By the time you read this, I probably will have already seen Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé twice. For real. And yes, I went to the actual concert too, but I knew this movie would be much more than recordings of the show.

In short, Renaissance the movie feels magical, yet as the behind-the-scenes looks show us how the magic is made, you suddenly feel as if you’re capable of magic too.

And that right there is exactly why I’m so obsessed with Beyoncé. Honestly, I think that’s what makes her so magnetic to most of us certified members of the Beyhive.

Clocking in at nearly three hours, the film covers nearly every number from the live Renaissance show. Even though I scored tickets to the real thing, while watching the movie I often felt I was seeing the show for the first time.

The concert clips are from performances all over the world. So you get a glimpse at the hundred-plus costumes she’s rocked from Stockholm to Kansas City.  And the editing in this film deserves an Oscar! During some performances, we see edits that cut on the beat between different performances of the same song, so that Beyoncé seems to change outfits with a shoulder bounce or a hair flip. Like I said – MAGIC!

Through the film, I also got to see surprise appearances from Megan Thee Stallion, Diana Ross and Kendrick Lamar.

Near the beginning of the film, Beyoncé points out that the most expensive part of her tour is all the steel required to support the gigantic stage and massive screens that elevate the overall experience. She talks about the lights and the sound and how she and her team are always trying to make everything perfect.

But Beyoncé shows us flaws and all in this film.

During the Phoenix show, the sound cuts out in the middle of “Alien Superstar.” But not only does the Queen come back out and slay the performance, but she does so in a new costume to give the crowd a special treat.

You don’t have to be perfect to be powerful. And neither does your art.

The one thing I was disappointed by when I saw the live show in Nashville this summer was that Blue Ivy didn’t perform as a featured dancer as she had during other tour dates. But the Renaissance film made up for that.

Blue’s journey is given its own segment in the movie, and seeing Beyoncé’s overwhelming love for her oldest daughter – and her entire family – gave me chills. Another chapter of the film focuses on her late uncle Johnny — a gay Black man who first introduced her to house music as a child, and the man to whom she dedicated the Renaissance album.

Beyoncé Inspires Me as a Writer and a Woman

I’ve been a fan of Beyoncé since her Destiny’s Child days, which means her music has been the soundtrack of my life since I was in high school.

The first time I saw her live was in 2000 and — believe it or not – it was in my hometown of Birmingham, Alabama where DC performed at a popular Black music festival that the Magic City once hosted. The day of the show was extra special for me because that afternoon I purchased my very first car at the age of 19 all on my own. So when they sang “Independent Women” I felt like Beyoncé was throwing me a party to celebrate my win.

Fast forward and more than 20 years later this woman is still inspiring me. I’ve been to four other concerts of hers and my 2022 essay collection Find Your Way Back is named after one of her songs.

As a writer, Beyoncé inspires me to try new things and to work at improving my craft always. During the film, Beyoncé discusses how she must constantly reinvent herself. As she evolves on the stage, I strive to evolve on the page.

Related Reading: Why Beyoncé’s New Album Should Be Your Late Summer Soundtrack

Beyoncé inspires me to continue to cultivate community, no matter how hard it gets. I admit that being the leader of the See Jane Write community is time-consuming, emotionally draining, and definitely not something I do for money. Sometimes my ego wants me to let it all go and just focus on my own writing.

But in the film, Beyoncé discusses how people are thirsting for community and she says she’s determined to build a safe space for others. When you go to a show and see people feeling free to wear what they want and hold on to whomever they love, it’s clear she’s done just that.

Related Reading: My Renaissance World Tour Experience As a 72-Year-Old (Guest Essay)

Women writers are thirsting for community too. Women writers need a safe space to write out loud. To be able to create that for others is not a burden; it is a blessing.

At the end of the show, Beyoncé says to the crowd that she hopes they feel renewed. And yes, Renaissance is about renewal and rebirth, but it’s more than that. What the film showed me was that Renaissance is a love letter. It’s a love letter to her fans, to her family, and to the artists who have inspired her. And it’s a love letter to herself.

Beyoncé and I are the same age and in the movie, she reflects on what it means to be 42. She talks about the freedom of 40. She says that she now feels free to be her authentic self because she no longer feels she has anything to prove. She’s learned how to be compassionate and empathetic without also being a people pleaser consumed with the opinions of others. And she loves her body as is.

The Renaissance experience – the album, the tour, and the film – has shown me that I’m obsessed with Beyoncé not simply because of the way she makes me feel but because of how she affects others too.

In a piece for CNBC, writer Ashton Jackson reflects on the impact the show had on her. She writes: “Put simply: It made me want to be the best at my job, get in the best physical shape of my life, and execute my goals and passions to the best of my ability.”

She shares social media posts from fans with similar sentiments. And I have an entrepreneur friend who was inspired to completely shift her business after she attended one of Beyoncé’s shows and is now more successful than ever.

Jackson interviewed a psychologist who explained the science behind these feelings, that they’re caused when we get a boost of happy chemicals like serotonin and dopamine. But I don’t think it’s simply science. Something about it feels divine.

Yet, as magical as Beyoncé seems, this film reminds us that she is human. We see her bruised, exhausted, frustrated and even recovering from knee surgery. In the film, she proclaims, “I am not a machine” — a declaration I was forced to make about myself after cancer.

Beyoncé is perfectly imperfect and reminds us that we are too.

Beyoncé has this uncanny ability to inspire us to accept and love ourselves for who we are while also pushing us to be all we’ve ever dreamed of being. My hope is that both my writing and the way I live my life will one day do this for other women too.

And that is why Beyoncé will forever be my muse.