Dressing up as them wasn’t the decision of some insecure artist grasping for an identity it was a declaration, like Babe Ruth calling his shot. Of course, you won’t: in spite of all the gimmicky costumes, every tribute performance of hers is immaculate, showing off her own vocal versatility and nailing the essence of each artist while still, ultimately, sounding like no one but Beyoncé. But doing that while also dressed up as the artist you’re covering doesn’t just invite comparison - it begs for it, daring you to find any reason why Beyoncé couldn’t be Tina Turner or Etta James or Barbra Streisand or the King of Pop. Covering one of the most beloved songs of all time is always a daunting task because it inevitably invites comparison to the original. If you think about it, it’s an insanely bold move.
Even as recently as 2011, she sported an Afro and a glimmery disco-ball inspired dress at the Michael Jackson Tribute Concert while she tackled Jackson’s 1972 hit “I Wanna Be Where You Are,” looking like a long-lost member of the Jackson 5. Later that year, she honored Barbra Streisand at the Kennedy Center by belting out “The Way We Were” styled nearly identically to the way Babs was at the end of Funny Girl - updo, cat-eye makeup, statement earrings and a long-sleeved, V-neck black gown.
At a 2008 Fashion Rocks fundraiser, just months before she played Etta James on the big screen in Cadillac Records, she did her best to channel the singer while performing “At Last” in a short blonde wig, long green dangling earrings and a bright yellow dress cut in a 1960s silhouette, paying homage to the green-and-yellow color palette of James’s At Last cover art. At the 2005 Kennedy Center Honors, she came out to sing “Proud Mary” for Tina Turner in a bedazzled red mini-dress, flanked by three back-up singers in matching gold fringe - her very own Ikettes.
There was a period of time, let’s say roughly 10 to 15 years ago, when Beyoncé developed a strange habit of dressing up like other legendary artists while paying tribute to them.