Pregnant and also Powerful: A Look taken-back as Serena Williams, Beyoncé and More Stars Who Put on Stellar Performances While Expecting..

There is no arguing that, historically speaking, being a working woman and being pregnant was not always a positive thing.

And before you even try about arguing that, let us provide one quick example: When Judy Garland became pregnant in 1941 (aka before the Screen Actors Guild), MGM executives along with her mother and her husband at the time, composer David Rose, "advised" she get an abortion in order to prevent from damaging her wholesome physique and she did. 

Moreover, as time has gone on and women have sought more rights and more equality in their work place, things have slowly but surely started changing. Just look at the amount of "bad ass" headlines tennis GOAT Serena Williams has made after She  announced her pregnancy this week.

Pregnant Performers

It is athletes, celebrities and great names like her who we can thank for helping to move the society beyond the pregnant-in-the-workplace stigma, but for empowering us with their courage and strength.

Here is a look at more pregnant stars who put on powerful show in the past:

Serena Williams Wins 2017 Grand Slam: Further proving her GOAT status, the tennis star defeated her sister Venus Williams to win her 23rd Grand Slam in January...with two months pregnancy.

Beyoncé Performs at the 2017 Grammy Awards: The superstar took the stage at the 2017 Grammy Awards—four days after announcing that she was pregnant with twins—for a powerful performance that gave us chills.

Obviously, this was not Queen Beyonce’s first pregnant performance. The songstress announced she was expecting her first child, Blue Ivy, at the 2011 MTV VMAs.

Audra McDonald Performs Tap Dance at 2016 Tony Awards: The 45-year-old climb the stage at the 2016 Tony Awards to perform a tap dance tribute to Shuffle And  heavily(five months) pregnant with her second child. 

She gave birth to daughter Sally James McDonald-Swenson on Oct. 19, 2016.

Ali Wong Performs One-Hour Comedy Special in 2016: The comedienne did what no other woman had done before...she put on a one-hour stand-up comedy show with seven-and-a-half months pregnant .she kicked off the Baby Cobra Netflix special, noting how you do not see a lot of comediennes taking the stage while pregnant because they just don't. 

"I had so much anxiety about my stand-up career taking a big hit, so I wanted to use my pregnancy as a source of power and turn it into a weapon instead of  weakness," she told Ellemagazine of her decision to do the special. "When you are pregnant, you are hungry, fat, and tired, so you have this 'I do not give a f--k' attitude that lends itself really well to performance. You let go of all pride and shame, and it is beautiful."

Kerri Walsh Jennings Wins Gold at 2012 London Olympics: The American volleyball player took home with her third gold medal at the 2012 London Olympics with five weeks pregnancy unknowingly.

" I was throwing my body around fearlessly, and going for gold for my country, I was pregnant," she told Today shortly after the games. "At some point, you are late and then you start feeling something. And I started feeling something in London."

Thus, none of it affected her performance on the court . "I gave everything I had. At the end of my tunnel was this next phase, expanding my family," she said. "I wanted to earn that third gold."

 

Nur Suryani Taibi Competes as a Riffle Shooter at teh 2012 Olympics: Walsh Jennings was not the only pregnant athlete at the 2012 summer Olympics. Nur Suryani Taibi was not only the first woman from Malaysia to compete in sharpshooting at the Olympics , she was 8 months pregnant.

Though she claimed she had to adjust her stance to compete, she said the weight actually helped her maintain more stability of the gun. Taibi did not make it beyond the qualifying rounds of the London Games, but she holds the title for most pregnant woman to ever compete in the history of the Olympics.

 

Lynsey Addario Photographed Somalia in 2011: The Pulitzer Prize-winning international war and reportage photojournalist was five months pregnant when she went to Somalia to take photos of malnourished children in the Horn of Africa. It was there, she felt the kicking of her child  for the first time.

Jennifer Lawrence is set to play the photo in an upcoming movie about her life, It is What I Do..

MIA Performs at the 2009 Grammy Awards: The singer took the stage for a high-energy performance of "Swagga Like Us"  alongside Kanye West, Jay Z and more...but it was not her actual performance that had everyone talking. Rather, MIA showed up baring her glorious baby bump on what was supposed to be her due date!

Amy Poehler's Raps on SNL in 2008: The comedienne was joined by Sarah Palin on Saturday Night Live! in 2008 during which she performed a rap about the Vice Presidential candidate with nine months pregnancy of her first child.

Seth Meyers had called it the most "historic" moment for him on the show.

"It was the last show Poehler did before she had her first son, and I always just remember being like, 'This is just the just this weirdest job. This is strange,'" He said on Watch What Happens Live. "'This is a woman who is running to be the vice president of this country and Poehler is just yelling at her.'"

Poehler gave birth a week later.