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Introduction: THE GREAT AMERIICAN REQUIREM

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Introduction: THE GREAT AMERIICAN REQUIREM

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WANTED

BEYONCE GISELLE KNOWELS-CARTER

March 29th, 2024

The American people have witnessed and experienced a great disterbance. There's a lot of talkin' goin' on from the east to the west as Beyonce, relesed her eighth studio album, "Cowboy Carter". Mrs. Carter is being accused of stepping outside or her usual relms of music to influtrate the country scene. WE have perserved the country music genre for generations upholding American values, traditions and ideals. WE the American people have been forced to endure this challenge made by Mrs. Carter. WE the American people will not bend to the rushes of defiance and rebellion. WE the American people will stand strong in the face of adversity. WE the American people will NOT be shaken!

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

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The early roots of country and blues are so inter-

twined that they are sometimes difficult to detangle. The threat of country music’s

Black roots showing must have been strong enough for the Grand Ole Opry toprohibit drums in their performances for decades.( Royster, 309)

Stemming from the Atantic Slave trade, music has been one of the things Africa slaves have been able to carry with them. Integrating with the old American South, Country music was made from the Bandjo, originating from Africa and it's sounds was of means to communicate stories and paths to find freedom.

Menstral shows characterized this as white actors wearing black-face would dress up as Black people mocking their sound. During the 20th century record tables would not allow Black country music to be made in the studio or even heard on the radio. That rejection left early Black country music to be blocked from mainstream history. With more Black Americans seeking freedom and refuge in the northern states, labels found it more palatable country music to have a more white artist take on the genre.

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Women—especially Black, Indigenous and People of Colour (BIPOC), already disadvantaged as a result of institutional quotas that limit the amount of space available on radio playlists—are nearly erased from the chart through this new methodology (Watson 2019a). In this context, the Billboard chart functions as a curatorial instrument that does not just document, but also perpetuates existing inequalities in the genre. ( Waston,169)

In 2003, the Chicks ( formally known as the Dixie Chicks) were one of the first victims of cancel culture as the lead singer, Natalie, expressed their disappointment with President Bush on his declaration of war against Iraq following 9/11. The public had a visceral reaction to the comment telling the band "shut up and sing". The Chicks were Boycotted from all radio. The Chicks were exiled from country music resulting in Country music taking a shift in letting less women artist the industry.

According to interviews, the collaboration with Beyonce during the 2016 CMA was the first time they have performed since 2003. They expressed that there was a "weird vibe" in the room while performing with Beyonce. In the comment sections and on social media there was backlash towards the performance that contained racism and sexism content.

Beyonce responded to the backlash of the 2016 performance on the COWBOY CARTER album singing, "There's a lot of talking going on. While I sing my song. A lot of taking up space [...] Used to say I spoke too country, then the rejection came said I wasn't country enough. But if that ain't country then tell me what is." (Beyonce, 2024).

This performance served as an inspiration to both Beyonce and The Chicks being the catalyst to Beyonce's album and the Chick's latest album, Gaslighter.

Both women in this situation chose to continue to voice their opinions, taking control of their right for free speech despite the backlash that might come their way.

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Beyoncé and Dixie Chicks - Daddy Lessons ( LIVE at CMA Awards 2016 )

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Coming into the late 2010s, more Black artist in the Country music scene started to rise in the industry. In 2019 Lil Nas X release "Old Town Road" which broke records with the most weeks number 1 on the Billboard charts beating Maria Carry. Lil Nas X's rise in the music industry was significant as it called attention to the dark rasist underbelly that is still present in the music industry. This song faced controversy due to Lil Nas X's is not included on the country charts but instead put on Rap and R&B genre. Old Town was not considered " Country enough". This move from Billboard was called out as black artist are often confined to being in the Rap and or R&B genre and not being acknowledged in other genre. This sparked conversation about the how racism is still previlent in the country genre and how genre is not a monolific thing. Lil Naz X considered his song to be Country Trap, therefore it should be on both charts.

