Beyoncé made history by being the first Black woman to top the country chart with a No. 1 song.
Beyoncé’s latest single “Texas Hold ‘Em” topped the Hot Country List on Tuesday, February 20, according to Billboard. Another song from her, “16 Carriages”, also entered the list at No. 9. The songs are ranked No. 2 and No. 38 on the Billboard 100 chart, respectively. Billboard also reported that Beyoncé is the first woman to achieve No. 1 on both Hot Country Songs and Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
According to Rolling Stone, Beyoncé became the first Black woman to reach No. 1 on the Hot Country List since it was established in 1958. Beyoncé launched her new country music phase when she released the songs after revealing her upcoming album, Renaissance Act II, at Super Bowl LVIII earlier this month.
Renaissance Act II will be available on March 29. Some country music stations resisted playing “Texas Hold ‘Em” after Beyoncé dropped it. One station in Oklahoma City refused to play the song despite listeners’ requests. However, the station reversed its decision after facing criticism.
“We initially refused to play it in the same manner if someone requested us to play the Rolling Stones on our country station,” general manager Roger Harris said in a statement at the time. “Fact is we play Beyoncé on TWO of our other stations and love her … she is an icon. We just didn’t know about the song … then when we found out about it, we tried to get the song … which we did and we have already played it 3 times on YKC, our country station. We also play her on 105.5, KXFC-FM and KADA-FM 0n 99.3.”
Many country music stars and personalities have supported Beyoncé despite some radio stations rejecting her. Lainey Wilson expressed her admiration for the Grammy winner and her foray into country music.
“I’m all for it,” Wilson, 31, said to Extra in an interview that came out on Monday, February 19. “[Country music] is about telling stories, it’s about making people feel at home. And everyone wants to feel at home. … I adore Beyoncé.”
Beyoncé is widely recognized for her R&B music, but she also has a connection to country music since she was born and raised in Texas. Her mother, Tina Knowles, revealed that both Beyoncé and her sister Solange enjoyed the “cowboy culture” growing up.
“I actually laugh because it’s been there since she was a kid. We went to rodeos every year and my whole family dressed in western fashion,” she wrote via Instagram on Saturday, February 17. “Solange did a whole brilliant album and project based on Black Cowboy Culture. It definitely was a part of our culture growing up.”