[ad_1]
Beyoncé on Wednesday became the first black woman to score a No. 1 hit in the history of Billboard’s Hot Country Songs, after “texas holdem” debuted at the top of the list.
“Texas Hold ‘Em,” a vibrant and feel-good ode to the pop superstar’s home state, and the lead single from her upcoming eighth studio album, fell during the Super Bowlalong with another track titled “16 wagons“, immediately after a Verizon commercial starring Beyoncé.
The new album, which appears to be country, will be released on March 29 and was described as “act ii” of the three-act project that began with Beyoncé’s critically acclaimed album. Album “Renaissance”which launched in 2022.
Wednesday’s milestone marked a cultural shift for country music, a genre often seen as exclusive and that for decades has had a tense relationship with artists of color. With “Texas Hold ‘Em,” Beyoncé finally surpassed the record set by Linda Martell more than 50 years ago, when her No. 22 song “Color Him Father” became the highest-charting single by a black woman. in the history. country charts, according to Billboard.
Kevin Mazur/Getty Images for The Recording Academy
Beyoncé also became the first woman to top the country and R&B/hip-hop charts since the genre’s song charts were launched in 1958, Billboard reported, adding that she joins Morgan Wallen, Justin Bieber, Billy Ray Cyrus and Ray Charles as the only acts to have led both lists.
“Texas Hold ‘Em” also debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, just below Jack Harlow’s “Lovin on Me” and just above Kanye West and Ty Dollar $ign’s new song “Carnival.” It is her 22nd top-ten single on the overall charts, Billboard reported, indicating that there is no end in sight for the singer’s adventurous, tireless and, in most cases, legendary 27-year career.
Beyoncé’s bold foray into country sparked controversy almost immediately, after KYKC-FM, a country radio station in Oklahoma, He initially refused to play the artist. The station manager later told CBS News that he was unaware that Beyoncé had released two country songs and confirmed that she had added “Texas Hold ‘Em” to the station’s playlist.
“We’ve always celebrated cowboy culture growing up in Texas,” said Tina Knowles, Beyoncé’s mother. wrote on Instagram along with a montage of Beyoncé through the years wearing cowboy hats, in response to accusations that the singer had made an abrupt or exploitative gender leap.
“We also always understood that it wasn’t just about belonging to white culture. There’s a huge black cowboy culture in Texas,” Tina Knowles added, noting that she had taken Beyoncé and her sister Solange to rodeos annually when they were kids. , adorned in Western clothing. “It was definitely part of our culture growing up.”