Black country singers: “We are tolerated, not celebrated”

Last week, Beyoncé made history on the US country charts, becoming the first black woman to score a number one single, with her latest single Texas Hold ‘Em.

The release is the first taste of a full-length country album, a continuation of the house music-focused Renaissance, which Beyoncé has referred to as Act II.

But while she’s breaking new ground in a genre where black artists have traditionally struggled to gain recognition, there are a handful of black women who have walked that path before her.

Rissi Palmer, 42, of Missouri, is one of them. She broke a 20-year wait for a black woman to appear on the country charts with her 2007 single Country Girl. Before her, it was Dona Mason in 1987.

Speaking about Beyoncé’s achievement, Rissi said in the BBC World Service documentary OS Conversations: “I’m glad a black woman finally had a number one.

“I think it’s absolutely ridiculous that in the history of having this list, there’s only been eight of us. That’s not a good thing, that’s not a happy thing.

“She’s a Houston girl. She’s as Southern as anyone else who makes country music. One of the best things about this Beyoncé moment is that she dispelled the myth that country radio has always tried to teach artists that you have to do things a certain way so your music plays.”

It comes after a station in Oklahoma went viral for refusing to play Beyonce’s song, saying it did not consider her new material to be country. After negative reaction from fans, the station added Texas Hold ‘Em to the playlist.

But it gets to the heart of the country music experience for black artists, who long to be accepted into the genre.

Enter Holly G, from Virginia. She is the founder of the Black Opry, an organization dedicated to creating connections between black country and Americana artists.

“For someone who loves country music so much, to go so long without being involved in it, I got to a point where I was frustrated by that,” she says.

“I had to make a decision: I could stop listening to it or try to find a way to make it better. And I decided to stay and see what we could do.”

“I think the way Beyoncé is celebrated should be the norm for all black women trying to work in this space. Lately she’s being more tolerated than in the past, but still not being celebrated.”

“They’re still not included in any meaningful way. And Beyoncé topping the list doesn’t change anything structurally,” Holly says.

The Black Opry now tours the United States to champion the work of black artists and the change they want to see.

Holly expresses a sense of urgency about the cause, adding, “There won’t be another black woman at the top of the country charts, if they behave like they did before Beyoncé entered that space.”

Rissi shares his agreement, knowing full well the struggle.

“I was on a radio tour for almost a year trying to get Country Girl up the charts,” he recalls. “I wanted to talk about being black and they told me not to. So instead I put black girl Easter eggs in the song.

“I think country means something different to white people and black people in America. We don’t necessarily long for the good old days, because what were the good old days for us, you know? It was Jim Crow, it was slavery.

“We tend to look toward God, the future, and black joy,” Rissi says.

After a lengthy legal battle, Rissi lost the rights to his master recordings and parted ways with his record label in 2010. He now releases music independently and decided to move from downtown Nashville to North Carolina because he felt it was the “most healthy”. something for her.”

Beyoncé has nodded to the genre’s traditional sounds on Texas Hold ‘Em, with Grammy winner Rhiannon Geddes playing banjo, who is credited with highlighting that black people created and played the banjo before it was popularized by artists country whites.

“It’s ancient,” says Taylor Crumpton, 28, of country music’s influence on her life. As a Black woman from Texas, like Beyoncé, she reflects on how gender is connected to her identity.

“I come from a proud line of sharecroppers and cowboys. My grandfather was buried in his cowboy boots,” he shares.

As a writer, part of her job is to be analytical about the country’s universe. But for the most part, she says, the connection comes naturally.

“I think it feels more like a warm hug and hug from an old man who has since passed away, or maybe when I spent summers on my grandmother’s farm and ran away from the chickens and pigs.”

“I grew up hearing stories from my family members about how they were made fun of for their accent. I think people forget that when Beyoncé first debuted, the press made fun of her for her accent.

“Right now, I’ve been getting messages from black women about how they feel like they can come back to their full selves.”