Beyoncé Denies Copycat Accusations About Billboard Awards Performance

8:15 AM EDT

5/26/2011 by Nicholas Robinson

On Sunday, May 22, Beyoncé gave an acclaimed and visually stunning performance of “Run The World (Girls)” at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards. But her performance also drew criticism for its striking resemblance to a performance by Italian pop singer Lorella Cuccarini. Although many have speculated that Beyoncé ripped-off Cuccarini, the “Single Ladies” siren is now claiming that she didn’t copy the performance, but was inspired by it.

In an interview with AOL Music, Beyonce revealed that the inspiration for her performance came from watching a video of Cuccarini’s performance at the 2010 Sanremo Italian music festival.

“My makeup artist showed me the performance of Lorella Cuccarini a year ago, and it inspired me so much,” Beyonce says. “I then met with the talented people who worked on it. The technology and concept were so genius. Thank God for YouTube or I would have never been exposed to something so inspiring.”

To help her channel her inspiration, Beyoncé hired Kenzo Digital and the Tribe Inc. Design, the same companies that handled Cuccarini’s performance, to handle her own Billboard show.

With an army of all-female backup dancers, a plethora of pyrotechnics and a large video projection screen, Beyoncé created a performance that she says was the most challenging of her career.

“I never worked so hard on anything in my life as that performance for the Billboard Awards,” said Beyoncé

What do you think of Beyoncé’s response to the copycat accusations? –nicholas robinson

Tags: 2010 Sanremo Italian festival, 2011 Billboard Music Awards, AOL Music, Beyonce, Kenzo Digital, Lorella Cuccarini, Run The World (Girls), Tribe Inc. Design production company

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Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
- Que
  
  What??
Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
Mjen281

Who cares, Beyonce is an Awesome Dancer, Singer and Entertainer. She cant be original on everything. It is too much other stuff going on in the worl for someone to actually be concerned about her performance. Stop bleeding the system and concentrate on other matters like, homelessness, the jobless, crime, immigration and hunger in America.
Overbrookxpress

I think her performance was much better the other one, it was similar but Beyonce’s was much better!
Shmaeda3

I agree that Beyonce is fantastic at everything she does and that shows that she puts work into it. If some people think it’s a copy then the copy is better than the original. Stop hating and learn to share or move to another planet where you don’t have to!
Chocoluscious

I don’t think it’s a copy, but she might have been inspired by it in some regard. However, both artists got their original inspiration from GRACE JONES. Look at some old footage of Grace Jones and listen to some of her music. You will be surprised at out many of today’s artists sampled Grace Jones among others. Ms. Jones was light years ahead of her time.
Que

I think you guys are giving her a pass on what was clearly a rip off from the performance of another artisit just a year ago. If the shoe was on the other foot and they ripped her performance off, ya’ll would be screaming bloody murder. She’s trying to disguise the fact that she stole by being humble and saying she was “inspired”. Ok.
ladyjane

Clearly, she improved on a great idea. Won’t be the first time that an artist (painting, dancing, singing, writing, sculpting) has done that. There’s nothing “new” under the sun. Beyonce didn’t lie. She admitted where she got the idea. Even though I didn’t watch it on TV, I’m glad she put a lot into the BMA show ’cause that regular video, along with that song, needed HELP!
walkinlove

its good to be exposed to new things…..that’s the way creativity works…..you get inspired by someone and then someone else gets inspired by you. someone inspired eddie murphy, someone inspired oprah, someone inspired lady gaga, etc. it’s the circle of life…
straightwithnochaser

If you look at the video, you can agree that Beyonce was definitely inspired. But to say that she “copied” it is really an insult to all the work she put into her performance versus Cuccarini’s performance (no disrespect)
Jacquebrown2001

Not sure if you can call it a rip off if the creation is done by the same people.
EQ

If that’s the case go after Neyo, Usher, Chris Brown, Jaime Foxx because they all have copied Michael Jackson moves. I don’t believe Beyonce is a copycat she used the same people the other singer used.
EQ

If that’s the case go after Neyo, Usher, Chris Brown, Jaime Foxx because they all have copied Michael Jackson moves. I don’t believe Beyonce is a copycat she used the same people the other singer used.
Platinumbrownatl

First Bonnie & Clyde, now this. On her next tour she’ll probably be “inspired” to have the same people who built U2s massive stage, build her one exactly like it. She bit a wonderful concept and you people are in denial.
Hireblackdancers.com

Beyonce stole the performance.
http://pulse.yahoo.com/_GCI3JZE4UEQLJIRSZ7SYJHRRFY Cartor Frankix

we can get every where beyonce and she’s most popular celeb.
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http://pulse.yahoo.com/_FGDHJLXFMQVRFVSUSC6G4BITHI Roslynjazz Smith

She’s great performer every time and i always like her.
Luminique
stewart

1. Crediting youtube for inspiration tells a lot about that knowledgeless ingnorant. Thta’s fool-time copycatism. 2. She steals (oh sorry, ’gets inspired by’) niche youtube performances and goes global with it, of course leaving the creators creditless. It was so with her Billboard performance, so it was with ‘Single ladies’ concept (also found on youtube), so it is with some african trio movements used on ‘Run the world’ (youtube), not 2 mention her ’more GaGa than GaGa complex’. 3. Beyonce is also a grand melody/hook thief.