Beyoncé Details Inspirations For 'Cowboy Carter', Says She 'Did Not Feel Welcomed' In Country Music

Beyoncé has taken to social media to detail the inspirations behind her forthcoming country album, Cowboy Carter, and shared the official album artwork. She shared the post upon revealing the LP’s ten-day countdown.

The album art finds Beyoncé sitting on a saddle on a horse and holding the reins. She wears red, white and blue, donning a sash with the words Cowboy Carter on it. She also holds an American flag as the horse moves, her hair flying.

While Beyoncé thanked her fans for supporting her latest singles, Texas Hold ‘Em and 16 Carriages, and said that she felt honoured to be the first black woman to have the #1 single on the Hot Country Songs chart, she revealed that the album was born out of adversity.

“This album has been over five years in the making. It was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t,” Beyoncé wrote, referring to her performance at the 2016 CMA Awards, in which she performed the Lemonade track Daddy Lessons with The Chicks. The singer was met with backlash and outrage about her place in country music.

She continued, “But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive. It feels good to see how music can unite so many people around the world, while also amplifying the voices of some of the people who have dedicated so much of their lives educating on our musical history.”

The criticisms Beyoncé faced when she first entered country music inspired her to push beyond the limitations forced on her. Cowboy Carter – or Act II, the follow-up to 2022’s Renaissance – results from Beyoncé challenging herself.

Later in the post, Beyoncé hinted at collaborations on the album. “I have a few surprises on the album, and have collaborated with some brilliant artists who I deeply respect,” she wrote. “I hope that you can hear my heart and soul, and all the love and passion that I poured into every detail and every sound.

“This ain’t a Country album. This is a ‘Beyoncé’ album,” she added, revealing that her aim for Cowboy Carter is to reach a point where “the mention of an artist’s race, as it relates to releasing genres of music, will be irrelevant.”

You can view the post below.

Cowboy Carter will be released on Friday, 29 March. You can pre-order limited edition copies of the album here or pre-save/pre-add it to your streaming library here.

In a recent interview, Dolly Parton indicated that Beyoncé might have covered her beloved hit, Jolene, on Cowboy Carter.

Responding to whether Beyoncé has covered a Dolly Parton song, Parton replied (via Knox News), “Well, I think she has! I think she's recorded Jolene, and I think it's probably gonna be on her country album, which I'm very excited about.”

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