Beyoncé Knowles pays tribute to Fela Kuti in French Magazine, L’Officiel Paris

French magazine, L’Officiel Paris features American singing sensation Beyoncé Knowles on the front cover, as a tribute to the renowned Fela Kuti, in honour of the magazine's 90th anniversary.

This is not the first time Knowles is caught up in a "skin colour" controversy. Only last week there had been rumours of the artist allegedly bleaching her skin when she turned up at the Grammy Awards looking paler than usual.

Beyoncé Knowles at the Grammys 2011



Beyoncé and Gwyneth Paltrow at the Grammys



A statement from the magazine in English reads:

“The Fashion magazine is about to celebrate its 90th birthday. To celebrathe this anniversary, the festivities start with the March issue, with Beyoncé on the cover. She agreed to pose for an incredible fashion shoot, with the theme of African Queen, paying a tribute to the legendary Fela Kuti (a political singer who died in 1997). Far from the glamourous Sasha Fierce, the beauty posed for the magazine with amazing fashion designers clothes, but also in a dress created by her mother. A return to her African roots, as you can see on the picture, on which her face was voluntarily darkened. All the pictures will be available in the collector edition, on sell at the end of this month.“

Here's a clip from the video shoot.




Photo Credits: http://www.theybf.com/; http://www.justjared.buzznet.com/