Blue Ivy Carter Didn’t Have to Prove Anything on the Renaissance Tour. She Did It Anyway.

Before Blue Ivy Carter entered the world on Jan. 7, 2012, her life was already under attack. Her existence was questioned when her mother, Beyoncé, faced bogus fake pregnancy rumors, even after her famous baby bump reveal at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards. Then, there were the comments about Blue’s hair, starting when she was only two years old. Her curls and coils became the butt of internet jokes, with some imposing their standards of what a young Black girl’s hair should look like (as if there is one). The brutal discourse during Blue’s formative years could’ve easily broken her young, innocent spirit, but she never showed signs of hurt feelings.

After she and Bey appeared together at the latter’s Dubai concert in January—where they performed their “Brown Skin Girl” collaboration for the first time live—the mother-daughter duo reunited on stage in Paris, France, on May 26 for the thrilling Renaissance World Tour. For her tour stage debut, Blue danced alongside the rest of her mom’s troupe with high-energy choreography to songs like “My Power” and “Black Parade”—fitting tributes to affirm Blue’s epic milestone. The heartwarming, surprise moment was a sight to behold, making international headlines and going wildly viral on social media. But amid all the praise from fans, there was more criticism.

At the start of the Renaissance tour, online trolls commented on Blue’s dancing, and, unfortunately for her, she read a lot of their negative commentary. According to Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé, now in theaters, the singer initially hesitated to let her daughter dance onstage with her, both because of her young age and from personal experience. Stage life—while facing thousands of fans in stadiums across the world—can be demanding for a child, especially when your mom is Beyoncé, one of the hardest-working artists in the game. But Blue took all of the pressure in stride. She made a deal with her mom that if she practiced hard enough, she could join the tour for a one-time appearance. After seeing her critics’ comments, though, she made it a personal mission to dance for the remaining dates as well. “That’s when Blue Ivy went and started practicing and practicing, and basically saying, ‘I’ll show you,’” her grandfather, Mathew Knowles, recalls in the film. “That’s a Knowles right there.”

Blue Ivy Carter performing during the Renaissance World Tour in London, England.

Blue wasn’t obligated to return to the stage after seeing what haters had to say. The accomplished 11-year-old— the second youngest person to win a Grammy Award, a Guinness World Record holder, the narrator of a New York Times bestselling book, and the daughter of music royalty, who’s never seen a glass ceiling in her whole life (word to Beyoncé)—didn’t have to prove anything to anyone on the Renaissance tour. She did it anyway, though—again, again, and again. Not just to prove naysayers wrong but to finally reclaim her confidence after years of being bullied and taunted in the spotlight because of her famous bloodline.

“Blue comes up fighting against all the negativity that was put on her just because she was our kid,” Beyoncé says of Blue’s fearlessness in her film. As the “My House” singer puts it, after years of being marred by disapproval, “She was ready to take back her power.”

Blue’s personal renaissance was especially rewarding for her parents, who watched her looks, talents, and actions face public scrutiny for years. Speaking to Gayle King for CBS Mornings in October, JAY-Z reflected on Blue’s awe-inspiring tour journey, noting that despite his daughter’s nervousness and fear, she was adamant about hitting the stage. “With Blue, what makes me super proud and, you know, I still get goosebumps seeing her walk on stage is ’cause Blue’s been born into a life she didn’t ask for,” he said. “Since she’s been born — she’s been in scrutiny and [the] public eye and everyone having an opinion … So for her, to be on that stage and reclaim her power, and the song is called ‘My Power,’ you can’t write a better script.”

Similarly, Beyoncé had nothing but delightful things to say about their daughter’s tour breakthrough, proudly telling Blue in the Renaissance film, “I feel so honored to be on stage with you … And you are handling it, and you are thriving, and I am so proud of you.”

With a tribe of support surrounding her during the Renaissance tour, Blue took back what the public has tried to rob her of for years: pride in herself. But thanks to guidance from her tour family — notably Beyoncé’s co-dance captain, Amari Marshall, whom the icon thanked profusely for the “generosity, support, and love” she showed Blue— and encouragement from fans worldwide who not only rooted for her at every tour date, but also saluted her growth by the end of it, Blue came out stronger, wiser, and a better performer than when she first stepped onstage. She showcased her gifted talents yet again and rewrote her story of resilience so she could no longer be labeled just another celebrity kid but an icon in the making.

Since the day she was born, the general public taught Blue there was no room for error in her life. That celebrity children must always be perfect because their every move, accomplishment, and failure is under a microscope. But the beautiful lesson we’ve seen the budding superstar learn, which we could all heed, is how to turn hate into motivation, adversity into triumph, and lemons into lemonade, just like her mom.

In a world where young women, especially young Black women, are told all the things we can’t be, it’s refreshing to see someone as young and driven as Blue push back against doubters and find her strength. As a kid, I can’t say I saw many role models my age be as bold and brave as her, determined to pave her way in spaces where we’re not always welcome. Often, we have to fight tooth and nail just to meet an impossible standard of excellence, but Blue is proof that we can define that expectation for ourselves. She’s a living testament to other young girls and women, celebrities or not, that although we can’t escape judgment in this world, we can find a way to take control of it.

Njera Perkins is a freelance entertainment and culture writer whose work has been featured in Refinery29, Dazed, BET.com, and more. She previously served as Associate Editor of Celebrity and Entertainment at POPSUGAR.