Beyoncé may have delivered what fans dub as the country album of the year with her ‘Cowboy Carter,’ but the Country Music Association didn’t see it that way. The nominations for the CMAs rolled out on Monday, and Queen Bey was left out in the cold, snagging zero nods.
Fans were shocked and disappointed when the 2024 CMA nominations were announced without a single mention of Beyoncé. Despite her groundbreaking work on ‘Cowboy Carter,’ the voting members of the Country Music Association chose to overlook her contributions. Meanwhile, Shaboozey, who gained attention with his appearances on ‘Cowboy Carter,’ was nominated for Single of the Year for ‘A Bar Song (Tipsy).’
Shaboozey took to social media to express his gratitude, writing, ‘Thank you Beyoncé for opening a door for us, starting a conversation, and giving us one of the most innovative country albums of all time!’ However, this did little to appease Beyoncé’s loyal fans, who felt the snub was a glaring omission by the CMAs.
Beyoncé’s fans were vocal on social media, criticizing the CMAs for ignoring her achievements. One prominent fansite, Beyoncé Legion, stated that the CMAs preferred to deny Black artists recognition, highlighting the success of ‘Cowboy Carter’ and ‘Texas Hold ‘Em.’
The album, released in March, was a monumental hit. It became Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2024, with ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’ racking up over 200 million streams before the album even dropped. The album also broke records on Amazon Music, earning the most first-day streams for a country album by a female artist.
Billboard reported that ‘Cowboy Carter’ debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 chart with 407,000 equivalent album units in its first week. It was the biggest sales week of the year until it was surpassed by Taylor Swift’s latest release. Furthermore, 23 of the album’s 27 tracks made it onto the Billboard Hot 100 chart, boosting Beyoncé’s career total to 106 entries.
By May, ‘Cowboy Carter’ had surpassed a billion streams on Spotify, making it one of Beyoncé’s most successful projects to date. Despite this immense success, the CMAs chose to look the other way, leading many to question their decision-making process.
The CMA’s decision to snub Beyoncé’s record-breaking album remains a hot topic. Whether it reflects industry biases or mere oversight, one thing is clear: ‘Cowboy Carter’ has left an indelible mark on country music.
