The musician sports a 128.54-carat stone in a new ad campaign – the jewelry company’s latest attempt to rebrand itself

Tiffany & Co.’s new About Love campaign is a celebration of modern love and an internet sensation thanks to the appearance of Beyoncé and Jay-Z. In the initial images released on Monday, Beyoncé is wearing a curve-clutching black dress which drapes the floor while highlighting her figure, as well as mesh evening gloves—a look reminiscent of Audrey Hepburn’s ensemble in the 1961 film, Breakfast at Tiffany’s—while Jay-Z exudes sartorial elegance in a black tux, silk bow tie, and diamond-encrusted brooch.

Beyoncé has become the first black woman to wear the famous yellow Tiffany diamond, in the jewelry company’s latest attempt to rebrand itself for a younger, more diverse audience.

The musician sports the “priceless” 128.54-carat stone alongside husband Jay-Z in a new ad campaign for Tiffany & Co. Beyoncé is the fourth woman, and first Black woman, to wear the diamond in more than a century.

That’s not the only milestone. Some of the photos show the couple posed in front of a large turquoise painting — Jean-Michel Basquiat’s Equals Pi. The 1982 work came from a private collection and has never been seen before in public, according to Tiffany. The context behind the painting is up for interpretation, but people have speculated that Basquiat’s text, “Knowledge of the Cone”—depicted at the top of the painting—is a reference to Edgar Dale’s Cone of Experience model, which suggests that people learn better from actively doing and practicing rather than just reading, listening, and observing. This is also a personal first for the Carters. It’s the first campaign they’ve appeared in together, and Tiffany describes it as “an exploration of connection and vulnerability.” Beyoncé and Jay-Z, who got married in 2008, have a well-documented history of ups and downs

The current Beyoncé and Jay-Z ads have rolled out like an old-fashioned album campaign, but the first twist in the company’s rebrand came in May when it debuted its first-ever engagement rings for men. The company called the signets “a modern and bold departure from the traditional wedding band”.

Tiffany & Co. is also pledging $2 million toward scholarship and internship programs for historically Black colleges and universities, with more details on the initiative to come.

The company says it will release a film by director Emmanuel Adjei — who was also involved with Beyoncé’s 2020 visual album Black Is King — that includes a rendition of “Moon River” “reimagined with vocals by Beyoncé.” That song was written for Hepburn to perform in Breakfast at Tiffany’s.