VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — The days leading up to the first-ever “Something in the Water” festival last week quickly turned into a celebrity scavenger hunt for the citizens of Hampton Roads.
Topping the list of alleged sightings was the most powerful couple in the world of entertainment — Beyonce and Jay-Z.
The search led to some laughable photoshop attempts:
Everyone’s looking for proof of Jay-Z and Beyoncé in Norfolk @ODU. Here it is! You’re welcome. #SITW #ODU pic.twitter.com/34OJlvuHID — Old Dominion University (@ODU) April 25, 2019
I told y’all Jay-Z and Beyoncé was in VA today!! @everydayaaron @Darganomics #jayz #beyonce #norfolk #virginiabeach #va #SITWfest #sitw pic.twitter.com/e4oq7TM6N1 — François (@iamFrancois_) April 24, 2019
And a conspiracy theory, based on Beyonce’s Instagram posts on Friday:
Beyoncè is definitely going to be at the #sitw cause her Instagram post sponsoring Adidas just gave it away. They are also a sponsor for the festival. Great way of marketing! — monaeee (@mizzmunae__) April 26, 2019
The idea that Hova and Queen B would be touching down at the Oceanfront during the festival was not outrageous, since Pharrell’s seemingly endless rolodex gifted performances from other big names like Diddy, Busta Rhymes, Missy Elliott and Snoop Dogg.
Photos: A look back at the 2019 SITW festival
The crowd patiently waited during Pharrell’s set on Saturday to see if he was going to squeeze out some lemonade during his homecoming.
Pharrell and friends are about to hit the stage. Let’s see if these Jay Z/Beyoncé rumors are true 👀 #SITW — Tamantha 👸🏾 (@Tamantha_5) April 28, 2019
Of course, we later learned Jay-Z was, in fact, part of Pharrell’s surprise party on stage Saturday night – joining him to perform their song “Frontin'” and other anthems.
But where, oh where, was his partner in crime?
While she didn’t step out onstage, there are several pieces of evidence circulating on social media that show Beyonce was most likely (although not independently confirmed by 10 On Your Side) behind the scenes at the festival.
Let’s start with this undeniable photo of the couple with Pharrell. Both Jay-Z and Pharrell are wearing the outfits they performed in on Saturday during the festival:
Beyoncé, Pharrell and Jay-Z backstage at SOMETHING IN THE WATER 🌊 – April 27, 2019 (📷: Andrew White) #SITW @S_C_ @Beyonce pic.twitter.com/3THRFP3RwX — P. Williams World (@pwilliamsworld) April 30, 2019
Then there’s this video of what appears to be the back on Beyonce’s head, dancing backstage during Pharrell and Jay-Z’s performance:
Beyoncé turning up to Jay-Z and Pharrell at the #SITW Festival tonight! (April 27) pic.twitter.com/RIK2fTsURe — BEYJAYSLAY (@beyjayslay) April 28, 2019
And here’s another video, which looks like Beyonce walking down the stairs from the back of the festival’s main stage:
Beyoncé leaving the #SITW Festival last night! (April 27) pic.twitter.com/Ue1Ie016iR — BEYJAYSLAY (@beyjayslay) April 28, 2019
The silhouettes from the videos do appear to match the picture, but who are we to jump to conclusions?
This wasn’t the first time the resort area was buzzing with celeb searches. Remember Pusha T’s star-studded wedding at The Cavalier Hotel last year?