as an invalid account number based on an error on his part.”

“After persistent and exhausting communication to get the correct information on his account and two unsuccessful wire transfer attempts, a physical check was mailed to him for final payment on September 29, 2022,” the statement concluded, according to ET.

Billboard has reached out to Beyoncé’s reps for comment.

Quero’s accusatory claims are just the latest to arise regarding Beyoncé’s Renaissance album cycle. Pop duo Right Said Fred alleged earlier this month that Bey had neglected to approach them for permission to sample their 1992 hit “I’m Too Sexy” in a track called “Alien Superstar” on her July-released record.

“Normally the artist approaches us but Beyoncé didn’t because she’s such an arrogant person,” brothers-turned-bandmates Richard and Fred Fairbrass told U.K. tabloid The Sun at the time.

“Permission was not only granted for its use, but they publicly spoke of their gratitude for being on the album,” Beyoncé responded to the allegations in a statement to Billboard, noting that the brothers had been given a co-writing credit on “Alien Superstar.” “For their song, there was no sound recording use, only the composition was utilized. Permission was asked of their publisher on May 11, 2022, and the publisher approved the use on June 15, 2022. They were paid for the usage in August 2022.”

Before that, Kelis alleged something similar. In July, she called out Bey and The Neptunes for interpolating her 2003 hit “Milkshake” into Renaissance track “Energy,” writing on Twitter at the time that her mind was “blown too because the level of disrespect and utter ignorance of all 3 parties involved is astounding.”

Beyoncé responded by removing the interpolation altogether from “Energy” as it appeared on Tidal and Apple Music.

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