Ranking Beyoncé’s unreleased B’Day tracks

Twenty years ago, Beyoncé released her sophomore album B’Day. Today (September 4), on her 45th birthday, she celebrates the album’s anniversary with the release of a special, 31-track deluxe version. The anniversary edition contains every song from the original album, and most of the songs from the 2007 deluxe – although (sadly) she’s cut “World Wide Woman” and “If”. She’s included the original Spanish versions of “Irreplacable”, “Beautiful Liar” and “Listen”, which first appeared on Irreemplazable – the 2007 EP featuring Spanish re-recordings of B’Day tracks, along with a whole load of previously unreleased material. 

The 20th anniversary deluxe contains songs that were scrapped from the original album: “Creole,” “Back Up,” “Lost Yo Mind,” and “Can I Watch You” featuring Pharrell, as well as “Morning Dew (Donk)” which was initially recorded in 2013 for her self-titled album. Oh, there’s also five versions of “Get Me Bodied”, including a reggaeton track featuring Maluma, and four versions of “Irreplaceable”, including one that samples Selena’s “Como La Flor”.

As we know, Beyoncé is currently in the in-between phase of her album trilogy that began with Renaissance in 2022, followed by Cowboy Carter in 2024. We’re all patiently waiting for Act III (widely rumoured to be a rock album), however, some fans think that the B’Day deluxe could be a surprise Act III, with Act IV (rock) still on the way. During her Cowboy Carter tour last year, she’d often shout the words: “One, two, tres, four!” – a possible Easter egg pointing to the album roll-out and the heavily Spanish-language B’Day rerelease. 

There’s a lot going on with the deluxe. It’s essentially the same perfect record that we heard 20 years ago, but now, Beyoncé’s deepened, mature vocals duet her younger falsetto, while she leans into Latin American influence more than ever before. As for the unreleased tracks, they’re straight out of a Step Up movie and so 2006 in the best possible way. Here’s how we’d rank them.

There’s a few songs in the Beyoncé back catalogue that don’t quite fit with her “Run the World (Girls)” ethos. Before she became the almighty power-wielding artist that she is today, she had to build a foundation for herself while somewhat catering to the music industry. Yes, we got “Independent Woman”, but we also had “Cater 2 U” and “Nasty Girl”. Don’t get me wrong, we love a sexy Beyoncé song (see “Rocket”, “Dance for You” and “Ego”) but there’s something particularly virginal about “My First Time” that puts this track in eighth place.

Some of Beyoncé’s greatest songs have come courtesy of Pharrell (“Blow”, “Superpower”, “Energy” and “Sweet Honey Buckiin’” to name a few). For B’Day he gifted us “Kitty Kat”, “Green Light” and now “Can I Watch You” too. The unreleased track doesn’t really compare to “Kitty Kat” or “Green Light” – it sounds more like a Pharrell song than a Beyoncé song, but credit to the man for his contributions to one of the greatest albums of 2010s.

Forget “to the left, to the left”, it’s all about “Ya lo ves, ya lo ves”. Including the original, there are four versions of “Irreplacable” on the anniversary album, including one very special recording that features the late, great Selena, often described as the queen of Tejano music that blends Mexican and American genres. “Irreemplazable (Como La Flor)” samples Selena’s 1992 hit, “Como La Flor”. It’s a heartfelt nod from Beyoncé to the woman who inspired her to record a Spanish album. 

A new (old) classic Beyoncé shout-song. Joining the likes of “Ring the Alarm”, “Freakum Dress” and “I Care”, this track is a scream-in-the-car kind of song, primed for the angry phase of a breakup. The beat is so similar to “Freakum Dress” that it has to be the song’s B-side.

Beyoncé released this song at the end of July, triggering the countdown to today’s anniversary album. Although, this one’s a bit of an oddball. As previously stated, the song was initially recorded for her 2013 self-titled album, with the visuals seemingly taken from “Drunk in Love” B-roll. Then, last month, she dropped a remix pack, including one version of the song that featured Jay-Z, sampling The Isley Brothers’ “Between the Sheets” (which you might know better from “Big Poppa”). With “Morning Dew (Donk)”, Beyoncé pays tribute to her R&B roots – it’s a seductive brain-scratcher that you can’t help but enjoy.

Is it a coincidence that the first Step Up movie also came out in 2006? Press play on “Back Up” and you can immediately picture Channing Tatum headspinning mid-dance battle. Surprisingly, there was no Beyoncé on the soundtrack – but there definitely would’ve been if she’d released this one at the time.

There might be five different versions of “Get Me Bodied” on the album, but “Cuerpo (Tumbao)” takes the crown. Beyoncé sings in Spanish over a reggaeton beat alongside Columbian rapper Maluma. It contains at least two samples: firstly, Celia Cruz’s “La Negra Tiene Tumbao”, as well as “Satisfaction” by Benny Benassi and The Biz. Toward the end of the track, Beyoncé shouts “My Spanish is not very good-looking!” – a reference to Celia Cruz famously saying “My English is not very good-looking” while on stage.

The Beyhive has been streaming “Creole” illegally for years, but now we’ve got the official song. This track is an ode to Mama Tina and Beyoncé’s Creole heritage. While Tina Knowles was born in Texas, she was born to French-speaking Louisiana Creole parents. Beyoncé referenced this heritage previously in “Formation”, while most of the visuals from Lemonade are anchored in New Orleans. “Creole” also marks the most obvious segue into Act III. With Renaissance, she paid tribute to her uncle Johnny. With Cowboy Carter, she honoured her paternal side and her grandfather Davis Hogue (who her whiskey brand, Sir Davis, is named after). While Act III could easily lean into her maternal, Creole heritage – after all, New Orleans is widely considered to be the true birthplace of rock and roll…