The last time Beyoncé announced she was pregnant, she did so at the VMAs after belting her soul out during a performance of “Love On Top.” Well, now she’s having twins, and she revealed so by posting the following on Instagram.
Letting the news break on social media doesn’t quite have the shock value of doing so on stage during a major awards show. Still, we’re pretty sure this image will one day be studied in art history classes. There is definitely a Madonna and Child motif at play, and it also seems to be riffing on some of the work of contemporary artists like Kerry James Marshall. (A couple of years ago Beyoncé posed at Marshall’s show in London.) And, of course, any pregnancy portrait will inevitably recall Annie Leibovitz’s famous shot of Demi Moore.
UPDATE: Queen Bey’s candid family photo has now become the all-time most liked photo on Instagram, breaking Selena Gomez’s old record (6.3 million likes) in the space of an afternoon. The twins haven’t been reached for comment on their social media accomplishment, as they have yet to be born.
[Additional reporting by William Hughes]