Just 10 days before the release of Act II: Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé garnered some new support from country music star Maren Morris.
In a recent post to her Instagram, Bey offered up some context about the origins of her new project, which houses her Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs chart-topper “Texas Hold ‘Em,” as well as “16 Carriages.” She wrote about an “experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed” into the country genre.
Among those who quickly chimed in was Morris, who offered a message of support, telling Beyoncé to “Drag them, Queen.” Morris’s response seemed to reference Beyoncé’s claims about not feeling welcome in country, which some fans believe is a reference to her 2016 CMA Awards performance of “Daddy Lessons” alongside The Chicks (though Beyoncé did not explicitly state so in her IG post). Billboard reached out to the Country Music Association, who had no comment on Beyoncé’s March 19 Instagram post.
The CMA Awards collaboration between The Chicks and Beyonce in 2016 brought controversy before the performance even happened; when the Country Music Association teased Beyoncé’s performance on social media, it sparked backlash, with some commenters calling for a boycott. The following day, though the performance was one of the most-talked about from the evening, there was no mention of the performance on the CMA’s website or on their official X (then-called Twitter) account. At the time, a representative for the CMA offered an explanation to Billboard, stating that they “removed a five-second promotional clip from ABC.com and CMA’s Facebook page” because the clip “was unapproved and CMA removed it prior to the broadcast.” The organization added that “Beyoncé’s performance with Dixie Chicks was a highlight of the evening and we are continuing to share the amazing full-length performance clip via our official social channels.”
The comments section of Beyoncé’s IG post about Cowboy Carter on March 19 also included praise from several Black female country artists, including Brittney Spencer, who said, “SHE’S HERE,” accompanied by bee emojis. Spencer released her debut album My Stupid Life earlier this year. “Found It in You” singer Tiera wrote, “Queen B,” with a bee emoji, while “Love You a Little Bit” singer Tanner Adell added, “Love u mama. All you deserve and MORE.”
Check out Beyoncé’s post, as well as all of its comments, below:
