Beyoncé's Country
02/27/24 • 44 min
6 Listeners
Renaissance Act II truthers, your time has come: There’s new music from Beyoncé, and boy, is it country. Her two new singles dropped two weeks ago, and in the time since, they’ve both climbed up the chart and taken the internet by storm. There’s the barnstorming stomp and holler ditty “TEXAS HOLD 'EM,” which just notched the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, and the dark horse “16 CARRIAGES,” a autobiographical work song detailing Beyoncé’s roots in Houston, Texas. Charlie and Nate unpack both of these two songs, highlighting their structures, inspirations, and collaborators, from Raphael Saddiq to Rhiannon Giddens. Then, producer Reanna Cruz speaks to music journalist Taylor Crumpton, whose article for Time, “Beyoncé Has Always Been Country” lays out the cultural implications of this sonic pivot for one of the biggest artists of all time.
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Songs Discussed
- Beyoncé - Texas Hold 'Em, 16 Carriages, Break My Soul, Formation, Daddy Lessons
- Dink Roberts - Georgia Buck
- Carolina Chocolate Drops - Hit 'Em Up Style
- Elvis Presley - Mystery Train
- Unidentified African American Chain Gang - Waterboy, Run
- James Carter and the Prisoners - Po Lazarus
- Robert Randolph and the Family Band - Find a Way
- Vince Gill ft Justus West- High Lonesome Sound
More
Read Taylor Crumpton's article Beyoncé Has Always Been Country
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Renaissance Act II truthers, your time has come: There’s new music from Beyoncé, and boy, is it country. Her two new singles dropped two weeks ago, and in the time since, they’ve both climbed up the chart and taken the internet by storm. There’s the barnstorming stomp and holler ditty “TEXAS HOLD 'EM,” which just notched the top spot on the Billboard Hot 100, and the dark horse “16 CARRIAGES,” a autobiographical work song detailing Beyoncé’s roots in Houston, Texas. Charlie and Nate unpack both of these two songs, highlighting their structures, inspirations, and collaborators, from Raphael Saddiq to Rhiannon Giddens. Then, producer Reanna Cruz speaks to music journalist Taylor Crumpton, whose article for Time, “Beyoncé Has Always Been Country” lays out the cultural implications of this sonic pivot for one of the biggest artists of all time.
Sign up for the Switched On Pop Newsletter
Songs Discussed
- Beyoncé - Texas Hold 'Em, 16 Carriages, Break My Soul, Formation, Daddy Lessons
- Dink Roberts - Georgia Buck
- Carolina Chocolate Drops - Hit 'Em Up Style
- Elvis Presley - Mystery Train
- Unidentified African American Chain Gang - Waterboy, Run
- James Carter and the Prisoners - Po Lazarus
- Robert Randolph and the Family Band - Find a Way
- Vince Gill ft Justus West- High Lonesome Sound
More
Read Taylor Crumpton's article Beyoncé Has Always Been Country
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Previous Episode
Adult Contemporary, but make it cool (with CHROMEO)
The Canadian Electro-Funk duo CHROMEO have made consistently funky, highly danceable music for twenty years. They’ve released five studios albums, done the Coachella festival circuit and have been nominated for a Grammy for their sound that’s been compared to Prince, Zapp and Hall and Oates. Now with their latest album, Adult Contemporary, they are challenging preconceptions of adult contemporary music by redefining its whole meaning.
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Songs discussed
CHROMEO - (I Don't Need A) New Girl, BTS, Coda, Fancy Footwork, Needy Girl, Replacements, Clorox Wipe, Six Feet Away
Dolly Parton - Nine to Five
Donna Summer - She Works Hard For The Money
Gwen Guthrie - Ain't Nothin' Goin' on but the Rent
Kenny G - Songbird, You're Beautiful
Kenny Loggins - This Is It
Kenny Rodgers - We've Got Tonight, You And I
Michael Bolton - How Am I Supposed To Live
Michael Bublé - Home
Michael Jackson - Human Nature, Working Day and Night
NWA - Straight Outta Compton
Steely Dan - Black Cow, Ricky Don't Lose That Number, Time Out of Mind
The Bee Gees - Staying Alive
Toto - I'll be Over You
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Next Episode
Jacob Collier unites the world
One of the most inventive and gifted musicians working today is none other than Jacob Collier. Maybe you know him from his YouTube videos, or co-writing SZA’s “Good Days,” or even performing alongside Joni Mitchell at this year’s Grammys. Jacob is a musician with thunderous chops, proficient on multiple instruments and with a voice that ranges from bass to soprano. over the past few years, he’s managed to release several records, net collaborations with everyone from Michael McDonald to T-Pain, and become the first British artist to receive a Grammy Award for each of his first four albums. His latest album Djesse 4 is the conclusion to his Djesse quadrilogy, and it features a kaleidoscopic range of style, from Indian sitar to Colombian reggaeton to a haunting Simon and Garfunkel cover. This week, we’re going to take a look inside the work and process of a musical mad scientist – our resident songwriter Charlie Harding sat down with Jacob to learn about his new record, his collaborators, and the beautifully unique way he sees and thinks about music.
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SONGS DISCUSSED
Jacob Collier - In My Room, 100,000 Voices, A Rock Somewhere, Little Blue, She Put Sunshine
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