After severe weather touched down Sunday night, followed by a lightning scare, Beyoncé said the show must go on during the second night of her Renaissance Tour at FedEx Field — and her tour pitched in to keep Metro running late to accommodate the weather delays. More than 60,000 concertgoers were under a shelter-in-place order, which began at 6:40 p.m. Sunday, due to lightning in the area. The Landover, Maryland, stadium said in a social media post that fans inside were asked to shelter under covered concourse and ramp areas, while concertgoers who were still outside were told to return to their cars. According to WTOP’s Acacia James, who attended the concert, the weather “really started to cause some problems” in the hours leading up to Beyoncé taking the stage. “There were fans having some medical emergencies; there were (also) people pushing,” James said. “It was really a crazy situation, and there was just no organization.”
Storms didn’t break Bey’s soul
Nearly two hours after the shelter-in-place order went into effect, fans were told they could return to their seats, with an all clear from stadium officials at 8:25 p.m. Beyoncé went on to perform as rainclouds continued to pass over the concert.
Dear @MagicJohnson @FedExField needs a retractable roof!🌧️🌈☔️☔️ thanks! att #Beyhive#BeyonceRenaissanceTour#Beyonce @beyonce make this viral #fedexfield #WashingtonDC@WashProbs pic.twitter.com/0IV2VkHMX3
— Noelia Belén Izarza 🇻🇪🇺🇸 (@myteks) Aug. 7, 2023
James said that despite issues caused by the weather, Beyoncé’s performance was “just so good.” According to James, “There’s something very, very surreal about seeing Beyoncé perform in the rain — like, you just have to do it.”
Metro extends hours — with a little help
The Tour covered costs to extend the Metro Silver Line for an extra hour early Monday morning due to the inclement weather delay, with fans able to catch a last train at the Morgan Boulevard stop at 1:04 a.m. According to Metro, riders could also transfer to the Blue Line from the last Silver train at Metro Center, and late-night trains were available at transfer stations. Metro said the additional hour, and keeping all 98 stations open for exiting customers, cost the Tour about $100,000.
Hold Up #Beyhive🐝, Metro & Renaissance Tour will extend the last train by an extra hour to weather the storm. The last Silver Line train toward Ashburn tonight will now depart Morgan Boulevard at 1:04 a.m. Learn more: https://t.co/pbsSabetaC #wmata pic.twitter.com/qVU6tiSmUy
— Metro Forward (@wmata) Aug. 7, 2023
Making ‘lemonade out of these lemons’
Queen Bey has been known to still perform in a rainstorm during the Renaissance Tour. She performed in Edinburgh’s Murrayfield stadium in Scotland during heavy downpour. Also, Beyonce said to her team, “We’re gonna make lemonade out of these lemons,” during a pre-show prayer in North Carolina before she finished her set in the rain.