There’s been a lot of talk in the past 24 hours about how Beyoncé’s album “Cowboy Carter” didn’t receive any nominations at this year’s Country Music Association Awards, with many going as far as saying the album was “snubbed” and celebrities and journalists alike expressing their frustration and disdain towards the Country Music Association.
In many ways, “Cowboy Carter” was historic. It was the first album that can be even remotely classified as country by a female black artist, and “Texas Hold ‘Em,” the album’s lead single, likewise was the first country song by a black female to top Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart. These accomplishments are remarkable, and hopefully will open the door for more black women (and women in general) to pursue successful careers in country music.
That being said, I still don’t think “Cowboy Carter” or “Texas Hold ‘Em” was deserving of any of this year’s awards. When nominating songs and albums, the two biggest factors the Country Music Association should be looking at are song quality and popularity. As someone whose love for music goes well beyond contemporary country, listening to “Cowboy Carter” left a lot to be desired. There just wasn’t anything on there that really stood out to me, or gave me any inclination to listen to it again. The songs all give off a mass-produced, “made for TikTok” vibe to them. In a genre that’s often criticized for cliché songwriting, “Cowboy Carter” did nothing to stand out.
Although the album had a great amount of streaming success, that success was primarily driven by pop audiences. The album and single were met with a much more lukewarm reaction from people who primarily listen to country music, as the song stalled out at #33 on Billboard’s Country Airplay chart (which is determined solely by radio airplay and not streaming), while it peaked much higher on the similar Pop Airplay chart. It is important to note that even though “Cowboy Carter” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” are technically classified as country, that doesn’t guarantee the music will resonate with a country music audience (no matter how successful it was elsewhere).
Given the album’s lackluster content and popularity among country fans, it just doesn’t make sense for it to be nominated. While many would argue that the milestone of a black female having a #1 country album is enough for a nomination no matter its quality, I just don’t think that race and gender are what the Country Music Association should be the determining factors in what they end up nominating. It doesn’t make sense to blame the lack of a Beyoncé nomination on race, or even crossover from another genre, when Shaboozey and Darius Rucker are both black artists who started their careers elsewhere, crossed over to country music, and were subsequently nominated for numerous awards. Claiming that the Country Music Association is misogynistic in refusing to nominate Beyoncé would be ignoring the dozens of female artists that have been nominated for, and won, awards for Song of the Year, Single of the Year, New Artist of the Year, and many others. To claim that she was left out because she is outspoken with her political views (something not many country artists are… on either side of the spectrum) would be ignoring that Taylor Swift, Garth Brooks, Maren Morris, Jason Aldean, Hank Williams, Jr. and many others have managed to win awards despite their passionate political commentary.
Another reason I think Beyoncé was underserving of any nomination is her lack of appreciation for any of our American institutions. Country music has a strong tradition of showing respect towards our country’s law enforcement, military, first responders, etc. Beyoncé has been utterly disrespectful towards law enforcement several times in her career, and several police unions actually boycotted supervising her shows back in 2016. Beyoncé’s lack of admiration for the bravest people in our society will always be incredibly offensive, no matter how much she tries to distance herself from comments she’s made in the past. In all honesty, I hope that this is what cost her the nomination.
While “Cowboy Carter” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” both made historic chart accomplishments that shouldn’t be looked over, I don’t think the Country Music Association was under any obligation to nominate her for anything this year.
– Sam Wilson
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