Just hours ago, Beyoncé released her long-awaited and much-anticipated sequel to her previous album, “Renaissance.” Beyoncé has said that “Renaissance” will be a three-part album, each with a unique take on a genre. With both albums released so far, Beyoncé has surely stepped away from her usual style, with “Renaissance” being almost entirely house music and now “Cowboy Carter,” a country album. In “Renaissance,” Beyoncé used many samples from other artists or even interviews from drag or house songs. What I love about “Cowboy Carter” is how she moved away from the sampling. In this new album, so many raw vocals and instrumentals make it a cohesive, southern country album. The album truly shows her southern roots, which she has held back or only featured once or twice in her past albums. Without adieu, here is my breakdown of most of the songs on the album. I decided not to rank all of them because many are interludes that are about less than 30 seconds long. The not included interludes are as follows: MY ROSE, SMOKE HOUR ★ WILLIE NELSON, DOLLY P, SMOKE HOUR II, THE LINDA MARTELL SHOW, and OH LOUISIANA. 

AMERIICAN REQUIEM

Opening the album with a soulful intro, Beyoncé lets her southern accent show through, layered with harmonious background vocals and a beautiful bridge. The repetitive rhythm and choruses set the tone for the embracement of Beyoncé’s southern/western country heritage. I love how this song echoes out and shows the departure from her usual style. This song then offers a seamless transition into the next track, a cover.

BLACKBIIRD (ft. Tanner Adell, Brittany Spencer, Tiera Kennedy, Reyna Roberts)

A cover of the Beatles song “Blackbird,” this track features Beyoncé’s layered vocals that add depth and range to the seemingly simple song. I was not expecting many covers to be on the album, but I truly believe that she did the original song justice. Her vocal range was truly powerful when combined with this song. Beyoncé’s collaboration with other artists on this song adds a comforting tone providing a different perspective on the original, male-sung song. 

16 CARRIAGES

As one of the first singles that Beyoncé released previewing the album, “16 Carriages” has powerful drum beats and country guitar strums that pair perfectly with her nostalgic lyrics. This song delves into Beyoncé’s childhood and faith. In the second chorus, Beyoncé is able to powerfully use pitch variation, making the song completely and utterly mesmerizing. Again with impressive vocal layering and a calming ending, this track stands as a testament to Beyoncé’s storytelling ability and musical depth. 

PROTECTOR (ft. Rumi Carter)

This song offers a tender portrayal of motherhood with Beyoncé’s raw vocals accompanied by the laughter of her children in the background. This song is something that could be easily fallen asleep to as it offers the same comfort a lullaby would bring. The heartfelt lyrics in the song capture maternal love and the role of a mother to protect her children. It is such a beautiful song with a beautiful message about wanting to hold your children close even as they grow old and wanting to see them achieve their hopes and dreams. This song truly sent shivers down my spine because of how beautifully raw and simple it is.

TEXAS HOLD ‘EM

This song emerges with a completely different vibe compared to the past songs. It is honestly my least favorite track, other than the unnecessary interludes. This song has become so overplayed on instagram and tik tok that I want to scream in agony every time I hear it. I am truly sorry Beyoncé. I don’t know how to explain it, but the song almost sounds AI generated. It just doesn’t have much of the storytelling and deep resonating sounds that Beyoncé typically features in her songs. Despite its catchy rhythm, its departure from the rawness of the album leaves a feeling of disconnection. 

BODYGUARD 

While bodyguard surely leans more towards pop than country, Beyoncé’s vocals remain compelling and captivating, therefore, the genre change is acceptable. The track’s eclectic sound adds variety to the album, however it just feels a bit out of place. I love this song, truly, but maybe not for this album.

JOLENE

This cover was truly disappointing. While I think it was clever of Beyoncé to rewrite the lyrics with a more modern interpretation, it fails to do justice to the original song. I just wish it offered more substance to the album’s so far powerful narrative. Like I said previously, I was not expecting many covers, and while “Blackbird” did impress, this just was not it. 

DAUGHTER

“Daughter” weaves narrative lyrics and uses powerful storytelling skills to share about Beyoncé’s own family history. The track has a lot of emotional depth and while the operatic bridge (sung in Italian) did surprise me, I did not mind it. The track definitely has a reflecting tone on her history and legacy, featuring references to her family members and authority figures like her father. The reference of her father brought me back to the song “Daddy Lessons” on her album Lemonade.

SPAGHETTII (ft. Linda Martell, Shaboozey)

While this song has some references to the south and country, it is truly the opposite. I was shocked when I heard the intro and it turned into a rap song. I will admit, it is a good song, but overall does not fit the theme of the album. During the second half of the song, however, it transitions back to a more acoustic ballad which I enjoyed the duality of the two genres coming together. I really wish that this song would have lasted longer because I would have liked to hear more.

ALLIGATOR TEARS

This song truly takes Beyoncé’s Louisiana roots and merges her modern vocals with a country backtrack. It explores powerful themes in navigating relationships with topics like hard work, resilience, and devotion. It seamlessly blends contemporary and traditional elements and gives a perspective on relationships not seen before from Beyoncé.

JUST FOR FUN (ft. Willie Jones)

This song delivers soulful vocals where Beyoncé explores the deepness of her insane vocal range. While I felt like Jones’ feature was unnecessary, I enjoyed the song nonetheless. This song offers a more personal take on the theme of resilience which surely connected me to some of the lyrics. 

II MOST WANTED (ft. Miley Cyrus)

I honestly really do not like Miley’s feature on this. Like I really don’t like it. I thought that when she was singing with Beyoncé it was good but I really felt that alone her voice just didn’t match the power of the rest of the album. This song very obviously leans heavily into western country so it fits the album.

LEVI’S JEANS (ft. Post Malone)

This song blended a lot of pop and country and at times was a bit overwhelming. At first, I didn’t mind that Post Malone was featured but towards the end I just felt like he took over too much of the song. I felt like his rapping at the end kind of ruined the vibe of the song before. I did, however, like how they referenced the previous album Renaissance in the lyric “You’re my renaissance.”

FLAMENCO

Wow this song was powerful. I again instantly fell in love with Beyoncé’s use of layering in this song. I really was captivated by her use of her powerful vibrato. I think the last few lines convey a beautiful message and are pleasant to listen to. I just really wish this song were longer, I would love to hear more.

YA YA

This song blends a lot of different genres and it was very chaotic at times. It references songs like “These Boots are Made for Walking,” and a few different songs by The Beach Boys. I like how she subtly delves into current issues in her lyrics which truly show a deep message. I was not much of a fan of her vocals on this song but I think that the power of the rest of it kind of saved my opinion on it. 

DESERT EAGLE

This song is definitely more soul and funk music than country but I still love it. The sound is so unique and raw, and very Beyoncé. The track surely shows her experimentality and ability and willingness to expand her range and play with other genres. Like a few other songs on the album, I wish it were longer. 

RIVERDANCE 

This song honestly confused me, like I was truly confused. There was so much going on. At first I thought this was like a square dancing song because of the introduction, but then house music was brought in? And then the lyrics were just so repetitive. Things just definitely clashed way too much and I was not able to appreciate it.

II HANDS II HEAVEN

This song was very very long, and I felt that it did not need to be. This almost felt like a relaxing lo-fi/house song and I did not understand where it fit into the album. I really don’t have much to say about it because of how dragged out it was.

TYRANT (ft. Dolly Parton)

This song, featuring Dolly Parton, referenced “Jolene” and showed a lot of country in its intro. Once you get past the first chorus, the song switches up and departs from the albums main genre. With an almost seamless transition into a ta beat, the fusion of genres in this track can be confusing, however, they do not distract from Beyoncé’s beautiful and powerful vocals. I honestly enjoyed this song even though I didn’t think I would.

Overall, the album presented a bit of Beyoncé exploration into new genres, however it felt short. I just couldn’t get behind the album’s many genre changes, features, and interludes. Some songs are truly more powerful and fitting than others and I felt that the album could have been shortened. Overall, I would rate this album 6.5/10. While it was surely not what I was expecting, I recommend listening to it and see how you feel. With this album in mind, everyone is surely waiting to see what she pulls out of her sleeve in part III.