Is Cowboy Carter Beyoncé’s Best Album Yet?
by Matthew Zenon
On March 29th, 2024, iconic singer and songwriter Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter released Cowboy Carter, her eighth studio album and the second installation of a three-act project. This album is a trod through American music through the lens of arguably the most significant pop star the world has ever seen. Cowboy Carter has broken records and created a buzz only Beyoncé could generate.
Amid all the discourse online, many have been asking one question: Are we listening to Beyoncé's best album yet? While that could seem a bit dramatic Beyoncé herself deemed it “the best music I’ve ever made.”
This isn’t to say the rest of Beyoncé’s discography isn’t AMAZING and that your favorite album is trash (B’DAY FOR LIFE!) but there are two reasons we think this may be her best album so far. Firstly, Beyoncé exhibits a musical bravery we’ve never seen from her. From the vocal arrangements to the orchestration, anyone who understands music theory understands that this album is sonically in a category of its own. Secondly, Beyoncé has created the most patriotic AND pro-Black body of work we’ve ever seen, whether this was done intentionally or not. Whether you deem this album as peak Beyoncé or not, this TSM JAMZ album breakdown will help you understand why it may be for some. Here are some of Cowboy Carter’s top songs and how they add to the beauty and message of the album.
AMERIICAN REQUIEM
Can you name a better opening song? “Ameriican Requiem” sets the musical tone for the album. We start with what sounds like a choir of Beyoncé voices. Then, as Beyoncé hits that “looka dere” section, we get that country-sounding guitar that continues throughout Cowboy Carter. The lyrics reveal Beyoncé’s black country roots and how she felt when her earlier country music explorations were received with contention by the country community. This song is a funeral to all the “big ideas” Americans have held about the music for so long. To be frank, it puts to rest the idea that to be country you have to be white and sound a certain way. Beyoncé said, Nah, this is black country music and you ‘gon love it!
BLACKBIIRD
Blackbird is originally a Beatles song dedicated to the women fighting for their rights during the civil rights movement. In this revamped version, “Blackbiird”, we hear 4 of today's top Black women in country music. This song is no doubt catapulting these artists to new heights. In this context, “Blackbiird”is about these young ladies’ freedom in the world of music. Building a career as a Black female country artist is challenging, but Beyoncé did what she could to lighten the load. “You were only waiting for this moment to be free.” Free to go to higher heights in one's music career
16 CARRIAGES
Beyoncé’s want song. This incredibly vulnerable track sums up Beyoncé’s work-life balance. She might cook and clean but she won’t fold! What stands out about this song is the sound of a whip that keeps steady throughout the song. Musically, it gives the song a vigorous beat, but if we look at this choice through a pro-Black patriotic lens, we can see Beyoncé alluding to a deeper meaning. Only Beyoncé can answer why it’s in the song, but we can infer that she wants us to think about how performing or working at a high level can impact one’s personal life.
PROTECTOR
Call your mama!! What a sweet song to follow the richness of “16 CARRIAGES.” Just Beyoncé and a guitar start this lullaby after we hear from the youngest female artist to grace the Billboard 100, Rumi Carter. We get to hear Beyoncé's natural country tone and the softer side of the dynamic voice we know and love. Her sound matched with the lullaby alone brings tears to my eyes. Once the lyrics set in, I was a wreck. The switching of the words “projector” and “protector” is extremely telling, revealing what Beyoncé wants for her kids. Tissues, please!
DAUGHTER - TSM Critic’s Pick
We’ve gotten some dark songs from Beyoncé before, but none this explicit. Here, Beyoncé is recounting a murder she fictionally committed— or at least fantasized about. What’s most striking about this song is how visual it is. We can practically see Beyoncé there, standing in the church, the corpse, the stained glass windows, —all of it! The chorus also makes this song stand out. “They say I’m nothing like my father, but I’m the furthest thing from choir boys and altars.” If you’ve been a Beyoncé fan for a while, you know the Matthew Knowles lore. For Beyoncé to compare herself to him, is signifying that she is truly not the one to play with. On top of all that, Beyoncé throws an Italian aria in there—on a country album! It takes a true virtuoso to make opera work in this context. If you’re a chorus kid, you’ve had to sing a boring European song at some point. Beyoncé gave the next generations a modern and exciting avenue into this important style of music.
SPAGHETTII
“This ain't a country album; it’s a Beyoncé album.”
Beyoncé on the genre-bending done in Cowboy Carter
This idea is exemplified in “SPAGHETII”, a song riddled with country influence that is made a banger by Beyoncé’s clever bars and complex flow. We stan Rap-yonce and she did not disappoint with this track. Beyoncé gives bar after bar of intricate world play while unapologetically talking her sh*t. This song following “DAUGHTER” demonstrates Beyoncé's versatility as a vocalist and furthers the shattering of genre standards.
II MOST WANTED
Beyoncé, we’ll be your shotgun rider till the day we die! Who knew Miley and Beyoncé would be the collaboration we all needed? “II MOST WANTED” is a true duet. Both vocalists hold their own while showcasing the range of their voices. Beyoncé’s textured Texas twang complements Miley's more nasally Nashville sound. This track is truly a vocal masterclass when considering the ear-pleasing harmonies and how they switch voice parts. This song makes you want to take a long car ride with your best friend, belting this song the whole way.
YA YA
“We ‘gon make it do what it do YA YA” has become a catchphrase in this author’s vocabulary lately due to the infectious sound of this song. “YA YA'' is another compilation of genres and influences, exposing listeners to rock, upbeat country, and various others. Beyoncé samples Nancy Sinatra’s “These Boots Were Made for Walkin’” and interpolates “Good Vibrations” by the Beach Boys. Her vocals on this track effortlessly flow between rough & gritty to smooth and silky. The lyrics of “YA YA'' remind us of the album's message and once again of Beyoncé’s country roots. “My family lived and died in America, Good ol’ USA, whole lotta red in this white and blue…” Lyrics like these give the listener the notion that Beyoncé is recentering the African-American impact on the American Dream narrative.
Amen
“Amen” makes this album feel like a full circle. Beyoncé gives us strong and declarative vocals, made even more evident by the passion we can hear in this song. The music makes us feel like we’re watching the final scene of an old-time Western movie. Lyrically, the song returns to the themes we first heard in “AMERIICAN REQUIEM”. If “AMERIICAN REQUIEM” is the funeral for American ideas on music, this song acts as the final prayer. “Say a prayer for what has been.”
Overall, Cowboy Carter is a masterpiece. The album is rooted in country but blends so many genres that one questions what a genre actually is. Beyoncé gives us a vocal performance we’ve never gotten on a studio album with instrumentals that are both unique and nuanced. As if Beyoncé’s musical genius wasn’t enough, she uses her platform to make a statement about the state of American music today. With Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé centers her southern heritage and in doing so reclaims the Black American impact on music, culture, and history to date.
