Every Song on Beyoncé's 'COWBOY CARTER' Is Inspired by a Western Film
It features Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone and a rumoured appearance from Taylor Swift
Additionally, "Some aspects of the percussion were inspired by the O Brother, Where Art Thou? soundtrack, where it was more bluegrass." A limited vinyl pressing, which shows a microphone in the shape of a gun, evokes Thelma and Louise. The announcement states, "This body of work undulates from singing cowboy and Blaxploitation to spaghetti Westerns and fantasy with Beyoncé weaving between personal experiences, honouring Black history, to exaggerated character building."
Collaborators on the album include Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton, Stevie Wonder, Post Malone, Jon Batiste, Rhiannon Giddens, Nile Rodgers, Gary Clark Jr., The-Dream, Pharrell, Raphael Saadiq, Ryan Tedder, Swizz Beatz, and Beyoncé's husband JAY-Z. Taylor Swift is rumoured to appear on "BODYGUARD," but she's not credited.
Beyoncé apparently worked on the album for five years and originally intended to release it before 2022's RENAISSANCE. The artist said, "But with the pandemic, there was too much heaviness in the world. We wanted to dance. We deserved to dance."
COWBOY CARTER contains an epic 27 tracks and a runtime of 78 minutes. Hear it below.