Beyoncé has faced backlash from some fans after listing a limited-edition 'Bey Keeper' collector's box for $948.01 as part of the 20th-anniversary celebration of her 2006 album B'Day. The solid-pine box, limited to 500 numbered units, is designed to house and display Beyoncé vinyl records, but the records are not included.
The product launched on Friday, 4 September, which was also Beyoncé's 45th birthday. The $948.01 price appears to reference the US rendering of her birth date, 9/4/81.
The release quickly drew criticism on social media, with some commenters questioning the price of a storage box sold without vinyl. One commenter wrote, 'For that price I need you to pop out the box and perform,' while another described the price as a 'disgusting display of greed.'
The rollout coincided with the 20th anniversary of B'Day, the album that became one of the defining releases of her early solo career. Parkwood Entertainment had already unveiled a 31-track digital deluxe and a four-LP vinyl set pressed on 'Bayou Blue' with a 60-page booklet and art prints, priced at $149.98.
The wooden box, described as inspired by traditional beekeeper crates, was marketed as a display case for a Beyoncé vinyl collection, not a bundle containing records.
Reaction spread quickly across Instagram and X, where users posted screenshots of the Parkwood Entertainment store page alongside their own reactions.
Several commenters said the near-four-figure price felt excessive for a pine crate, even if it is a limited run with custom engraving. Others mocked the choice of materials, with some describing pine as a cheap wood for the price, though that assessment is subjective.
Not everyone joined the criticism. Defenders framed the item as memorabilia, noting only 500 units exist and each is numbered, which could drive future value.
'It's called memorabilia, which will be worth way more when she's no longer here,' one supporter wrote, adding that it was 'obviously not for people who can't afford it.'
Still, the product quickly drew criticism online, with some questioning why a billionaire would sell a storage crate at this level.
The price, $948.01, was set to mirror her birth date of 4 September 1981, yet critics argued the figure still felt excessive for a pine crate. Some suggested $94.81 would have been more in keeping with the date homage without the four-figure sting.
Others mocked the craftsmanship economics, with one X user claiming the box could be made for around $30 and another comparing it to a 'coffin for a hamster.'
The Bey Keeper box is separate from the music releases accompanying the 20th anniversary of B'Day. Beyoncé's anniversary rollout includes a 31-track digital deluxe edition, while the physical deluxe edition is a four-LP set pressed on 180-gram 'Bayou Blue' vinyl.
The four-LP package includes a 60-page commemorative booklet and two double-sided art prints and is priced at $149.98.
The expanded release includes previously unreleased material such as 'My First Time', 'Can I Watch You', 'Lost Yo Mind', 'Creole and Back Up', as well as Spanish-language recordings and other B'Day-era material.
