Beyonce is the new face of H&M

Beyoncé Knowles has been photographed in the Bahamas by top fashion talent Inez van Lamsweerde and Vinoodh Matadin for a new series of beachwear and swimwear images for H&M.

The 31-year-old singer and actress said the shoot was inspired by "the different emotions of women represented by the four elements - fire, water, earth and wind." "It felt more like making a video than a commercial," she added.

H&M's head of design, Ann-Sofie Johansson announced that Beyoncé herself had creative input into the pieces, which "are full of her own personal style." The featured looks include "the perfect bodycon dress" as well as a range of summer statement bikinis.

Set to drop at the beginning of May, the video commercial was directed by Jonas Åkerlund and, rather excitingly, will be soundtracked by a new song by the star, titled "Standing On The Sun".

The campaign also features a tie-dye bikini from this year's H&M for Water collection, with a quarter of proceeds going to global water charity WaterAid. Since 2002 the initiative has raised £2,650,000 (over €3 million).