Beyoncé has become the first Black woman in history to hit number one on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart with her brand new track ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’. The song topped the chart shortly after the musician released it together with another single, ‘16 Carriages’, in a surprise announcement during the Super Bowl.

With the new track ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’, Beyoncé also became just the second solo female artist to have a song at number one on the country chart. The first was Taylor Swift in 2021, when she released her re-recordings of ‘Love Story’ and ‘All Too Well’.

Additionally, Beyoncé became the first woman to hit number one on both the Hot Country Songs and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs charts since the lists began in 1958. Before her, the only artists to achieve this were Justin Bieber, Billy Ray Cyrus, Ray Charles and Morgan Wallen.

The charts, released on February 20, reflected the seven days leading up to February 15. This means that Beyoncé’s new song hit number one in only four days after it was released on February 11. During that time, the track was streamed 19.2 million times and downloaded 39,000 times in the US.

Congratulations, @Beyonce! pic.twitter.com/HlWOtORRLO

— Columbia Records (@ColumbiaRecords) February 21, 2024

This made the song jump straight to number two on the Hot 100 chart, with the artist’s other track ‘16 Carriages’ placing at number 38. Both songs are part of Beyoncé’s second instalment of the Renaissance trilogy, set to release on March 29 this year.

Beyoncé’s ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’ hitting number one in the US country songs chart is no small achievement considering the fraught history of the genre with Black artists. A high-profile example of this complicated relationship happened in 2019 when rapper Lil Nas X’s country-trap fusion ‘Old Town Road’ was removed from Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart after hitting number one. The reason for this, according to charters, was that the song wasn’t country enough.

Beyonce makes history again, becomes first Black woman to hit number one on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart. pic.twitter.com/ARt1H5pPke

— Mike Sington (@MikeSington) February 21, 2024

A similar controversy also involved Beyoncé’s single ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’, when last week a fan took to X to claim that they had requested the song at the Oklahoma-based country music station KYKC, who declined to play it. The fan also posted screenshots of the email they received, where the radio station stated: “We do not play Beyoncé on KYKC as we are a country music station.”

After the post sparked outrage among fans, KYKC posted their playlist to reassure listeners that the track was now on rotation, writing: “Lots of call coming in for Beyoncé’s Texas Hold ‘Em. It’s coming up in minutes.”