When Beyonce dropped new music during the 2024 Super Bowl, it was just the start of her country album era!
The Kansas City Chiefs came back to defeat the San Francisco 49ers that night in a thrilling overtime contest that earned the squad its third Vince Lombardi Trophy in five years.
Very impressive, we guess – but the entire Super Bowl LVIII experience was dominated instead by music’s two biggest female solo artists. Sorry, Usher!
As expected Taylor Swift was in attendance to cheer on boyfriend Travis Kelce… chug beer… and help fulfill a Joe Biden-led conspiracy.
She didn’t make every entertainment-based headline, however. Not like at the Grammys.
But Beyonce! Oh Beyonce!
Beyonce’s New Music Announcement At The Super Bowl
Beyonce starred in a Verizon commercial during the game that challenged the singer to break the company’s Internet connection by making one viral announcement after another.
Most of these were silly and fictitious, such as Beyonce launching herself into space, until the global sensation dropped some actual news at the very end of the ad:
SHE’S COMING OUT WITH NEW MUSIC!
As confirmed on Sunday night via Beyonce’s website, the artist is coming out with a new album. At the time, it was only identified as “Renaissance: Act II.”
But not only that, she dropped two songs off the album the very same night that have since gone viral: “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages.”
Immediately, fans picked up on the fact that there’s a little bit of country in those jams!
And thus, a new era of Beyonce was born!
Beyonce’s New Album Release Date & Sample Lyrics
Mark your calendar, because Act II, aka Cowboy Carter, as the album is so titled will drop on March 29, 2024.
A whole month before the Taylor’s next album, Tortured Poets Society, we might add. Good planning, ladies!
As for the music, when you hear these first two songs, you will see just how much Beyonce is in your country era.
“This ain’t Texas, ain’t no hold ’em,” Beyonce sings as an up-tempo beat thumps in the background during the former single cited above.
“So lay your cards down, down, down, down/ So park your Lexus and throw your keys up/ Stick around, ’round, ’round, ’round, ’round,”
Good stuff, right! But wait!
The second song, “16 Carriages,” has a more melodic ballad quality.
“Sixteen carriages drivin’ away/ While I watch them ride with my dreams away/ To the summer sunset on a holy night/ On a long back road, all the tears I fight,” the singer croons.
Beyonce’s Act 1
When Beyonce dropped “Renaissance” in July 2022, she shared a statement on Instagram that explained it was merely part one of a “three act project” that she recorded during the COVID pandemic.
She referred to that album as “Act I,” and described it as “a place to dream and to find escape during a scary time for the world.”
That album, with a 1990s retro dance theme, went to number-one and was the centerpiece of her tour last year, which sold $580 million in tickets, according to the trade publication Pollstar.
Cowboy Carter is now Act II, which begs the question, with two wildly different approaches, what could she possibly be planning for Act 3?
‘Cowboy Carter’ Tracklist
Bey revealed the full tracklist with a poster on Wednesday, March 27. The album will contain:
- American Requiem
- Blackbiird
- 16 Carriages
- Protector
- My Rose
- Smoke Hour Willie Nelson
- Texas Hold ‘Em
- Bodyguard
- Dolly P
- Jolene
- Daughter
- Spaghetti (feat. Shaboozey)
- Alligator Tears
- Smoke Hour II
- Just For Fun
- II Most Wanted (feat. Miley Cyrus)
- Levii’s Jeans (feat. Post Malone)
- Flamenco
- The Linda Martell Show
- Oh Louisiana
- Desert Eagle
- Riiverdance
- II Hands II Heaven
- Tyrant
- Sweet Honey Buckin
- Amen
Beyonce Collabs With Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, and Post Malone On Cowboy Carter
While Bey is well known for sharing the spotlight with other artists, the rumors flying before Cowboy Carter’s release on who she would duet run the gambit.
Many thought Taylor might lend her voice; others were sure her husband Jay Z would join forces with her again.
But as you can see from the track list, Bey is throwing down with some entirely different names.
It includes collaborations with Miley Cyrus (“II Most Wanted”), Post Malone (“Levii’s Jeans”), and Shaboozey (“Spaghettii”).
As for country legends Dolly and Willie, the former spilled the beans that Bey would be covering her classic, Jolene, well before the album dropped. Additionally, Cowboy Carter is presented in the style of a country radio program. Country music icons like Dolly, Willie, and Linda Martell will all take turns as DJs on certain tracks.
