Beyoncé has paid tribute online to O’Shae Sibley, a 28-year-old dancer murdered while voguing to the beloved singer’s Renaissance album at a Brooklyn gas station. On August 1, Beyoncé wrote out a tribute to Sibley on her official website.
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“REST IN POWER O’SHEA SIBLEY,” Beyoncé wrote. Sibley was an active professional dancer, having performed at Lincoln Center in the past. Sibley was also part of the modern dance company Ailey Extension.
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According to The Independent, Sibley and his friends waited for their gas tank to be filled up in the parking lot of a Mobil gas station in Coney Island on the night of July 29. While waiting, Sibley began voguing to Beyoncé’s 2022 album, which caused a group of men to confront Sibley and tell him to stop dancing.
After the men approached Sibley, a brawl broke out. Sibley was fatally stabbed during the altercation. The suspect, who is still at large, is a 17-year-old boy who reportedly informed Sibley and his friends that their dancing offended him.
Ailey Extension recently released a statement regarding Sibley’s tragic passing. “We are shocked and heartbroken that O’Shae’s life has been taken by senseless violence and extend our sincere condolences to his family and loved ones,” the organization stated.
Sibley’s neighbor, Beckenbaur Hamilton, opened up to CBS about his grief stemming from the tragic occurrence. “I’m so angry, really angry and that’s a life lost over a simple thing,” Hamilton said. “They could have argued and could’ve talked and just left. They didn’t have to bring the violence in.
“They were dancing. They were filling up on gas, but they were voguing, doing crazy, I can promise you,” Hamilton added. “I wasn’t there, but I can tell you just from what I saw that’s just how they are. He comes out here and stops the music and just starts dancing and voguing and carrying on.”
Beyoncé’s tribute to Sibley is not the first act of kindness performed by the “Hold Up” singer in recent memory. Singer Tori Kelly revealed that shortly after it was disclosed that she was in the ICU suffering from blood clots, Beyoncé made a heartfelt gesture.
On August 1, Kelly made an Instagram post highlighting her release from the hospital, and it included a message from a loved one revealing Beyoncé’s gesture. “Hi! Hope you’re feeling good! Beyoncé sent flowers to the house. No one was home so they left them under this tree,” the text revealed.
Photo by Kevin Winter/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
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