Throughout the years, Beyonce has stayed consistent ever since she debuted in the girl group Destiny’s Child in 1990. Each era of Beyonce’s career has been memorable, and once again, she has unveiled another era that has shaken the world. Beyonce has taken the country industry by storm, leaving the BeyHive in awe and the haters trolling.
Beyonce released her two new singles, “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages,” on February 11th, shortly after the surprise announcement in a Super Bowl ad. As a member of BeyHive, my friend and I screamed at the drop announcement and were eager to see what path she would take next for her upcoming album.
From her debut album, “Dangerously In Love,” to her most recent release, “Renaissance,” she has consistently grabbed the attention of her fans and mainstream media with every music release. Her timing couldn’t have been more on point.
Her iconic appearance in a Verizon Super Bowl ad was a fitting foreshadowing of the drop. The ad’s theme highlighted Beyonce’s ability to “break the internet” with every album release, concluding with her command, “Okay, they’re ready, drop the new music!” When thinking of creators, innovators, and artists who can market and brand themselves with excellence, Beyonce is a name that should come to mind.
The moment I heard “Texas Hold ‘Em,” I started to dance naturally, as the upbeat country rhythm can get anyone to start line dancing. Creators on TikTok, like Matt McCall and Dexter Mayfield, created line-dancing choreography to go with her new release, which went viral, only boosting her song even more. On the other hand, “16 Carriages” embodies more emotional storytelling with her lyrics.
With knowledge of her journey as an artist and performer, you can tell from her lyrics that this song is dedicated to her career development. In one of her verses within “16 Carriages,” the lyrics are, “At fifteen, the innocence was gone astray, had to leave my home at an early age, I saw Mama prayin’, I saw Daddy grind all my tender problems, had to leave behind.”
The song starts with how her career began with sacrifice and was supported by unconditional love from her mother and father. Country music is well-known for storytelling, and Beyonce represented the genre beautifully. However, not everyone in the country music world understood the praise Beyonce was getting, so instead, they gave her criticism and backlash.
According to the ABC News article titled, “Beyonce’s new music is sparking conversations in the country music world,” radio personality Bobby Bones addresses critics expressing negative feedback on Beyonce taking on the country music genre and standing on her songs not being country enough. Bones calls out the hypocrisy of critics praising other artists like Post Malone who aren’t known for country but venture into the music genre, but turn their backs on Beyonce doing the same thing.
Beyonce has performed at the CMA Awards, collaborated with other country artists, and incorporated a country sound into her songs like “Daddy Lessons.” Furthermore, for critics to hop on the hate train of a Black woman from Houston taking on Country is beyond ironic.
The “fake outrage,” as Bones calls this, is ridiculous and only serves to amplify the narrative of White America accepting the influence of Black culture without giving the proper credit and praise to the Black community.
Country music began with Black people and dates back to an African instrument called the Akonting, which we call today our modern-day banjo. Country music stems from enslaved people who created hymns, spirituals, and field songs.
The blues of the South, created by these enslaved people, carry the spirit of the country soul we hear today. The storytelling we praise country lyricists finds its origins in the melodies of enslaved people to express the pain, suffrage, hope, joy, love, and sadness they experienced daily.
Critics who come for Beyonce–a Creole queen from Houston, Texas– for venturing into the country music industry are turning a blind eye to the rich history of Black people’s connection to country music. Consequently, they cannot comprehend how Queen Bey reached number one on Billboard’s country songs chart with her new single, “Texas Hold ‘Em.”
Would you buy Beyonce’s possible next tickets to her Country Tour?@HerCampusSJSU