Beyoncé, Cowboy Culture and American History

cowboy carter

All of this conversation has lead to great learning, listening, and revisiting of Americana - from cowboys to country music, culture to history.

By now you have no doubt listened to Beyoncé Act II album “Cowboy Carter”, which she has called “a Beyoncé album, not a Country album”, despite despite its imagery, Western aesthetic, and country music homages. In her words: “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.” (If you remember her incredible performance of her song ‘Daddy Issues’ song with the Dixie Chicks at the 2016 CMT awards, then you know this is likely what she is referring to.) Beyoncé is of course a magnificent talent, brilliant, and meticulous with her music references, which are abundant on this album so I would suggest reading the following articles and reviews for the details: Rolling Stone, Vulture, NY Times, NPR, and so many more.

A Brief History of the American West and Cowboy Culture

It’s amazing how quickly history is either forgotten, or rewritten (hello, colonialism), but the great thing about the conversation stemming from this album, it that it gives everyone an opportunity to learn , listen and revisit. While popular media back in the day would make you think Cowboys were are White men who looked Like John Wayne, that was far (far) from the truth. The original cowboys were essentially Mexican, Spaniards, and indigenous peoples, stemming from traditional Spanish who colonized the territory now known as Texas. Many of the clothing style stemmed from Mexican Vaqueros, and that turquoise jewelry you see all over the Southwest and worn by country music stars - you can thank Native Americans for that. Additionally, early Spanish missionaries actually trained Native Americans as cattle herders, leading many indigenous peoples to adopt ranching into their economies. At a certain point in Texas, 1 in 4 cowboys was Black. As a Texan herself, Beyoncé is rooted in this history and knowledgeable on the culture. See the map below circa 1819 on the many territories belonging to ‘New Spain’ / Mexico, that Influenced the American Southwest and ranch culture. The territories ended with a treaty, signed on February 2, 1848, that ended the war between the United States and Mexico. In a funny way, this big city gal also has ties to the Spanish/Mexican/American history as my ancestors from one side settled into New Spain/New Mexico in the lat 1550’s, and more recently in Colorado, where my namesake ran the Wild West town of Cripple Creek (which I previously wrote about). Additional Reads: History, Smithsonian, Social Studies + articles from the LA Times “Black Californians have long celebrated cowboy culture” and CNN “Black rodeo culture has been overlooked”

Country Music

What even is Country music? Because it seems like a lot of those claiming to be “fans” or the genre, or defining what it is in their terms (often with racist leanings), it is clear they really don’t know the wide breadth of the artists in the space, let alone its history, which is rooted in both Black musicians and instruments, and ballads, folk songs, and popular songs of the English, Scots, and Irish settlers of the Appalachians and other parts of the South. Growing up in places like Colorado and Alberta, I never quick connected to the generic wailing ballads often played on radio, or hokey songs about beer and breakups. But I always loved Dolly Parton, Johnny Cash, Willie (and his many ‘outlaw country’ counterparts), Shania Twain, and the Dixie Chicks. And the older I got, I found out that there were so many incredible smaller artists that mixed country with bluegrass, folk, and more that bent my ear. These days, I am enjoying Tyler Childers, Sierra Ferrell, Jason Isbell, Chris Stapleton, Shaboozey, and more.

Artists who appear on “Cowboy Carter”, or who’s song were covered, include: Dolly Parton (speaking + ‘Jolene cover), The Beatles (‘Blackbird’ cover), Willie Nelson (speaking only), Nancy Sinatra (music only) Miley Cyrus (bringing her best Nashville twang), Post Malone, Raphael Saadiq (as a producer), Shaboozey, Linda Martell, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts, Wille Jones, and more.

*Dolly Parton on Jolene: A big supporter of the album, a recent interview resurfaced where she had stated that she would love Beyonce to cover ‘Jolene’ (which has been covered more that 400+ times by various artists), and really make it her own, as Whitney Houston did with her song ‘I will always love you’

*Paul McCartney on Blackbird: So many people are discovering what the real subject of the famous Beatles song was, as McCartney had written, and he said, “I had in mind a Black Woman, rather than a bird. Those were the days of the civil rights movement, which all of us cared passionately about, so this was really a song from me to a black woman, experiencing these problems in the States: ‘Let me encourage you to keep trying, to keep your faith; there is hope.’

Film and TV

Much like my early introductions to Country music, the old black-and-white western tv shows of the past were not for me, and many more since have been steeped in lazy tropes. But some classics - both for fun and substance - are: ‘‘High Noon’, The Good, the Bad and the Ugly’, ‘Unforgiven’, ‘Young Guns’, ‘Tombstone’, 3:10 to Yuma’, ‘True Grit’, among so (so) many others. Netflix has produced many lately too, from the fantastic series ‘Godless’ (which I highly recommend), and the movie ’Power of the Dog’ and ‘The Harder They Fall’, which features and all-Black cowboy cast. There really is something about cowboy culture and the great open spaces in the American west that continue to captive many, just look at the smash hits ‘Yellowstone’, and its spinoffs ‘1883’ and ‘1923’.

So, giddiup and enjoy the album - it is a wonderful journey!

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