Fans weren’t the only ones who thought Beyoncé was going to pop out for a surprise appearance at this year’s Democratic National Convention.
Source: Kevin Mazur / Getty
Veteran producers Ricky Kirshner and Glenn Weiss were in charge of this year’s Democratic National Convention, drawing a crowd of more than 26 million people on Thursday night to watch Vice President Kamala Harris accept the presidential nomination.
While the event was filled with memorable moments and celebrity appearances, there was one big appearance that didn’t pan out–but according to the producers, it was never supposed to.
Kirshner and Weiss spoke to The Hollywood Reporter after the convention about how they pulled it off and, of course, what really happened with that Beyoncé rumor. According to Kirshner, even his staff believe the rumors, but he insisted that Kamala was more than enough on her own.
“We never put out anything about Beyoncé,” Kirshner explained to the outlet. “We denied it every time the media asked us — even though, by the way, people on my staff didn’t believe me. I kept getting texts from news organizations saying, ‘When is Beyoncé coming out?’ But come on, we have the biggest star, the Democratic nominee for president. Why would we overshadow that?”
Weiss added, “This is the internet taking on a life of its own and people taking something as fact — literally to the point that people in my booth are saying, “Is she coming? You can tell me.” And I would say, “I have no knowledge she’s coming.” And they would say, “No knowledge? So there’s something to know!” It was pretty crazy. But she wasn’t coming. In the end even TMZ had to issue an apology.”
The pair also spoke on how they managed to balance the celebrities that did appear onstage versus the politicians, always prioritizing the task at hand.
“We’re smart enough to know that what we’re there to do is get the message out about the Democratic side,” Kirshner said. “The celebrities help us do that for sure, but we have to keep the ultimate goal in mind. We had Pink [on Thursday]. She was amazing. But it was Pink with a beautiful song, not Pink flying in from the rafters. She was singing the right thing at the right time and it fit the moment beautifully.”
As for their favorite political moment at the convention?
“Michelle [Obama] killed it, obviously. And Doug [Emhoff]’s speech. It was so warm and human,” Kirshner concluded.
