By Liv Barry
Editor-in-Chief
Although the opening lines of the album’s most popular single refute as much, Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” is, invariably, a work molded by Texas and the pop star’s Southern Black heritage.
Released on March 28, the album has been a spot of contention in pop culture discourse since its announcement earlier on Feb. 11. The tandem album announcement and release of its first two country-influenced singles, “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” sparked arguments across the internet regarding who could truly lay claim to the label of “country” — and, during political turmoil regarding race and imperialism, if showcasing American patriotism is appropriate.
While Beyoncé is no stranger to the genre — she released her first country song, “Daddy Issues,” on her 2016 album “Lemonade” — her body of work is overwhelmingly pop.
According to NPR, discourse surrounding her position as a pop star performing country first came to a head during the 2016 Country Music Awards, when Beyoncé performed “Daddy Issues” alongside country group The Chicks. She received racist backlash from viewers who believed that she had no right as a Black woman to perform in the genre.
However, Beyoncé was born and raised in Houston, Texas, a notable hub of country music and the birthplace of many “fusion” subgenres, like Western swing and outlaw music, according to Texas Almanac.
Black musicians shaped country music; according to Time, the banjo was brought to the United States by enslaved people from West Africa, and the mockery of the instrument in minstrel shows popularized the sound of what was then known as “hillbilly music.”
In “Cowboy Carter,” Beyoncé reaffirms her claim to country as a Black Texan. She noted in an Instagram post released on March 18 that the album was born out of feelings of exclusion from the genre. If the door was locked, the artist has since knocked it down.
Throughout the album, which is split into two parts, Beyoncé pays homage to country stars like Linda Martell — the first Black woman to play the Grand Ole Opry — and other legends like Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson. She samples their work and, in the case of Parton and Nelson, uses their voices as interludes between tracks. It is a joyous moment to hear Nelson, who acts as a radio announcer, spell the name of Beyoncé’s fictional radio station: “K-U-N-T-Y.”
Despite the presence of country greats, however, Beyoncé’s best work comes through when she collaborates with up-and-coming Black country musicians. On her cover of The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” the artist harmonizes with four female Black country artists: Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, and Reyna Roberts. While the song itself is nothing special — a simple cover of an age-old song — this track is one of Beyoncé’s most impressive vocal moments on the album, with her collaborators holding their own alongside her and coming together to create a whole that is greater than the sum of its parts.
The best track of the album, “SWEET ★ HONEY ★ BUCKIN,” is a product of Beyoncé and hip-hop country artist Shaboozey’s collaboration. Split into three sections, the song follows a structural arc quite similar to the album: an upbeat, country-influenced love song, a slow ballad, and finally, a bass-heavy house track. Shaboozey’s presence on the track highlights the tension between Beyoncé’s pop and country images, as he raps about introducing a lover to the joys of riding country backroads and escaping California traffic. Together, the two reiterate the thesis of the album: hip-hop, pop, and country can comfortably co-exist, and each genre is undeniably shaped by the Black musicians that came before them.
Despite the presence of country influences and an undeniable twang that rests as an undercurrent in every song, “Cowboy Carter” acts less as a straight country album and more as a fusion of different genres, like the music that comes out of Houston.
Beyoncé utilizes somewhat baffling — but nevertheless fun — samples in her songs, pulling from pop hits from the 1960s like the aforementioned “Blackbird,” “These Boots Are Made For Walkin’” by Nancy Sinatra, and “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys. Although these songs firmly exist outside of the realm of country, the artist interweaves their melodies with staples of country music like the sounds of spurs, cymbals, and guitar.
Her fusion of genres can also be traced through the artists she chose to collaborate with. Following Nelson and Parton, the two most famous voices featured on the album are Miley Cyrus and Post Malone. While their respective songs, “II MOST WANTED” and “LEVII’S JEANS,” are standout tracks on the album, one must beg the question of why Beyoncé chose these two musicians as collaborators.
Both Cyrus and Malone have complicated legacies when it comes to the appropriation of Black culture. After completing filming for “Hannah Montana” in the early 2010s, Cyrus made a sharp pivot to R&B music with her 2013 album “Bangerz,” which, according to Complex, was criticized heavily for its appropriation of Black culture in its sound and visuals. Malone shares a similar polarizing image. As a white rapper, he has been accused of cultural appropriation throughout his entire career, according to the Los Angeles Times.
However, both artists are hot commodities. In February, Cyrus swept the Grammys, winning Record of the Year and Pop Vocal Performance for her hit song “Flowers.” While Malone has not seen institutional success in recent years, he is set to be featured on Taylor Swift’s upcoming album “The Tortured Poets Department,” which was announced on the heels of Swift’s Album of the Year win for “Midnights.”
Notably, Beyoncé’s previous album, “Renaissance,” was only nominated for Album of the Year and Best Dance/Electronic Album; she won the latter.
Beyoncé hints at her motivations for featuring Cyrus and Malone on the track, singing: “A-O-T-Y I ain’t win/I ain’t stuntin’ ‘bout them/Take that sh-t on the chin/Come back and f-ck up the pen.”
The inclusion of these artists on an album that is meant to uplift Black voices in country presents an unfortunate complication regarding Beyoncé’s image: at the end of the day, she is still a millionaire seeking acclaim from an institution that, according to CNN, historically barred her Black peers from succeeding.
Despite the complications embedded in “Cowboy Carter,” Beyoncé still crafted a raucously fun, unapologetically Southern album. While it is still unclear whether the album will provide the star with her coveted Album of the Year award, or even prove her country-purist dissenters wrong, “Cowboy Carter” shows that Beyoncé can weave genres together to create her own, unique sound.
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons.
Photo Caption: In the “Cowboy Carter” cover art, Beyoncé pays homage to Black Texan rodeos of the mid-20th century.