Beyonce: Crazy in Love

Uh-Oh, Uh-Oh, Uh-Oh!

The Observer, December 2003

Because of her position as the pre-eminent singing sensation of the year, there are many hurdles you must leap before you can be ushered into the presence of Beyoncé Knowles. The last of these is an exceptionally tall and fat man called Shorty, who protects his charge and precedes her every move. She goes on a theme park ride for an MTV programme and Shorty rides too. She attends a film premiere in Leicester Square, and the shadow in the photos in the papers the following day is Shorty’s. She walks down the corridor backstage at Wembley Arena, and Shorty sweeps the way clear for her like that boulder in Indiana Jones .

When I first see him in the flesh, Shorty is sitting on a too-small plastic chair outside a door labelled ‘Meet and Greet’. Not far away are eager competition winners being marshalled into small groups and instructed on etiquette. It’s like meeting the Queen: don’t say anything that might upset; no pawing.
‘So,’ I said as I entered the room. ‘I met Shorty!’

‘Oh, Shorty’s more famous than I am,’ Beyoncé replied. She was wearing a pink cardigan and dark jeans, all curled up in a large leather chair with her legs beneath her. ‘Shorty’s a relative of Michelle’s in Destiny’s Child,’ she continued. ‘Well, I’m not sure if they’re actually related, but both he and Michelle are from Rockville, Illinois, which is a really small town and everyone’s like family there.’

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