Music
Beyoncé Just Revealed Her Country Album’s Title
Her “yeehaw” moment is almost here.
Over a month after announcing that her long-awaited “act ii” album, Beyoncé has finally revealed its title. As confirmed on her website, the country album, which releases on March 29, is called Cowboy Carter.
Beyoncé posted the title on her Instagram Story, sharing a striking teaser image of a red-and-white “Cowboy Carter” sash atop a saddle. The title nods to her married last name (her husband, Jay-Z, was born as Shawn Carter), a tactic she previously used for her 2013 tour, The Mrs. Carter Show.
Cowboy Carter is now available to pre-order on Beyoncé’s online store. Like with Renaissance, there are two CD boxsets with unique T-shirts, both emblazoned with cowboy-inspired imagery. There are also four different colored vinyls and two more CD options, all with a limited-edition cover that has yet to be revealed. In addition, the site promises an exclusive bonus track on all of the CDs.
Beyoncé previously broke the internet on Super Bowl Sunday when she teased new music in a Verizon commercial, before announcing “act ii” and dropping its first two singles, “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages.” Both tracks proved Bey was ready to explore her Southern roots and stake her claim in the country music world with the new album.
Since then, the singer has made history with “Texas Hold ‘Em,” becoming the first Black female artist to top Billboard’s Country Songs chart, and the first to reach number one on the all-genre Billboard Hot 100 chart with a country track.
While Bey’s foray into country has been met with resistance from some radio stations, she’s also been embraced by some pillars of country music, like Dolly Parton, who teased that one of her biggest hits would “probably” be on Cowboy Carter.
“I think she's recorded ‘Jolene’ and I think it's probably gonna be on her country album, which I'm very excited about,” Parton told Knox News, before clarifying that Bey could have just sampled or interpolated the track. “I love her! She's a beautiful girl and a great singer.”
The album marks the second part of her three-act project, which started with 2022’s house-inspired Renaissance. Much like how Renaissance emphasized the Black roots of dance and electronic music, Cowboy Carter aims to showcase the Black roots of country music and the unsung history of Black cowboys.
