Beyonce Drops Ivy Park Spring/Summer 2017 Collection Amid New Sweatshop Claims

Beyonce is pregnant with twins, but that is not stopping her from dropping her new Ivy Park Spring/Summer 2017 collection.

The singer just made her exciting announcement on February 1. That hasn’t prevented her from working on her other projects, however. Beyonce has also been confirmed to perform at the 2017 Coachella Arts and Music Festival with guests and will release the Spring/Summer collection for her Ivy Park clothing brand, reports HotNewHipHop.com.

The Spring/Summer 2017 collection will feature bomber jackets, hooded sweatshirts, jackets, leggings, sweatpants, and more. Most of the clothing in the Beyonce-owned label can be worn on the street or at the gym. The collection has more earth tones and khakis while including statement pieces in beautiful pastel colors. Check out the promotional video for the campaign below.

In the short clip, actress Yara Shahidi is joined by models Sophie Koella and Selah Marley (daughter of Lauryn Hill and granddaughter of Bob Marley). Also featured in the video are musicians Chloe x Halle and SZA, reports HighSnobiety.com. Beyonce, of course, is also in the video as she steals the attention away from the ladies by wearing a baby pink hooded sweatshirt and again in an anorak and olive green Ivy Park bodysuit. Some of the bodycon pieces feature lingerie-inspired leggings, including sexy bodysuits and thigh-high stockings.

Fashionista also confirmed that twins Chloe and Halle will be featured in the new Ivy Park ad campaign that will be released in March 2017. It sounds like twins is a recurring theme for Queen Bey, who just revealed on Instagram last week that she’s pregnant with twins. Beyonce’s post became the most-liked Instagram ever, beating out Selena Gomez’s cheeky Coca-Cola photo.

According to Billboard, “Ivy Park’s second campaign features fashion-forward active wear – cutout bodysuits, bold leggings and mesh-lined crop tops, all geared towards a sporty-yet-stylish look for everyday wear. Echoing the brand’s mission of female empowerment.”

Check out the rest of the photos from Beyonce’s Ivy Park campaign.

It also turns out that the clothing line is facing its share of controversy. According to a report via Digital Music News, Beyonce’s activewear line is still made under sweatshop conditions where workers only receive.54 cents per hour, inside sources say. The clothing line may be all about female empowerment, but women are still only receiving less than $1.00 per hour. Additionally, it looks like the brand is not willing to make changes to its labor abuse practices despite the accusations mounted last year.

The allegations of the sweatshop working conditions for the Ivy Park line first surfaced last year. According to a leak via Digital Music News this weekend, production contracts with the sweatshop factories are still underway. The terms of the contracts have remained unchanged and will not allow worker unions.

Back in May 2016, factory workers at the MAS factory located in Sri Lanka were found making the Ivy Park merchandise. Those workers were found to be paid.54 cents (U.S.) per hour, according to a report via UK-based newspaper The Sun.

“Poverty-stricken seamstresses making some of the clothes in the MAS Holdings ­factory in Sri Lanka earn just £4.30 a day.”

The report states that £4.30 translates to roughly $5.37 a day, which translates to about.54 cents per hour. The factory workers are in small dormitories with unsafe working conditions and common shower areas. Women are locked inside the facility at night, where they produce the Ivy Park line 10 hours a day.

After the report surfaced, the clothing line did respond to the allegations but declined to make any changes to the MAS contracts.

“Ivy Park has a rigorous ethical trading program,” the statement read. “We are proud of our sustained efforts in terms of factory inspections and audits. Our teams worldwide work very closely with our suppliers and their factories to ensure compliance. We expect our suppliers to meet our code of conduct and we support them in achieving these requirements.”

According to Daily Music News’ inside source, the statement was just PR.

“It was just trying to make [the scandal] go away for a news cycle,” the source added.

The price range of the Ivy Park line ranges from $30 to $300. Beyonce is all about female empowerment in her music, but some observers claim it doesn’t show when it comes to how her clothing line is produced.

[Featured Image by Larry Busacca/Getty Images]