*Beyoncé has made a key visual change to her Cowboy Carter Tour following a legal warning from Sphere Entertainment Group.
The Grammy-winning artist was using imagery in her stage visuals that showed a larger-than-life version of herself walking through the Las Vegas skyline and lifting the iconic Sphere venue, an interlude that sparked both fan excitement and legal concerns. The Sphere’s parent company, led by owner James Dolan, issued a cease-and-desist letter, objecting to the use of its likeness without authorization.
In the letter, attorney Kathleen McCarthy from King & Spalding accused Beyoncé of violating its intellectual property rights, emphasizing that it had never permitted the Sphere to appear in the visual sequence. McCarthey wrote, “SEG was never asked and the prominent appearance and manipulation of SEG’s Sphere venue in the video is unauthorized.”
The legal letter also noted that the unauthorized imagery “has resulted in significant speculation that Beyoncé will end her tour with a Sphere residency,” something Sphere Entertainment Group clarified was never discussed.
Facing a May 5 deadline to remove the visual or face potential legal action, Beyoncé’s team responded swiftly. During her May 4 performance at SoFi Stadium in Los Angeles, the controversial Sphere footage had been replaced with visuals of Allegiant Stadium, the actual site of her tour’s finale this July. Bey’s Parkwood Entertainment team also shared the updated interlude on Instagram during the show, check out the post below.
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Beyoncé’s nine-city tour will take her across the U.S. and Europe, concluding with a major show in Las Vegas on July 26.
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