Amy Schumer on Controversial Beyoncé Formation Video: ‘It Was Never a Parody

Amy Schumer on Thursday insisted the music video she made to Beyoncé’s Formation, which received intense backlash, was “never a parody” and that she had the blessing of Queen Bey herself to publish it.

The comedian fully addressed the controversy she sparked with her recreation of Beyoncé’s empowerment anthem in a Medium post that emphasized how much she loves the singer’s Lemonade album.

“I did not mean to detract any of the meaning from the video. I am of course horrified and sickened by the events that are addressed throughout that video and didn’t see this as minimizing that and still don’t,” Schumer wrote. “It was NEVER a parody. It was just us women celebrating each other.”

“If you watched it and it made you feel anything other than good, please know that was not my intention,” she added. “The movie we made is fun and the women in it are strong and want to help each other. That’s what it was about for me. Of course I had Beyoncé and Jay Z’s approval. They released it on Tidal exclusively for the first 24 hours.”

Schumer’s video featured her singing and dancing along with Goldie Hawn, Wanda Sykes, Joan Cusack and Raven Goodwin. Critics on social media called it racist and ignorant.

Schumer first responded to the fury with an Instagram post in which she borrowed another line from Beyoncé. “You know you that b-tch when you cause all this conversation,” Schumer said. “Thanks for the exclusive release Tidal! We had so much fun making this tribute. All love and women inspiring each other.”