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Beyonce said it was a challenge to keep her mouth shut for three months knowing that she was about to make history as the first non-model covergirl for Sports Illustrated’s annual swimsuit edition.

“It was hard because I was so excited,” she said of keeping her November photo shoot in Miami a secret. “You grow up seeing those issues and they’re so amazing, it’s crazy that I was able to be on the cover. It’s amazing for me. They called and they said they were doing a music issue and they said they didn’t know if I would be willing to wear the swimsuits. I said I would for Sports Illustrated because it’s so classy. My mother actually designed all of the swimsuits. We have a clothing line, House of Dereon, so that was a great launch for us.” The talent, whose song “Irreplaceable” fell to No. 2 Thursday after a 10-week No. 1 reign, is shocked that the tabloids never caught wind of the photo shoot.

“I don’t know, they didn’t, it’s great,” she said. “We were in Miami, it’s not like we were somewhere very far away. They’re iconic photographs, so I’m very happy.”

Now for the bad news…

According to Allhiphop.com and the Sandra Rose blog, some readers believe Sports Illustrated has gone too far in featuring Beyonce on the cover and choosing music as a theme for the special issue. The magazine also features models posing with such music stars as Kanye West, Three 6 Mafia, Isaac Hayes, and even the marching band from Grambling State University. “Mass readers have called in and requested to 1) cancel their subscription of the mag or 2) called them or 3) left angry messages on their message boards/blogs,” writes Allhiphop.com.

Despite all the hate, Beyonce is proud of the photos and her place in the magazine’s history. ”These are photos I can show my kids some day, so I can say, ‘See, momma was beautiful. Look how good I looked!’” she said.