If you like it, then you should put a ring on it – but a billion views isn’t a bad compromise. Just named advertising billboardOne of the biggest pop stars of the 21st century, Beyoncé’s iconic music video for “Single Ladies (Put a Ring On)” has been viewed more than 1 billion times on YouTube, becoming her No. Second video reaches post-Halo milestone.
In the three-and-a-half-minute black-and-white clip, Bey dances her way through the powerful, insanely catchy number, accompanied by two other dancers in slim black leotards. I’m…Sasha Fiers Single. “If you like it, then you should put a ring on it/Don’t be mad once you see he wants it,” she sings, staring into the camera.
Both the song and the visual are some of the most iconic works of Bey’s career. In addition to “Single Ladies,” which spent four weeks at No. 1 on the 2008 Billboard Hot 100, the Jake Nava-directed video features Frank Gatson Jr. Sequential dance sequences choreographed by JaQuel Knight saw the 32-time Grammy winner execute a series of generation-defining moves that are still being replicated today.
Elsewhere, the “Single Ladies” video was one of the buzziest moments of 2009: Ye, then still known as Kanye West, memorably interrupted Taylor Swift’s VMAs win for Best Female Video testimonials, declaring Bey’s project “one of the best.”
The “Texas Hold’em” singer was taken aback and even a little horrified at that moment, but he changed the script when “Single Ladies” later won Video of the Year. Bay gave up his time for his acceptance speech, famously inviting advertising billboardThe future second biggest pop star of the 21st century returned to the stage to express his gratitude.
Watch “Single Ladies” above and add your opinion to over a billion others.
