Beyonce – Concert in Barcelona in 2007 (Photo credit: Wikipedia)

By Hollywood Reporter

When producer Diplo revealed July 12 that two songs he hoped would make it onto the next Beyonce album ended up on the cutting-room floor, it stoked chatter that the project is running months behind schedule.

Like a record scratching to a halt, Beyonce, 31, is believed to have auditioned more than 50 songs for her much-anticipated fifth studio album but has decided to scrap them all and start over, a source tells THR. Among the writers potentially affected are Ryan Tedder, The-Dream, Sia, Diane Warren and Ne-Yo, who said in June that Beyonce was “still trying to figure out” a direction for the album.

The singer’s label, Sony-owned Columbia, had hoped to have new Beyonce music out by spring, which turned out to be a pipe dream. Now, it looks like a fall release may not be feasible. Columbia had its sights set on a big fourth-quarter bow by Beyonce, both to compete with high-profile releases by Universal Music’s Lady Gaga and Katy Perry and to capitalize on her massive Mrs. Carter tour. “Beyonce has had some of the biggest hits of our format, and we’re ready for the next,” says Tom Poleman, president of national programming platforms at Clear Channel.

But while the stage show goes on without new material — save for a snippet of “Grown Woman,” the song most commonly heard as the soundtrack to a Pepsi commercial — it wasn’t initially the plan to take a singer around the world for an ambitious eight-month trek (so far, 36 shows have grossed $55.6 million) while trying to juggle time in the studio.

Read More Beyonce Scraps 50 Songs Amid Album Delay.