Beyoncé and Jay-Z Paid Tribute to Meghan Markle In This Video

Jay-Z and Beyonce just may be as close as Americans are going to get to having royalty of our own, but when it came time for the superstar couple to accept their Brit Award, they opted to honor an actual member of the British royal family, Duchess of Sussex Meghan Markle.

The Carters received the award for Best International Group at the 2019 Brit Awards, which are the UK’s equivalent of the Grammys, on Feb. 20. Although they were not in attendance at the London ceremony, they accepted the award via a video message in which they stood beside a portrait of the Duchess of Sussex, styled as Queen Victoria. After their brief acceptance speech, the power couple turned to admire the portrait of the royal.

The Brit Awards Tweeted the video, saying “Well played”:

“Thank you so much to the Brit Awards for this incredible honor,” Beyoncé says in the video. “You guys have always been so supportive. Everything is love. Thank you.”

Jay-Z replies simply, “You’re welcome.” The couple then turns to gaze upon the portrait of Markle.

Later, Beyonce took to Instagram to explain their decision to include the Duchess in their video:

https://www.instagram.com/p/BuHvVDPgVdF/?utm_source=ig_embed

“Thank you to the Brits for the award for Best International Group,” she wrote alongside a photo of the pair posing in front of the portrait of Markle. “I won this award back in 2002 with my besties, Kelly and Michelle. How lucky am I to have been in a group with my other best friend, the GOAT Hova. In honor of Black History Month, we bow down to one of our Melanated Monas. Congrats on your pregnancy! We wish you so much joy.”

Beyonce also elaborated on her respect for Markle in a post on her website, in which she praised the royal for her advancement of race relations, writing, “She became the Duchess of Sussex following her marriage to Prince Harry of the British royal family in May 2018, becoming one of the few Black women to join a royal family. Meghan brought many Black traditions to her Royal Wedding including a Chicago-based Black pastor, an amazing gospel choir, and a young Black cellist. At the wedding, her culture was front and center, and she and Prince Harry have continued to push the race relations dialogue forward both near and far.”

The image of Markle was made by American artist Tim O’Brien, who created it for Markle’s sorority’s alumnae magazine. He told CNN that he was surprised to see the portrait in the video but supported it.

“I’m all for it,” he told CNN. “I love Beyoncé, like most people do, and Jay-Z too.”