Nearly two years after the RENAISSANCE began, Beyoncé returns with act ii: COWBOY CARTER!
We’ve all waited so patiently for the second act to be released.
This is a continuation of the three-act project Queen Bey worked on and an official continuation of RENAISSANCE, delivering immersive sounds unique to their own that continue the experience!
Following the official placeholder artwork released after pre-orders went live, Beyoncé unveiled the official album artwork for act ii: COWBOY CARTER on the 19th March, and released a statement marking the 10-day countdown to today’s release:
© Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, Parkwood Entertainment, LLC, Columbia Records, Spotify, Apple Music, 2022, 2023, 2024
“Today marks the 10-day countdown until the release of act ii. Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of the supporters of TEXAS HOLD ‘EM and 16 CARRIAGES. I feel honored to be the first Black woman with the number one single on the Hot Country Songs chart. That would not have happened without the outpouring of support from each and every one of you. My hope is that years from now, the mention of an artist’s race, as it relates to releasing genres of music, will be irrelevant.
This album has been over five years in the making. It was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t. But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive. 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 educating on our musical history.
The criticisms I faced when I first entered this genre forced me to propel past the limitations that were put on me. act ii is a result of challenging myself, and taking my time to bend and blend genres together to create this body of work.
I have a few surprises on the album, and have collaborated with some brilliant artists who I deeply respect. I hope that you can hear my heart and soul, and all the love and passion that I poured into every detail and every sound.
I focused on this album as a continuation of RENAISSANCE…I hope this music is an experience, creating another journey where you can close your eyes, start from the beginning and never stop.
This ain’t a Country album. This is a “Beyoncé” album. This is act ii COWBOY CARTER, and I am proud to share it with y’all!”
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter
Ahead of today’s release of act ii: COWBOY CARTER, Beyoncé shared the Limited Edition Vinyl Album Artwork.
© Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, Parkwood Entertainment, LLC, Columbia Records, Spotify, Apple Music, 2022, 2023, 2024
Two days before today’s release, Beyoncé unveiled the tracklist for COWBOY CARTER, spanning 27 tracks, on all social media platforms, featuring the various collaborations she has done with other artists:
- AMERIICAN REQUIEM
- BLACKBIIRD (Beyoncé, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy & Reyna Roberts)
- 16 CARRIAGES
- PROTECTOR (Beyonce & Rumi Carter)
- MY ROSE
- SMOKE HOUR ★ WILLIE NELSON (Beyoncé & Willie Nelson)
- TEXAS HOLD ‘EM
- BODYGUARD
- DOLLY P (Beyonce & Dolly Parton)
- JOLENE
- DAUGHTER
- SPAGHETTII (Beyoncé, Linda Martell & Shaboozey)
- ALLIIGATOR TEARS
- SMOKE HOUR II (Beyoncé & Willie Nelson)
- JUST FOR FUN
- II MOST WANTED (Beyoncé & Miley Cyrus)
- LEVII’S JEANS (Beyoncé & Post Malone)
- FLAMENCO
- THE LINDA MARTELL SHOW (Beyoncé & Linda Martell)
- YA YA
- OH LOUISIANA
- DESERT EAGLE
- RIIVERDANCE
- II HANDS II HEAVEN
- TYRANT
- SWEET ★ HONEY ★ BUCKIIN’ (Beyoncé & Shaboozey)
- AMEN
The COWBOY CARTER Era has already begun, and Beyoncé made history before the album’s release as TEXAS HOLD ‘EM secured an entire month as of the 15th March 2024 at Number 1 following the Official Charts Company’s announcement that TEXAS HOLD ‘EM became her longest-running song, surpassing Crazy In Love (2003) & Beautiful Liar (2007), and the first female solo country song to reach Number 1, and the second country record since Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road” in 2019.
I’ve got goosebumps!
The entire way through listening to COWBOY CARTER, I was in awe!
Those vocals! That opera projection throughout act ii had me transfixed because I remember hearing Beyoncé projecting her opera vocal ability when she performed at Coachella in 2018 for HΘMΣCΘMING before she went into the song, I Care, from her album, 4, and to hear Queen Bey project her voice throughout COWBOY CARTER left me mesmerised!
If you want to listen to act ii: COWBOY CARTER by Beyoncé, click/tap below to play the entire album on Spotify!
Like with RENAISSANCE, I was captivated barely a minute into AMERIICAN REQUIEM because COWBOY CARTER is an immersive experience that will have us all slow-dancing and experiencing the raw emotions Beyoncé felt when she was putting this three-act project together.
She poured her heart and soul into this album, and I could hear the rawness in her voice.
Beyoncé’s traversing across multiple genres in this album, which she said isn’t a Country album but a “Beyoncé” album, is her gift of producing timeless music that speaks volumes on a major scale unmatched by everyone else, except for Queen Bey herself!
There’s no question which song on COWBOY CARTER is my favourite because the entire album is a timeless masterpiece and is an unskippable album that will have us all dancing and sharing our genuine emotions together.
I’m forever inspired by Beyoncé’s work ethic and endless creativity.
I stand by my word with RENAISSANCE, which I’ll reiterate in this review of COWBOY CARTER, that Beyoncé’s entire discography is the magnum opus of celebrating, empowering, inspiring, and motivating everyone to dance together through the spirit of music!
COWBOY CARTER is a timeless and enthralling masterpiece that powerfully encapsulates the experiences Beyoncé went through in the process of recording this album which was years in the making, and is an empowering and powerfully crafted album that continues RENAISSANCE, with the three-act trilogy giving us all a chance to learn from the pain and heal through the spirit of music, including inspiring and empowering one another to be unapologetically and authentically ourselves.
If you enjoyed my review of Beyoncé’s hotly anticipated eighth studio album, COWBOY CARTER, please feel free to submit your feedback.
Alex Smithson
MN Album Rating: 10/10
© Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, Parkwood Entertainment, LLC, Columbia Records/Epic Records, Big Freedia, Robin Stone, Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), Destiny’s Child, Kelly Rowland, Michelle Williams, Blue Ivy Carter, Shawn Corey Carter (Jay Z), Rumi Carter, Zach Baylin, Tim White, Trevor White & Will Smith (King Richard – Production Companies: Westbrook Studios, Star Thrower Entertainment, Keeping It Reel – Film Distributed By Warner Bros. Pictures), Darius Scott Dixson, Ronald Isley & The Isley Brothers, Nile Rodgers, CHIC, The Recording Academy (GRAMMYs), Soul Train Awards, YouTube, TikTok, Spotify, Apple Music, Rolling Stone, British Phonographic Industry (BPI) for The BRIT Awards, Jacques Bermon Webster II (a.k.a. Travis Scott), Cactus Jack Records, Sony Music Entertainment, Brian Bates, Nathan Ferraro, Elizabeth Boland, Megan Bülow, Raphael Saadiq, Killah B, Atia Boggs, Dave Hamelin, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts, Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Linda Martell, Shaboozey, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone, 2022, 2023, 2024
© Full copyright of all the intellectual property/links mentioned in this review dated the 29th March 2024 goes to the aforementioned respective copyright proprietors mentioned above this acknowledgment.
Mother Nature 
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