DNC organizers have 99 problems — and Beyoncé is all of them.
Democratic National Convention delegates and excited viewers who tuned into the final night of the spectacle were left bitterly disappointed when Queen Bey never showed — despite rampant rumors and a report that the superstar would perform.
Whispers that Beyoncé would take the stage at Chicago’s United Center reached fever pitch Thursday, after TMZ reported that the “Run The World” hitmaker was slated to perform as a special guest ahead of Kamala Harris’ acceptance speech at the convention.
The megastar’s reps were forced to shoot down the report just minutes before Harris formally accepted the Democratic Party’s presidential nomination, telling the Hollywood Reporter that Beyoncé “was never scheduled to be there.”
The show went on, and the “Single Ladies” singer never appeared, leaving everyone to question what happened.
While TMZ’s apparent confirmation sent the “Beyhive” — the nickname given to Beyoncé’s fans — into overdrive, clues had already set up the expectation.
Vice President Harris uses Beyoncé’s song “Freedom” at her campaign rallies — and she took to the convention stage to the tune of the hit on Monday, ramping up speculation already abuzz online about a Beyhive endorsement.
Outgoing senator and 2012 Republican presidential candidate Mitt Romney even got in on the action.
“Contrary to fake news posts, I am not the surprise guest at the DNC tonight. My guess is that it will be Beyoncé or Taylor Swift. So disappointing, I know!” he joked on X.
There were also reports from people inside the arena that the convention’s house band was using Beyoncé songs to soundcheck, according to Vox.
Beyoncé had also supported President Biden and Harris in the 2020 election and raised money for former President Barack Obama’s 2012 campaign.
As the rumors intensified, White House political director Emmy Ruiz added fuel to the fire when she posted an emoji of a bee on X at around 4:30 pm Thursday. She later claimed that her 6-year-old child had taken her phone and posted the bee.
Then came the apparent confirmation from TMZ’s report, citing DNC sources, that the superstar was going to take the stage in support of Harris.
The celebrity gossip outlet was forced to apologize when Harris took the stage and gave her nearly 40-minute address — all without any sighting of the 32-time Grammy winner.
Angry Staffer, one of the X accounts credited with initially starting the feeding frenzy of speculation, also apologized for their role in the chaos.
“I don’t like giving bad information, and that’s on me. Mea culpa,” the anonymous gossipmonger wrote, adding that the people who told them another celebrity guest was in the cards were not “prone to hyperbole.”
“Even people at the DNC were hearing that Beyoncé was in the building, so whoever started the rumor got a whole bunch of us,” they insisted.
TMZ did not contact Harris’ campaign or convention officials before publishing the story, a DNC source told The Post Friday night, pointing out that no no officials confirmed the superstar would be performing or attending.
Still, despite Beyoncé’s team denying that it was ever true, it did not stop people from speculating online that the entire thing was a big conspiracy.
“I believe you did that on purpose @TMZ so that people would tune in to watch,” the Calvin Coolidge Project replied to TMZ’s apology post.
Dozens of other commenters also chimed in to suggest that TMZ – famous for breaking news about even the most tight-lipped celebs – and the organizers of the DNC were in cahoots to get more eyes on Harris’ appearance.
“How much did they pay y’all to promote that?” one X user quipped.
Another account went so far as to claim that TMZ “defrauded the American people” by teasing them with a Beyoncé concert that never materialized.
