Let's Stop Pitting Them Against Each Other

Are you keeping up with the latest Bey and Jay drama? Because according to the tabloids, there's trouble brewing behind this power couple's happy facade. The state of Beyoncé and Jay Z's union has been discussed at length since the infamous "elevator incident," in which Beyoncé's little sister Solange Knowles attacked Jay Z in an elevator following the Met Gala. Following this, every aspect of Bey and Jay's relationship has been discussed, from Beyonce's allegedly disappearing "IV" tattoo to their "happy family" Instagram post which people speculate was posted to kick us off the divorce trail. (You know, as opposed to them just being a happy family.) But the latest Bey and Jay rumor to hit the Internet has to do with the family feud that started this whole mess. According to Page Six, Solange attacked Jay Z for hooking up with Rihanna — something that their source says is a very real possibility. Cue the collective eye roll now, please.

This isn't the first time that Rihanna has been called out as a potential threat to Beyoncé and Jay Z's marriage, and that's part of what makes this story so annoying. The press loves to perpetuate a certain narrative when it comes to Beyoncé and Rihanna, one that frames the singers as rivals fighting over fame, album sales, and even Jay Z. An older singer feuding with the hot "newcomer" (if you can even really call Rihanna that anymore) is the kind of story that the press eats up, and that's really disappointing — it frames women as catty, competitive, and vindictive, incapable of supporting one another because one can thrive only if the other fails. Frankly, I'm not buying it.

It's sad that the press is sticking to the old Beyoncé/Rihanna rivalry story, despite the lack of real evidence to back it up in the first place. (Anonymous sources who say it probably happened, aren't enough.) I don't know why Solange really fought with Jay Z in the elevator that day, but it's unfortunate that Bey and RiRi have to deal with these annoying rumors about their alleged feud.

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