Leadership / 03.25.24

BMAC Panel Examines Black Artists’ Challenges in Nashville, Asks Whether Beyonce’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ Will Help or Hinder Country Artists of Color

Access Staff

Variety (03/22/24) Aswad, Jem

The Black Music Action Coalition's recent "Rooted in Country" discussion panel addressed the many challenges Black country artists continue to face breaking into the genre. The all-female panel included everyone from "Color Me Country" podcast host Rissi Palmer to Holly G, founder of the Black Opry collective, to Live Nation Country's Julie Matway. Not surprisingly, the conversation eventually turned to Beyonce's "Act II: Cowboy Carter" country-themed album. While the panelists supported both Beyonce’s creative decision and right to make a country album, they were less optimistic about the impact the country-radio airplay of its first single, "Texas Hold 'Em," could have on other Black musicians. Holly G states, "Every Black woman is not Beyonce. Her being able to chart is a product of her being a global superstar, not because she worked through the [Nashville] system."

Read the full story from Variety.

Tags: Leadership , Country Music