Unreleased Beyonce music, concert footage plans stolen from her choreographer’s car in Atlanta

WASHINGTON – Computer drives containing unreleased music by American superstar Beyonce and plans related to her concerts were stolen in Atlanta, Georgia, police said on July 14, with a suspect still at large.

The items were stolen from a rental car used by her choreographer and a dancer on July 8, two days before the pop icon kicked off the Atlanta leg of her

Cowboy Carter tour

, a police incident report said.

Choreographer Christopher Grant, 37, told police he returned to the car to find its rear window smashed and luggage stolen.

According to the report, the stolen items included a set of hard drives which contained some unreleased music; set lists for past and future concerts; and footage plans for one of the singer’s upcoming shows. The hard drives also contained watermarked music, and a digital identifier used by recording artists for copyright purposes and to prevent piracy. A MacBook Air laptop was also reported stolen.

Police investigated an area where the MacBook and headphones had pinged their location, but the report did not mention any items being recovered.

The Atlanta Police Department said in an online statement that a warrant had been issued for an unnamed suspect’s arrest, but the suspect remained at large.

The Cowboy Carter tour kicked off in April.

Beyonce, 43, took home her first Album of the Year Grammy for the 2024 album in February. The sweeping country-themed work saw her stake out musical territory in a different genre from much of her previous discography.

The ambitious, historically rooted album aimed to elevate and showcase the work of other black artistes in country music, whose rich contributions the industry has repeatedly sidelined.

As her stadium tour to promote the album winds down, Beyonce ended her four-night stint in Atlanta on July 14, with two final performances set for late July in Las Vegas. AFP