Beyoncé’s groundbreaking album “Cowboy Carter” was notably absent from the list of nominees for the 58th Country Music Association (CMA) Awards, announced Monday. Despite expectations that the megastar might become the first Black woman nominated for Album of the Year, the CMA voters passed over her record-breaking project.
The CMA Awards, one of country music’s most prestigious honours, will take place November 20 in Nashville. This year’s top nominee is Morgan Wallen, who leads with seven nods, followed by artists like Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton, Post Malone, and Lainey Wilson. Beyoncé’s collaborator on “Cowboy Carter,” Shaboozey, did receive a nomination for Single of the Year with “A Bar Song (Tipsy).”
Beyoncé’s album, released on March 29, 2024, has made history by topping the Billboard Top Country Albums chart for four consecutive weeks, a first for a Black woman. Her single “Texas Hold ‘Em” also held the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart for ten weeks.
Despite these achievements and praise from fans and country music legends, the CMA snub echoes a controversial moment from 2016 when Beyoncé’s performance at the CMAs was met with backlash.
At the 2016 CMAs, Beyoncé surprised the audience with a performance of her country-tinged song “Daddy Lessons” alongside The Chicks. While the performance was loved and praised by many, there was backlash from the country music community, ultimately leading to the removal of Beyoncé’s performance from the CMA website.
When Beyoncé released “Cowboy Carter” in March, she referenced that moment in 2016 on her Instagram caption as she wrote,
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.
Final voting for this year’s awards runs from October 1 to October 29, but “Cowboy Carter” will not be in the running. Beyoncé, however, leads the nominations for the 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards with 12 nods.
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