CULTURE

Lupita Nyong’o Freestyled About Beyoncé

Watch her spit fire!


The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon - Season 7
Andrew Lipovsky/NBC/NBCU Photo Bank via Getty Images

On Monday night, Lupita Nyong’o stopped by The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. And host Jimmy Fallon seemed happy to see her. “Let me just run down everything that’s happened since the last time you were on the show,” said the host. “You won an Oscar for 12 Years A Slave. You were in a couple of small films, Star Wars and Black Panther. You got a Tony nomination. And probably most important, your name is now a Beyoncé lyric.”

Fallon forgot about Us! But he was right about Beyoncé. Nyong’o was referenced on Beyoncé’s “Brown Skin Girl.” As the lyrics go, “she need an Oscar for that pretty dark skin/Pretty like Lupita when the cameras close in.”

N’yongo was thrilled when the song came out in July–she posted a video of herself dancing to the single, thanking Bey for “this gift.” And so on The Tonight Show, she busted out her own musical chops. Nyong’o rapped (very well!) as her alter-ego Troublemaker, a name bestowed upon her by Common.

“Troublemaker in the building, hey,” she began. “I feel some bars comin’, bars comin’/Much love to the Carters, Hova and Yoncé/They always big me up in a big way/I’m a brown-skin girl, so that means a lot/Hov says we made it, got an Oscar for my props.”

“Much love to Jimmy and the Roots ’cause they hot / Wrote a book about self-love / Sulwe ’bout to drop October 15th / On time to cop / Better go to commercial or these bars won’t stop,” she rapped.

Is Nyong’o (or better yet, Troublemaker) going to EGOT? Her upcoming projects include the zombie flick Little Monsters with Josh Gad and her HBO Max adaptation of Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie’s Americanah. But we hope we haven’t seen the last of Troublemaker. Watch her spit fire, below.

Lupita Nyong’o’s Best Red Carpet Moments, from 12 Years a Slave to Queen of Katwe

Lupita Nyong’o stole the show in a dramatic vermilion Ralph Lauren cape dress and minimal jewelry at the 2014 Golden GLobes.

Photo by Getty Images.

Following her red carpet hit at the Golden Globes, Nyong’o chose a similarly dramatic take on a simple silhouette for the 2014 Critics’ Choice Awards. The combination of her white Calvin Klein Collection dress, Paul Andrew shoes, and Kimberly Macdonald jewelry was simply stunning.

Photo by Getty Images

For the less formal Producers Guild Awards, the 12 Years a Slave ** star looked smart in a beige cutout dress and strappy black sandals by Stella McCartney. She added a bit of texture to the otherwise simple look with a snakeskin-printed Chesneau Heltzel Minaudières clutch and Jamie Wolf jewelry.

Photo by Getty Images

Though nothing could diminish our love for Nyong’o, her outfit of choice for the SAG Awards—a turquoise Gucci dress and matching makeup—was a little too blue for our tastes.

Ethan Miller

Nyong’o’s pretty vintage Valentino dress at Entertainment Weekly’s SAG Awards Pre-Party demonstrated her masterful style.

Nyong’o looked sweet at the Oscar Nominees Luncheon in a light pink, printed Dior dress and Paul Andrew blue velvet pumps. Mise en Dior blue pearl earrings (the trendiest accessory of the season) and a Judith Leiber clutch polished off the pretty look.

In a glamorous green Dior at the BAFTAs—accessorized with a gold metal belt and cuffs, no less—the star reminded us what Hollywood is all about.

Lupita Nyong’o in 2014.

Lupita Nyong’o in Prada at the 2014 Met Gala.

Lupita Nyong’o at the 86th Annual Academy Awards in 2014 wearing Prada.

Lupita Nyong’o at the Oscars in 2015.

Lupita Nyong’o in Gucci at Cannes in 2015.

Lupita Nyong’o at the 2015 Golden Globes.

Lupita Nyong’o in Alessandra Rich in 2015. Photo by Getty Images

Lupita Nyong’o in Dior and Sophia Webster in 2014. Photo by StartraksPhoto.com.

Lupita Nyong’o in Gucci in New York, New York, March 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Balmain on Late Night with Seth Meyers, March 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Dolce & Gabbana at Variety’s Power of Women lunch in New York, New York, April 2016.

WireImage

Lupita Nyong’o in Calvin Klein at the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute Gala for Manus x Machina: Fashion in an Age of Technology in New York, New York, May 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Boss at the 70th annual Tony Awards in New York, New York, June 2016.

FilmMagic

Lupita Nyong’o in DPipertwins at the Fem the Future Pre-VMAs Brunch hosted by Janelle Monáe in New York, New York, August 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Carolina Herrera at the premiere of Queen of Katwe at the Toronto International Film Festival in Toronto, Canada, September 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Mary Katrantzou at the Vanity Fair and Tiffany & Co. dinner in her honor in Toronto, Canada, September 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Erdem on Jimmy Kimmel Live, September 2016.

ABC via Getty Images

Lupita Nyong’o and David Oyelowo attend a screening of Queen of Katwe on September 25, 2016 in New York City.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Kibonen NY promoting Queen of Katwe at Sirius XM Studios in New York, New York, September 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Elie Saab at the premiere of Queen of Katwe in Hollywood, California, September 2016.

FilmMagic

Lupita Nyong’o in an Escada coat at The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, September 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o in Monse leaving The Late Show with Stephen Colbert, September 2016.

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Lupita Nyong’o at the 2016 Met Gala.

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