It’s hard to stand next to Beyoncé and look anything less than inferior. But Ed Sheeran didn’t even try, and the internet is not pleased.
This week during the Global Citizens Festival in South Africa, the two pop stars staged a rendition of their duet “Perfect.” Beyoncé donned a glorious pink frock, and Ed Sheeran wore the T-shirt combo every high school boy bought from Target at some point in the 2000s.
Twitter quickly to pointed out the double standard of how men and women should look on stage, and, by extension, how that pressure determines what people wear in everyday life. While Beyoncé’s performance involved six outfit changes, Sheeran was allowed to walk on stage like … that.
https://twitter.com/shonfaye/status/1069933893917270016
This photo is v v v v representative of what we expect from men and women at the top of their game, isn’t it? https://t.co/cfeLw8n1aI
— Daniel (@sillyolddaniel) December 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/garlicmeg/status/1069956076467077120
The larger narrative on gender norms evaporated, though, as people realized that anyone standing next to the Beyoncé will likely pale in comparison—regardless of what they’re wearing. “That’s just what white people always look like standing next to Beyoncé,” one user wrote.
https://twitter.com/solomongeorgio/status/1070017005036560384
https://twitter.com/Drewcifuer26/status/1070040886971531264
Meanwhile, the image took on a life of its own and became—of course—a meme. One Twitter user “fixed” the image, editing it so that Sheeran looked one iota as fabulous as Queen Bey.
https://twitter.com/DrSausageThumb/status/1070022987661885440
Some related the image to other popular memes from this year, like the hot duck in Central Park and “me on Twitter vs. me on Instagram.”
beyonce is me on instagram and ed sheeran is me on twitter pic.twitter.com/XH1diYZPis
— Jill Gutowitz (@jillboard) December 4, 2018
“Beyoncé is the Central Park Glamor Duck and Ed Sheeran is a, well, any other duck.”https://t.co/H7aJlEsIKc
— R. Eric Thomas (@oureric) December 4, 2018
https://twitter.com/rachel_sennott/status/1070022011580227585
Of course, the jokes only temporarily alleviate the pain of Sheeran’s ultimate sin: committing a fashion crime next to Beyoncé herself.
H/T Mashable
