Entertainment

Beyoncé bares all in pregnancy photo shoot

Pop superstar Beyoncé Knowles on Thursday released a slew of photos of herself posing pregnant and nude, a day after announcing she was expecting twins with her husband, rapper Jay Z.

Images accompanied by writing from Somali-British poet Warsan Shire

Pop star Beyoncé Knowles released on Thursday a slew of photos of herself posing pregnant and nude, a day after announcing she was expecting twins with her husband, rapper Jay Z. (Beyoncé.com)
Pop superstar Beyoncé Knowles  on Thursday released a slew of photos of herself posing pregnant and nude, a day after announcing she was expecting twins with her husband, rapper Jay Z.

The photos, posted on the 35-year-old singer's website, beyoncé.com, included a black-and-white nude photo, several topless shots and others in which she wears lingerie. Many were set in a floral background and showed her caressing a large baby bump. The caption on the photos is "I have three hearts."

The pictures, including some with the couple's five-year-old daughter, Blue Ivy, were accompanied by poems about motherhood and images of with her husband and during her earlier pregnancy — when rumours arose that she wore a prosthetic belly and had a surrogate carry her daughter.

The curated package was released a day after her surprise announcement broke social media records.

The Halo singer's announcement on Instagram got more than 8 million "likes" to become the "most-liked" Instagram ever, the social media company said. It also attracted 500,000 Tweets in just 45 minutes on Wednesday.

Knowles offered no comments other than her initial statement saying that she and Jay-Z "have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family will be growing by two."

On Thursday, the photos included a poem by Somali-British poet Warsan Shire.

Knowles has not said when the twins are due, nor given any details about the pregnancy. It was not clear how her pregnancy would affect plans for the Grammy Awards on Feb. 12, where she has a leading nine nominations, mostly for Lemonade, and would be expected to perform.

She also is scheduled to headline a concert at the Coachella music festival in Southern California in April.