Beyoncé makes history as first Black woman to top Country albums chart with Cowboy Carter

Our Queen Bee officially holds the number one title on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart with her new record, Cowboy Carter.

Music . Written by Nicole Lee.

Photo of Beyoncé wearing a black cowboy hat representing her country music album

Beyoncé officially holds the title for the number-one country music album with her new record, Cowboy Carter, making her the first Black woman in history to reach the top of Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.

Billboard confirmed that her newest album Cowboy Carter took the number one spot on April 7.

Following the release of the album’s lead single ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’, our Queen Bee became the first Black woman to hold the number one single spot on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart in February.

In addition to these milestones, the hive also noted that Beyoncé is also the first woman to earn dual number-one places on both the Hot Country Songs and the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs lists since the charts were created over sixty years ago.

 

While Beyoncé has said, “This ain’t a Country album. This is a “Beyoncé” album,” the collection pays tribute to country music’s Black roots.

Following the album’s success, Beyoncé has referenced how she has not always felt welcome in country music spaces. Fans have attributed this statement to the racist abuse she experienced in 2016 after she performed alongside The Chicks (formerly known as The Dixie Chicks) at the Country Music Awards.

Prior to their joint performance, country music fans called for a CMA boycott on social media. The boycott was partially related to the Chicks removing “Dixie” from their band name due to the connotation associated with the Confederate-era South.

Beyoncé’s 15-minute performance is remembered for its brilliance and for the backlash. While it was a highly-rated segment, her act was reportedly removed from the CMA’s social media channels following outrage from the country music fanbase.

 

In her Instagram announcement of the new album, she said, “The criticisms I faced when I first entered this genre forced me to propel past the limitations that were put on me.”

Likely referencing that CMA performance, she added, “Because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive.”

She added: “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 [to] educating on our musical history.”

 

Many fans were hoping Beyoncé would make a surprise appearance at last night’s 2024 CMT Music Awards. While she was not present during the event, guests said the show played her cover of ‘Jolene’ for the attendees during an advertisement break.

 

Melissa Etheridge celebrated Cowboy Carter’s success and went on to talk about how country music comes from Black artists. She said she admires how Beyoncé “pays tribute to some of the great Black country women”.

 

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