Beyoncé feels act ii: COWBOY CARTER is “the best music I’ve ever made,” and after personally having it on repeat since its release, she makes a very strong and compelling argument.
With her eighth studio album, the Houston native has already made history as the first Black female artist to top Billboard‘s Hot Country Songs chart and rank No. 1 on their Hot 100 Chart with one of the LP’s lead singles, “TEXAS HOLD ‘EM.” Overall, COWBOY CARTER is a melting pot of several genres with deep roots in country music.
“The joy of creating music is that there are no rules,” said Beyoncé in a statement. “The more I see the world evolving the more I felt a deeper connection to purity. With artificial intelligence and digital filters and programming, I wanted to go back to real instruments, and I used very old ones. I didn’t want some layers of instruments like strings, especially guitars, and organs perfectly in tune. I kept some songs raw and leaned into folk. All the sounds were so organic and human, everyday things like the wind, snaps and even the sound of birds and chickens, the sounds of nature.”
Musicianship aside, the captivating, audacious, and occasionally vulnerable storytelling on the project speaks to Beyoncé reclaiming her narrative and the humanization of her as a mother, artist, wife, daughter, and more. Not to mention, it’s a continuation of her dynamic 2022 release, act i: RENAISSANCE.
Though this new album only contains 27 out of the 100 songs recorded, it contains so much richness and freedom. With an emphasis on the stories behind the music, we’ve compiled a list of 10 of the most quotable lyrics from COWBOY CARTER—which have Bey either talking her s**t, praising women with homegrown curves, discussing one’s power or have us ready to saddle up with a lover.
Check it out below.
-
“AMERIICAN REQUIEM”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Used to say I spoke, ‘Too country’ / And the rejection came, said ‘I wasn’t country ‘nough’/ Said I wouldn’t saddle up, but / If that ain’t country, tell me what is?”
-
“SWEET HONEY BUCKIIN'”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Jiffy cornbread, booty cornfed/ Body rolls at the rodeo”
-
“JOLENE”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “”There’s a thousand girls in every room/ That act as desperate as you do/ You a bird, go on and sing your tune/ Cause I hate to have to act the fool/ Your peace depends on how you move”
-
“II HANDS II HEAVEN”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “I’m a stallion runnin’, no candle in the wind/ You won’t ever see me comin’ or goin’ but you’ll know whenever I’m here/ Dancin’ in the moonlight, catchin’ every breeze”
-
“DAUGHTER”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “I don’t fellowship with these fakе ones”
-
“RIIVERDANCE”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Your words, they take the shape my body makes/ Ain’t that the scary thing”
-
“TYRANT”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Have you seen her? 5’9”, thick and fine, what a tragedy”
-
“16 CARRIAGES”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Ain’t got time to waste, I got art to make/ I got love to create on this holy night/ They won’t dim my light, all these years I fight.”
-
“YA YA”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “She’s pickin’ up good vibrations/ He’s lookin’ for sweet sensations”
-
“LEVII’S JEANS”
Image Credit: Beyoncé/YouTube “Need you all night long, you’re my Renaissance/ Baby, lovin’ you, that’s all I see/ In this crazy world, you’re the best of things”
