The Unspoken Country History of Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’

The latest in pop-culture news, recaps, and reviews, plus close reads, profiles, interviews, and more from Vulture.com. [Brand Logo]( album review [The Unspoken Country History of Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’]( The record chronicles an artist with a voice pliable enough (and a following large enough) to crash whatever scene she pleases. Photo: Blair Caldwell A trebly radio ambles across stations, surveying Charles Anderson’s “Laughing Yodel”, Son House’s “Grinnin’ in Your Face”, [Sister Rosetta Tharpe’s]( “Down by the Riverside,” Chuck Berry’s “Maybellene,” and Roy Hamilton’s “Don’t Let Go,” finally pausing for the Lone Star drawl of Willie Nelson, spliff ablaze, reading out a call sign: “Welcome to the Smoke Hour on KNTRY Radio Texas.” The sixth song on Beyoncé’s eighth studio album, Cowboy Carter, is a curt history lesson nestled in a massive song cycle with an undeniable rallying cry. After she [performed with the Chicks]( at the 2016 Country Music Association Awards, fusing Lemonade’s “Daddy Lessons” with the Dallas trio’s rendition of bluegrass vet Darrell Scott’s “Long Time Gone,” she experienced hateful [backlash]( from racist traditionalists. “Smoke Hour” practically screams “We’ve always been here” to those detractors. It’s a sister to Solange singing “[Almeda](” — “Black skin, black braids / Black waves, black days / Black baes, black things / These are Black-owned things!” — to a white man in the front row at one of her shows. With Cowboy Carter, the second act of a trilogy that paid homage to Black queer innovators in electronic music on Renaissance, Beyoncé sends a message to Nashville: Country music must make room for all of the people creating and consuming it. [read more]( Devour pop culture with us. [Subscribe now]( to save over 40% on unlimited access to Vulture and everything New York. The Latest TV Recaps • Curb Your Enthusiasm: [No Happy Ending]( • Vanderpump Villa: [Château No You Didn’t]( • Below Deck: [The Complainer]( • Shōgun: [Family Matters]( [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Stories We Think You’ll Like [Yapping and Yearning: How Online Were You in March? Mama, kudos for saying that. For spilling.]( By Kate Lindsay [Andrea Riseborough on Co-Parenting With The Regime’s Dictator “I spent a great deal of time moving air purifiers and bowls of steaming potatoes in and out of rooms.”]( By Jen Chaney [Two Steves Steve Martin’s life is split into distinct halves in Morgan Neville’s refreshing new documentary about the comedy legend.]( By Hershal Pandya [Joe Flaherty, SCTV and Freaks and Geeks Star, Dead at 82 He won two Emmys for his writing on the influential Canadian sketch series SCTV.]( By Zoe Guy [What’s Going on With Disney’s Proxy Battle? A who’s who for the rest of us non-billionaire chumps.]( By Rebecca Alter [Rosalía Is Really, Really Into Peak TV Before Jeremy Allen White, there was Hunter Schafer.]( By Jason P. Frank [5-Year-Old John Mulaney Wanted to Be a Sex Therapist The comedian recalls joking about this with his dad’s law colleagues in an upcoming episode of David Letterman’s My Next Guest Needs No Introduction.]( By Hershal Pandya [Jon Stewart Unleashes His Censored AI Critiques “The way of life you’re accustomed to is no match for the promise of more profits and new markets.”]( By Hershal Pandya [The Best Movies of 2024 (So Far) A violent swashbuckling-adventure film, a brilliant comedy, an epic-scale blockbuster, and more.]( By Bilge Ebiri and Alison Willmore [Learn more about RevenueStripe...]( Vulture Games [Today’s Crossword]( 4-Down, Four Letters: Celeb dwelling, in MTV-speak Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: Getty [Today’s Cinematrix]( Can you name an Anne Hathaway movie with a character name in the title? Photo-Illustration: Vulture; Photos: GP Images/WireImage, Kevin Mazur/WireImage, Stephane Cardinale/Corbis via Getty Images A newsletter about the perpetual Hollywood awards race, for subscribers only. [Sign up]( to get it every week. [Get the Newsletter]( [logo]( [facebook logo]( [instagram logo]( [twitter logo]( [unsubscribe]( | [privacy notice]( | [update preferences]( This email was sent to {EMAIL}. Was this email forwarded to you? [Sign up now]( to get this newsletter in your inbox. [View this email in your browser.]( You received this email because you have a subscription to New York. Reach the right online audience with us For advertising information on email newsletters, please contact AdOps@nymag.com Vox Media, LLC 1701 Rhode Island Ave NW, Washington, DC 20036 Copyright © 2024, All rights reserved