Despite breaking onto the music scene in 1997 as a member of Destiny’s Child, Beyoncé is still dominating the music industry with every song she produces.  Beyoncé’s newest album, Act II Cowboy Carter, debuted at number 1 on Billboard Top 200. The singer released her eighth studio album and her second trilogy on March 29, 2024. Cowboy Carter is labeled a country album; however, it has many music genres, including pop, hip-hop, blues, soul, rock, etc. Beyoncé also incorporated many different artists into this album, including country singers Dolly Parton, Linda Martell, Wille Nelson, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts, Shaboozey, and Willie Jones. All of these renowned country singers add to the uniqueness and diversity of Cowboy Carter.

Beyonce structured the album very powerfully. She crafted the album where all of the songs transition between each other. All of the songs are intertwined with one another, making them hard to skip. While listening to Cowboy Carter, you are taken on a journey through many genres. In “DAUGHTER” (song in Cowboy Carter), she talks about betrayal and how her anger leads to her actions. However, in this song, she uses opera to deliver her message, which she has never done before. Another meaningful song called “16 CARRIAGES” is about the obstacles she has overcome during her many years in the spotlight. Being in the spotlight from a young age takes a toll on people, and many can’t live like that. Nevertheless, Beyonce was not one. She did deal with many challenges but overcame them and wrote about them, hence this album.   

Beyoncé produced Cowboy Carter to spotlight the contributions of Black pioneers and cultural history in her music. She recorded this album based on experiences that made her feel unwelcome. She never stated in detail why she left out, but many think it was her 2016 CMA Awards performance “Daddy Lessons” with The Dixie Chicks. Beyoncé received many racist comments from country fans who did not like the CMA’s decision to let her perform. However, she shut these fans down when she produced Cowboy Carter, showing them she had a successful place in country music.

Making history as the first Black woman to top the Hot Country Songs chart with her single “Texas Hold’Em,” Beyoncé released this catchy single on February 11, 2024, and it quickly climbed to the top of the charts. As Beyoncé’s eighth No. 1 album since the start of her career in (add year of first album), Cowboy Carter’s streams are growing daily, proving to anyone who had doubts about its success that she understands the genre.

Beyoncé posted on Instagram, saying “I feel honored to be the first Black woman with the number one single on the Hot Country Songs chart. That would not have happened without the outpouring of support from every one of you. My hope is that years from now, the mention of an artist’s race, as it relates to releasing genres of music, will be irrelevant.”