Since Beyoncé’s “Renaissance” dropped in July 2022, fans from across the DMV have been waiting in anticipation for her to grace FedEx Field for the first time since 2018. Set to perform two nights, the tour has received rave reviews from critics and die-hard fans alike since she took the stage at the first stop in Stockholm.

I tried — and failed — to get tickets for a decent price during the original presale for the Renaissance World Tour in February, and have watched for months as resale prices climbed into the thousands for lower bowl and nosebleed seats. Following the advice of other fans on TikTok, I logged onto Ticketmaster the Friday before she touched down in D.C. to check for last minute tickets. I managed to score two tickets, for myself and my roommate, in section 443, directly facing the stage.

By now you’ve likely heard the ongoing story of Ticketmaster’s general awfulness. When Taylor Swift announced her Eras Tour, fans from across the country — including myself — broke the platform trying to get tickets. After waiting in the queue for seven hours, I managed to get nosebleeds at MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.

For Renaissance, getting tickets was an equally challenging task. If you didn’t get tickets during the original sale, you had to sit and watch as tickets that sold for $100 during pre-sale were listed for $500 by resellers. This is before Ticketmaster’s fees, which can sometimes be more than the price of the ticket itself. Somehow, with a combination of Birthday money and a recent paycheck, I managed to get our seats for around $250 with fees. 

With tickets for Sunday night’s concert secured, the next thing to do was to secure transportation. Neither my roommate or myself have a car, and the walk from the Metro was an accessibility nightmare considering the heat and humidity. We booked an Uber in advance, about $60 with a tip. 

If you’ve never been to FedEx Field, it’s a journey. The nearest Metro station is a half hour walk away, and the stadium is in the middle of a residential area with only four two-lane roads in and out. The trip to the stadium took about an hour, and we arrived at 6:30 p.m. I had read advice from attendees of Saturday’s concert that Beyoncé didn’t go on until 9 p.m., when the sun set. This gave us about two and a half hours to get merch, food, drinks and find our seats. 

No sooner had we gotten to the top level of the stadium when we were told by crew members to go back down to the bottom floor due to lightning. We already knew there would be rain, and had packed ponchos, so we made our way back down to the bottom floor, assuming we would be free to get food and merch. We were very wrong. 

Crews at the stadium were holding people where they were when the announcement was made. Nobody was allowed to enter the main concourse from the walkways, and people were not allowed to leave to go sit in their cars. Thankfully, we were held in one of the walkways, where it wasn’t crowded. 

Fans who weren’t in the walkways were packed into the main concourse with little to no room to breathe. There were reports of fans passing out, and we watched as paramedics rushed past to different parts of the stadium. 

The shelter in place was lifted at around 8 p.m., and we rushed to the top of the stadium. Still, we were told to wait, and that we couldn’t go to our seats. Every 20 minutes the speakers would broadcast a message telling us to go back downstairs, while staff were telling us to stay where we were. 

When we were finally allowed to go to our seats, around 9 p.m., almost our whole section had lost steam. Everyone was drenched, and we sat patiently as we watched the crew mop the rainwater off the stage.

Beyoncé finally came on at 10 p.m. on the dot, and the entire stadium erupted. 

Beyoncé is one of few artists that can open for herself, and she did. The opening act of the show was equivalent to a church service, featuring ballads such as “Dangerously in Love,” “1+1” and a tribute to Tina Turner with “River Deep, Mountain High.” Hearing “Flaws and All” live was most definitely a religious experience.

The show then quickly takes a turn, as the stage turns into a movie screen broadcasting the most bizarre sci-fi short film you’ve ever seen and we transitioned into the “Renaissance” section of the show. 

“I’m that Girl,” “Alien Superstar” and “Cozy” are three powerhouse songs. The entire “Renaissance” album is a tribute to the Black and queer pioneers of House music, and the tour is an ardent celebration of that. 

The “Renaissance” section of the show is a display of self-love, as Beyoncé sings lyrics like “I’m too classy for this world / Forever I’m that girl” with some of the best choreography I’ve seen at a concert.

By the close of the section, the hours in the never-ending rain had hit the audience. About half of our section were checking weather updates or local news by the time Les Twins started their dance break.

We then moved into the “Motherboard” section of the concert. Featuring “Cuff It,” “Energy” and “Break My Soul,” this section was the most high-stakes. During “Energy,” Bey commands the crowd to go mute, and not a single stop had yet to live up to the task. D.C.’s first night had done well, but night two did even better, possibly due to exhaustion.

The section ends with a sample of Madonna’s “Vogue,” in “Break My Soul (Queen’s Remix),” paying homage to Black queens of music like Nina Simone, Janet Jackson, Diana Ross and more. 

It was at this point in the concert that the crowd was tired. Myself and maybe 10 other people were the only ones left standing to do the choreography for the “Opulence” section.

“Opulence” pays attention to Bey’s anthems of Black women’s empowerment. The section kicks off with “Formation,” and goes through songs like “Diva” and “Run the World (Girls)”. The most anticipated song of the night “My Power” did not disappoint as Blue Ivy Carter rose from the stage to do her viral choreography with her mom. Her dance break was cut short, however, likely a casualty of the rain.

We then moved on to “Anointed,” which arguably took the biggest hit because of the rain. Typically, during this section, Bey does a total of six songs, but it was cut to four. I’m still mourning the chance to scream-sing “Love on Top.”

Next comes “Anointed Pt. 2,” my favorite section. Not only does Beyoncé wear the most stunning bodysuit, the section contains my favorite songs from “Renaissance,” “Move” and “Virgo’s Groove.” It did not disappoint. Being able to shout “Uncle Johnny made my dress / that cheap Spandex she looks a mess” is a right of passage for any member of the hive. 

The show closes with the “Mind Control” section, which made headlines when Bey first stepped out in her now-iconic bee costume. By this point, the stadium was a quarter empty, as people either gave up on standing in the rain or wanted to beat traffic. This did not stop Beyoncé or her dancers from going all-out during the ballroom section, as ChaCha Balenciaga wiped the floor during their solo. 

The final act, “Summer Renaissance,” is simply stunning. Bey flies over the crowd in a shining silver dress as she thanks us and her crew. The moment was dampened, however, by the amount of people running to leave the stadium. You could barely hear her over the frantic footsteps of people running to make it out before traffic or to catch the metro.

This brings up a key problem with FedEx Field. It’s completely inaccessible for events of this size. Beyoncé graciously paid $100,000 to keep the Metro open until 1 a.m., but that was only half an hour after the show ended. 

We had reserved an Uber to pick us up at 1 a.m. at an apartment complex a 15-minute walk from the stadium. After waiting for half an hour, our driver called to let us know that Uber was trying to cancel our ride because there was so much traffic, and that we’d have to meet him at the gas station a mile away because he couldn’t go anywhere. Meanwhile, there is absolutely no cell service in the area surrounding FedEx, so communicating with him via the app was near impossible.

We made it back to our apartment at about 2:30 a.m., two hours after the concert ended. 

All of this to say, the Renaissance World Tour is still the concert of a lifetime, and shouldn’t be missed. But next time Beyoncé wants to come to the DMV, let’s hope she hits Baltimore, or you’ll catch me on the train to MetLife again.