Beyoncé - ACT II Cowboy Carter (March 29, 2024) • Page 11

That's very cool, had no idea. That also reminds me I gotta do a deep dive into the credits. Two pop singer songwriters I like a lot have some credits, Lowell and below, and I'm sure there's more fun stuff to find

 

The credits are stacked. If you haven't heard the Brittney Spencer album from earlier this year (she shows up on "Blackbiird") I'd recommend it.

 

Don't even know her! I'll check it out

 

Stevie Wonder played Harmonica on Jolene she said tonight

 

Beyoncé’s country album drowns out the Black music history it claims to celebrate | Yasmin Williams

 

It's a mess structurally, it leans hard on "For What It's Worth" without bothering to do anything with that interpolation, and the lyrics are all just vague, general gestures towards big ideas that don't say anything.

 

This article from musician Yasmin Williams has been drumming up quite a bit of discourse. I haven’t read it yet but I plan to today.

Beyoncé’s country album drowns out the Black music history it claims to celebrate | Beyoncé | The Guardian

 

On top of all this, I just find the "looka there, looka there" parts to be extremely annoying.

 

Ya Ya has strong Janelle Monae ArchAndroid vibes

 

I was actually thinking that her rapping on Spaghettii is soooooo similiar to Janelle's style of rapping on Dirty Computer

 

Did not pick up on that before, but there's something to that, especially in the second verse.

 

I don't think I entirely agree with the article but I do appreciate it being created, there'll always be a disconnect to a degree with Beyonce and what she's trying to connect to and her status and that's good to keep in mind.

 

Uggghhh I NEVER get flowers from beyonce

 

skill issue

 

fucked up that she has everybody's address and baby pictures tbh

 

I need her to call him up for act iii

 

Some are speculating that is a hint… the rumor was a more rock album for act 3

 

The funny thing is as soon as I heard Ya Ya I was like oh this sounds like jack white influence

 

Craig Jenkins joins Yasmin Williams with extremely thoughtful, somewhat negative criticism.

Our Sweetheart of the Rodeo

I need to go back and read all the materials that Beyoncé put out about this album. There’s been this social narrative about it as a reclamation of the country genre for black America, but I think that’s something that’s being projected just because Renaissance was specifically about that for dance music. In actuality, it feels like it’s more about bringing the genre closer to Beyoncé herself.

I agree with the capitalist critiques and while I suppose it’s not a surprise that she’s moved in that direction, I think the way she did it with Post/Miley collabs reads as an over-obvious pop move after the last album largely eschewed those kinds of thing. It feels like she might be trying to make a statement on the ease to which they can move fluidly through similar genres without punishment. But honestly that’s me extrapolating.

As a general country music fan (though not a diehard), I would have been more immediately pleased by a more traditionalist effort in the vein of “Protector”. Looking forward to living with this one more.

 

Very interested to read those Yasmin and Craig Jenkins pieces. I know Craig has been big proponent for country music and bringing new voices to it over the past 5-10 years, so I'm intrigued by his take.

 

Also, I put this on while we had friends over this evening, and I stand by my original take that it's just way, way too long. A lot of songs I like, but I was so ready for something else after 80 minutes. A good reminder that we all need editors.

 

Yep! You gesture towards making a grand social statement but then in a climactic moment that's all you have to say lyrically? Could even have gone with "Look away" and its associations with "Dixie" without substantively changing the sound of the part!

 

I started the album Friday with my wife on a car ride, granted we have had to switch to kids songs a few times when the little dude gets restless, but we are halfway through Sweet Honey Buckin right now. It's been at least 6-7 car rides since we started it

 

This Jenkins piece reads a lot more positive to me than the Williams one (though yeah, the critiques that he has are in a similar space). I also think it’s a better piece, but like… that makes sense; it’s Craig Jenkins, lol.

And yeah, I think I agree with some of the critiques being projections more so than meeting the album where it wants to live? Obviously expectations and taste, etc., also play in, lol. But, for me personally, what an album isn’t only matters so far, as long as I’m enjoying what it is, y’know?

[I’m also very down for capitalist critiques of Beyoncé, or Taylor Swift or anyone else at a certain level, lol. But, to me, that’s not necessarily that central to how I experience the work, barring other factors in the mix.]