<p id=”par-1_30″><a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/tag/beyonce/”>Beyoncé</a> often needs to be in a specific headspace when she <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/beyonce-photographer-explains-performance-style-differs-kanye-wests.html/”>goes on stage to perform</a>. One of her habits during her preparation process was not making direct eye contact.</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-how-beyonce-gets-over-nerves-before-doing-live-shows”>How Beyoncé gets over nerves before doing live shows</h2>
<figure class=”wp-block-image size-full” id=”emb-1″><img decoding=”async” src=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/wp-content/uploads/2024/06/performance-beyonce.webp?strip=all&quality=80″ alt=”Beyonce singing during the Pepsi Super Bowl 50 Halftime Show in a black outfit.” class=”wp-image-3682383″><figcaption class=”wp-element-caption”>Beyoncé | Ezra Shaw/Getty Images</figcaption></figure>
<p id=”par-2_37″>Although Beyoncé has performed in front of several large crowds in her career, it can still be nerve-racking. This is one reason why the artist preferred doing shows with her Destiny’s Child bandmates to on her own.</p>
<p id=”par-3_65″>“I love performing with my band. They are all female. They give me so much energy it’s like a spirit and they make me feel so much better. Performing songs for the first time is always scary. Mainly because I always come out with up-tempo numbers so I always have more room where something could go wrong. I just get nervous,” she once told <a href=”https://www.movies.ie/beyonce-knowles-talks-about-obsessed-and-wonder-woman/” target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>Movies.IE</a>.</p>
<p id=”par-4_30″>To make the process easier on herself, the singer has adopted a few habits to help calm her nerves. One of which is avoiding any eye contact with her audience.</p>
<p id=”par-5_59″>“Oh yes. I get so terrified before I go on stage. My secret is no eye contact. I find that if I don’t look directly at people and just concentrate completely on the singing and dance moves, then I can get through. But when I take that initial step onto the stage, the butterflies just go crazy,” she said.</p>
<p id=”par-6_14″>Beyoncé also shared that her typical <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/beyonce-did-her-own-makeup-before-performances-to-get-into-character.html/”>pre-show ritual</a> usually took several hours to complete.</p>
<p id=”par-7_49″>“I say a prayer with everyone in the band, then we do a stretch,” she confided to <a href=”https://www.vogue.co.uk/article/beyonce-talks-tour-rituals-epic-film”>Vogue</a>. “I sit in my massage chair while they do my hair and make-up, and I have an hour of peace, and I have a playlist that I listen to every day.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-beyonce-famously-created-an-alter-ego-to-help-her-perform-on-stage”>Beyoncé famously created an alter-ego to help her perform on stage</h2>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Beyoncé on Her Alter Ego, Sasha Fierce | The Oprah Winfrey Show | Oprah Winfrey Network” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/4AA5G8vCl9w?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p id=”par-8_53″>Aside from rituals, Beyoncé took her preparation a step further by creating another personality that made performing less daunting. She famously dubbed <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/why-did-beyonce-create-alter-ego-sasha-fierce.html/”>her alter ego Sasha Fierce</a>, who was capable of doing everything on stage that she couldn’t. In an interview with <a href=”https://www.oprah.com/oprahshow/beyonces-alter-ego/all”>Oprah</a>, Beyoncé revealed that this alter-ego only surfaced during her performances.</p>
<p id=”par-9_6″>“She doesn’t do interviews,” Beyoncé said.</p>
<p id=”par-10_24″>But being Sasha Fierce went beyond just adopting a different name. Beyoncé would dress and act differently to further immerse herself in this character.</p>
<p id=”par-11_42″>“It’s kind of like doing a movie. When you put on the wig and put on the clothes, you walk different,” she said. “It’s no different from anyone else. I feel like we all kind of have that thing that takes over.”</p>
<p id=”par-12_11″>Beyoncé also shared what usually triggered Sasha’s appearance at these events.</p>
<p id=”par-13_38″>“Usually when I hear the chords, when I put on my stilettos. Like the moment right before when you’re nervous,” she added. “Then Sasha Fierce appears, and my posture and the way I speak and everything is different.”</p>
<p id=”par-14_17″>Although, in an interview with <em>Allure</em> (via <a href=”https://www.vibe.com/music/music-news/beyonce-kills-sasha-fierce-50155/”>Vibe</a>), Beyoncé shared that Sasha Fierce wasn’t a thing anymore.</p>
<p id=”par-15_26″>“Sasha Fierce is done. I killed her,” she said. “I don’t need Sasha Fierce anymore because I’ve grown, and now I’m able to merge the two.”</p>
<h2 class=”wp-block-heading” id=”h-beyonce-quipped-that-her-feet-would-bleed-while-performing-on-stage”>Beyoncé quipped that her feet would bleed while performing on stage</h2>
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<iframe loading=”lazy” title=”Beyoncé – If I Were A Boy (GRAMMYs on CBS)” width=”925″ height=”520″ src=”https://www.youtube.com/embed/UqzKEMqKwf0?feature=oembed” frameborder=”0″ allow=”accelerometer; autoplay; clipboard-write; encrypted-media; gyroscope; picture-in-picture; web-share” referrerpolicy=”strict-origin-when-cross-origin” allowfullscreen></iframe>
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<p id=”par-16_50″>Beyoncé confided that performing could be as physically taxing as it was mentally. Because she found herself constantly on the move when on stage, it often took a toll on her feet. But <a href=”https://www.cheatsheet.com/entertainment/who-has-won-more-grammy-awards-beyonce-or-michael-jackson.html/”>the Grammy winner</a> usually didn’t know how much she was hurting until after she was done performing.</p>
<p id=”par-17_60″>“Sometimes they’re numb. Sometimes they’ll bleed,” Beyoncé once told <a href=”https://abcnews.go.com/Entertainment/beyonce-empowering-women-honored-star-clint-eastwood-film/story?id=13977062″ target=”_blank” rel=”noreferrer noopener”>ABC News</a>. “It’s just like a ballet dancer, but I don’t even think about it. I’m just usually so focused on the stage and the connection with the audience that I don’t even feel my feet until I leave the stage. Then I’m at home and I’m like, ‘Oh, my God.’”</p>