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Surprise! Jay Z and Beyoncé​ ​casually​ ​announced their joint album during ​the London stop of their On the Run ​II tour on Saturday (6/16): “We​ ​want​ ​you​ ​guys​ ​to​ ​be​ ​the​ ​first​ ​to​ ​experience​ ​this​ ​new​ ​project.” ​

After debuting the​ir visual for​ “APESHIT​​”​ ​to​ ​the​ ​lucky c​​​​rowd,​ without warning, the pair​ released ​their ​collaborative album,​ EVERYTHING IS LOVE, to the rest of the world. All signs ​pointing to a joint album ​were ​there​.​ ​Ru​mors ​had been circulating about​ it​ since Beyoncé​ ​dropped her ​controversial ​visual album​, ​LEMONADE. ​​Following Jay’s repentant 4:44, working together was the obvious next move.​ Plus, if you’re a real Hov fan​,​ then you know when he goes without getting a haircut he is in album mode.

For ​the “APESHIT” visual, the couple did the unthinkable ​by ​renting out the world famous Louvre. Throughout the video dancers perform incredible routines as they come dangerously close to touching the priceless artworks. Hov and Bey pose in front of ​ancient Egyptian ​relics, the revered Greek statue of the goddess of victory​,​ Nike, and Leonardo da Vinci’s​ ​iconic​ ​work, making the statement ​that black love prov​es worthy ​of ​existing alongside the​se​ priceless ​pieces, and subsequently, everywhere.

T​his album​ finds the Carter’s renewing their vow​​s and ​providing closure to the trilogy. Unless you’ve been living under a rock​, you know​ Jay-Z cheated on Beyoncé​ ​and she aired him out on her ​​​​LEMONADE LP. Hov followed up​ by putting a prolific apology​ on wax with​ his very mature ​​4:44 LP, stripping away his ​womanizing pe​rsona​ and replacing it with that of a man who was ready to hold himself accountable​. Things are good now in the Carter household. “We​ ​were​ ​using​ ​our​ ​art​ ​almost​ ​like​ ​a​ ​therapy​ ​session,” Jay​ ​told The New York​ ​Times​,​ last year. “And​ ​we​ ​s​​tarted​ ​making​ ​music​ ​together.”

EVERYTHING IS LOVE—plus another standalone track called “SALUD!”—​is, in fact, The​ ​Carter’s​ ​therapy session. ​A true t​estament to forgiveness and reconciliation. The project feature’s contributions from Migos’ Quavo​ ​and​ ​Offset, Ty Dolla $ign—as​ ​wel​​l​ ​as​ ​impressive production from Pharrell, Cool & Dre, Illmind, Mike Dean​,​ Vinylz, Boi-1da​, ​and more. The album ​also​ serves as an ode to their children Blue, Sir and Rumi.

It kicks off with “SUMMER,” declaring that love conquers all,​ which​ ​sets a clear tone for the rest of the album. On “713” Jay recalls how their love story started, closing out the track by thanking all women for teaching men how to love. “Black​ ​queen,​ ​you​ ​rescued​ ​us, you​ ​rescued​ ​us,​ ​rescued​ ​us,​”​ ​he​ ​r​​aps​ ​affirmatively. While ​J​ay has​ absolutely​ caught his second wind​, delivering some of​ ​his best​ rapping ever​, Beyoncé​ ​​is an adequate match for her husband. On “HEARD ABOUT US” and “713” Queen Bey pays homage to rap greats Snoop Dogg and Notorious B.I.G.​ by putting her own twist on their iconic flows​. That is an excellent metaphor to where he is now in maturity, exchanging his braggadocios raps for more introspective bars. Jay ​makes it clear he doe​s​n’t forget anything​, ​​dishing some ear​-​​raising bars for his “little brother” Kanye West on “FRIENDS​.​” ​In his verse, Hov ​address​es​ comments ​Ye made in his two-hour Charlamagne tha God interview, where he expressed he was let down by The Carters not attending his 2014 wedding with Kim Kardashian. Jay raps, “I​ ​ain’t​ ​goin​​’​ ​to​ ​nobody​ ​nothin’ when​ ​me​ ​a​​nd​ ​my​ ​wife​ ​beefin’/I​ ​don’t​ ​care​ ​if​ ​t​​he​ ​house​ ​on​ ​fire,I’m​ ​dyin’, n—a, I​ ​ain’t​ ​leavin’/…If​ ​y’al​​l​ ​don’t​ ​understand​ ​that,​ ​we ain’t​ ​meant to be friends.” Jay also continues his subliminal war of words with Drake on “BOSS.” “N—-s​ ​getting​ ​jerked, that​ ​shi​​t​ ​hurts,​ ​I​ ​take​ ​it​ ​personally/N—-s​ ​r​ather​ ​work​ ​for the man than to work with me.” That bar was an obvious reference to Drake turning down a contract with Tidal to accept a $19 million contract with Apple. The Carters also have some words for their “Haters​.​” Hov takes aim at the NFL, admitting he turned down the offer to perform at last year’s ​Superbowl, declaring they needed him​ and​​ not the other way around. ​He goes on to ​let​ the GRAMMY committee know being shut out of last year’s ceremony didn’t phase him​,​ rapping​,​ “Tell​ ​t​​​​​​he​ ​Grammys fuck that 0 for eight shit.”On “NICE,” Beyoncé​ ​raps she could care less about streams​,​ and if she did, she’d of put ​​LEMONADE on rival streaming service Spotify. On the closing track “LOVEHAPPY,” the two deliver Sonny and Cher comedic relief, acknowledging ​the trials they’ve faced together. They playfully go​​ back and forth​,​ ending the album with​ the​ genuine sentiment that they’re in a good place: “We​ ​came,​ ​and​ ​we​ ​saw, and​ ​we conquered it all/We came, and we conquered, now we’re​ ​happy​ ​in​ ​love.”

EVERYTHING IS LOVE serves as a metaphoric victory lap for the couple—living out their very private lives through their music, taking the power away from the tabloids and gossip columns. Since their early collaborations they’ve always ​projected ​a narrative ​centered around ​how perfect their love for one another was. On their ​latest projects​​ they humanized themselves​ by revealing to​ us ​that ​they have the same problems we do—gracefully telling the world ​that ​everything that glitters ain’t gold, but you can polish it til​’​ it shines.