Among her many talents, Beyoncé is a master in the element of surprise. With Christmas almost two weeks away, the music superstar was in a gift giving mood at midnight Friday (Dec 13) when she unexpectedly released her fifth studio album, Beyoncé. The 14-track LP boasts guest appearances by Drake, Jay Z, Frank Ocean and the singer's 2-year-old daughter Blue Ivy, who is featured on the song, "Blue." The project also comes with a video for every song.
The massive "visual album" certainly took some time to put together, its hard to believe how Bey was able to keep it all under wraps. Especially with rumors and rumblings about the status of her new album swirling throughout the year. Just this week, Columbia Records chairman Rob Stringer speculated that the album would be released in 2014.

"At some point Beyoncé will put a record out, and when she does it will be monumental. So we’re in really, really good shape," Stringer told Hits Daily Double.
Not surprising, however, was the reaction from the singer's fans. The BeyHive went nuts on Twitter when word spread that the new album was available on iTunes. The demand for the new material actually caused iTunes to crash for several minutes.

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