By Nash Jenkins
Sunday night’s BET Awards began with an act that wasn’t on the schedule — Beyoncé and Kendrick Lamar performing “Freedom,” the anthemic track from Beyoncé’s album Lemonade.
It was an intense, thoroughly choreographed performance, replete with flying sparks and smoke and a stage that looked convincingly like it was made of molten lava.
Beyoncé has recently taken to marketing herself as a political artist of sorts, and Sunday night’s show wasn’t an exception — it began with a voice-over from Martin Luther King Jr.’s “I Have a Dream” speech.
Watch it here.
More Must-Reads from TIME
- How Kamala Harris Knocked Donald Trump Off Course
- Introducing TIME's 2024 Latino Leaders
- George Lopez Is Transforming Narratives With Comedy
- How to Make an Argument That’s Actually Persuasive
- What Makes a Friendship Last Forever?
- 33 True Crime Documentaries That Shaped the Genre
- Why Gut Health Issues Are More Common in Women
- The 100 Most Influential People in AI 2024
Contact us at letters@time.com