Cowboy Carter

Cowboy Carter (also referred to as Act II: Cowboy Carter) is the eighth studio album by American singer and songwriter Beyoncé, released on March 29, 2024, via Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. A concept album, Cowboy Carter is the second of a planned trilogy of albums, following Renaissance (2022). Beyoncé conceived Cowboy Carter as a journey through a reinvention of Americana, spotlighting the overlooked contributions of Black pioneers to American musical and cultural history.

Variously classified as a country pop, country, western, Southern soul, Americana and R&B album, Cowboy Carter blends together diverse Southern sub-genres that Beyoncé listened to when growing up in Texas, including zydeco, rock and roll, folk, rhythm and blues, psychedelic soul and bluegrass. Conceptually, the album is presented as a radio broadcast, with country singers Dolly Parton, Linda Martell and Willie Nelson acting as disc jockeys. The album's songs feature rising Black country artists such as Shaboozey, Tanner Adell, Brittney Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts and Willie Jones. The music is driven by a range of acoustic instruments played by musicians including Stevie Wonder, Paul McCartney, Nile Rodgers, Gary Clark Jr., Adam Granduciel, Robert Randolph, Jon Batiste, and Rhiannon Giddens.

Cowboy Carter was met with universal acclaim and appeared on multiple year-end lists; critics felt that the album's genre experimentation, expansive scope and eclectic references aided an ambitious reimagining of Americana and country through the lens of their Black roots. The album increased the listenership of country music, drove cultural conversations on Black musicians' place within the genre, boosted the careers of rising country artists, and increased the popularity of Western wear and culture. Cowboy Carter received eleven nominations at the 67th Annual Grammy Awards, becoming the third-most nominated album in Grammy history. It won Best Country Duo/Group Performance (for "II Most Wanted"), Best Country Album and Album of the Year. Beyoncé is the first Black artist to win the former, and the first Black woman since Lauryn Hill in 1999 to win the latter.

Cowboy Carter debuted at number one in several countries and broke multiple chart and streaming records. In the United States, Cowboy Carter became Beyoncé's eighth consecutive number-one album on the Billboard 200 and the first album by a Black woman to top the Top Country Albums chart. The album was supported by three singles, "Texas Hold 'Em", "16 Carriages", and "II Most Wanted", with the first becoming Beyoncé's ninth U.S. number-one single and the first country song by a Black woman to top the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs charts. The Cowboy Carter Tour was announced on February 1, 2025, beginning on April 28, 2025.