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How Lil Nas X Took ‘Old Town Road’ From TikTok Meme to No. 1 | Diary of a Song

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The purpose of Cowboy Carter was to reclaim the place of Black people in Country music. In doing so, Beyonce set out to include rising and underground Black country artist on her album.

The exposure on Cowboy Carter propelled these artists to a newfound recognition. A prime example is, Shaboozy, a Nigerian American country artist. Since his collaboration with Beyonce, Shaboozy's streams have dramatically increased, with his song " A Bar Song" earning him many accolades on the Billbord charts ,and a Best new artist Grammy nomination.

Beyonce choice to use her platform to amplify voices that was previously silence displays a sense of bring unity, justice, and reconcilliation back to music. Beyonce defy the status quo of genre and what it means to be a Black artist in white male dominated industry.

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Gray Vintage Photo Collage Photography Instagram Post

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FEBUARY 2, 2025

BREAKING NEWS!

BEYONCE WINS BEST COUNTRY ALBUM AND ALBUM OF THE YEAR FOR COWBOY CARTER

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Beyonce managed to pick up major awards such as Album of the Year and best Country Album. This comes with mixed reaction from the public with people stating that these wins were paid for, or the awards was given out of guilt following her husband Jay-Z's awards speech the previous year calling out the Grammys for not giving Beyonce album of the Year.

Country fans and music fans a like carried mixed reactions to this win as some thought that it takes away from those who dedicated their lives to Country music. Others believed that the awards were deserved due to the historical and cultural impacting embedded in the album.

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BEYONCÉ Wins ALBUM OF THE YEAR For 'COWBOY CARTER' | 2025 GRAMMYs Acceptance Speech

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This is a series of mixed reaction displayed on TikTok.

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Spring 2025, Grammy Award winning rising Pop Star, Chappel Roan released her new single "The Giver". This song is set to deviate from her previous classic pop songs to a more country sound. This song has been highly anticipated and is rising on the charts. Plenty of fans love the song, but others are calling people out for accepting Chappel Roan in her experiments in country music genre but not Beyonce.

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this is a sample of the tikok comment section under the videos above.

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Brown Vintage Photo Collage Facebook Post

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FINAL STATEMENT

BEYONCE GISELLE KNOWELS-CARTER

March 29th, 2024

We the American people, fought the good fight for liberty and Justice for all. Through the hills and valleys, we will be triumphant against the enemy that tries to divide us. We take down old statues and lower our weapons to bring forth a new society. A society of freedom and equality. Together we build a nation that puts one's character above the hue of skin. Their skill is above their appearance. From this moment on, we say a prayer for what has been. We say goodbye to a white house that was built from the blood of our brothers and sisters. As we recognize the faults of the past, Let us heal as a country and unite in this new chapter.

GOD BLESS AMERICA.

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Watson, Jada. “Billboard’s ‘Hot Country Songs’ Chart and the Curation of Country Music Culture.” Popular Music History, vol. 13, no. 1–2, 2021, pp. 168–90, https://doi.org/10.1558/pomh.39428.

Royster, Francesca T. “Black Edens, Country Eves: Listening, Performance, and Black Queer Longing in Country Music.” Journal of Lesbian Studies, vol. 21, no. 3, 2017, pp. 306–22, https://doi.org/10.1080/10894160.2016.1156973.

Part 1

Photo

https://www.nps.gov/grsm/learn/historyculture/african-american-southern-appalachian-music.htm

Part 2

Video

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=85Ksi-uzuIg

Part 3

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ptKqFafZgCk

Part 5

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uEyGYjlzbA0

the reactions:

https://www.tiktok.com/@emilytreadgold/video/7354473390092193067

https://www.tiktok.com/@jordxn.simone/video/7467265285599317279?lang=en

https://www.tiktok.com/@nichole_em/video/7467058763749477637?lang=en

https://www.tiktok.com/@leilaostria/video/7481745923022851358?lang=en