As Beyoncé gears up to make her first appearance at the Met Gala in a decade on Monday, May 4, the BeyHive is buzzing with excitement over a rare outing from their fave. Oh, and they are absolutely anticipating a major announcement regarding the follow-up to Cowboy Carter, also known as her unnamed Act III album.
Bey continued her streak as the most decorated artist in Grammy history when she won Album of the Year for Cowboy Carter, but also became the first Black woman to win an award in the coveted category since Lauryn Hill in 1999. And now, fans are ready for more. Here’s everything we know about Beyoncé’s Act III album—and if it even exists—so far.
What has Beyoncé said about her Act III album?
Knowing our Virgo queen Bey, she definitely has a plan in place for this rollout (if it even exists, at this point). She seemingly teased her 307 million followers that she’s alive and well in a major purple ruffled gown. While this wasn’t explicitly about her potential Act III album, it showed fans that she’s at least defrosting!
Will Beyoncé announce her Act III album at the Met Gala?
Bey’s longtime publicist, Yvette Noel-Schure, debunked rumors from fan accounts that claim her Act III album is “100% complete” and that the era will begin at the Met Gala, teasing a “summer release.”
“This is unequivocally false!!” Yvette wrote in response, denying the details.
Bey has yet to address the rumors, if at all. But as we all know, she changed the game with that digital drop back in 2013 when she surprise released her self-titled album. So, we’ll have to wait and see what goes down at the Met Steps!
Is Beyoncé’s Act III a rock album?
The largest theory surrounding Beyoncé’s Act III album is that it leans into another genre: rock. While Renaissance paid homage to house and dance/electronic music and Cowboy Carter tapped into Bey’s country roots, fans began speculating that Act III could delve into another genre after she tried her hand at a more alternative sound on Lemonade’s “Don’t Hurt Yourself” with Jack White.
The theory dates back to 2024, when Beyoncé dressed as rock legend Betty Davis for Halloween. Then, in summer 2025, her “Denim Cowboy” Levi’s campaign had fans side-eyeing a potential theme for her upcoming album since she entered the ad on a horse and exited on a motorcycle.
In January 2026, HypeHair also reported that some of Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter merch was described as “a little rock ’n roll and a whole lotta sexy.”
Given ^^^ all of that, fans are still keen on the theory that Act III is a rock album—and that Stevie Nicks could potentially be featured in a similar vein to Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson on Cowboy Carter. On April 30, a video of Stevie with Destiny’s Child on the set of the “Bootylicious” music video surfaced on Beyoncé’s official website as part of the 25th anniversary of their album, Survivor.
On top of that, the BeyHive took to social media to point out similarities between one of Bey’s latest Instagram posts and Stevie’s The Other Side of the Mirror album cover.
So, it might be a strange string of coincidences…or this might really be a rock record! We’ll have to wait for an official announcement from Beyoncé and Parkwood to see if any of the theories hold up. Till then…it’s time to obsess over her Met Gala outfit.
