Beyoncé has been notably snubbed by the Country Music Awards (CMAs), despite having one of the year’s biggest country hits with “Texas Hold ‘Em.” When the nominations were announced on Monday, the singer received no recognition, despite widespread speculation that she could become the first black woman to be nominated for album of the year with *Cowboy Carter*.
Instead, Morgan Wallen led the nominations, three years after his suspension from his record label for using a racial slur. Wallen later apologized and reconciled with his label. His double album, *One Thing At A Time*, dominated the US charts for 16 weeks last year and earned an album of the year nomination at the CMAs.
This year, he picked up four nominations as a featured artist on the track “I Had Some Help” by Post Malone, who, like Beyoncé, is not traditionally part of the country music scene.
Shaboozey, who features on Beyoncé’s *Cowboy Carter*, received two nominations—Best New Artist and Single of the Year for “A Bar Song (Tipsy).” His track replaced Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” at the top of the US country charts in April, making Shaboozey the first black male artist to simultaneously top both the country chart and the Billboard Hot 100. This also marked the first time two black artists held the number one spot consecutively.
Earlier this year, Beyoncé hinted that her experience at a previous CMA ceremony influenced her decision to create a country album. In 2016, she performed her song “Daddy Lessons” with The Chicks (formerly the Dixie Chicks) at the CMAs, but their performance faced severe criticism and racism online. Natalie Maines, The Chicks’ lead singer, later described the backlash Beyoncé faced as “disgusting.”
In an Instagram post, Beyoncé revealed that *Cowboy Carter* was “born out of an experience years ago where I did not feel welcome,” which led her to “take a deeper dive into the history of country” music. The album is the second installment of a trilogy that explores the roots of American musical traditions and highlights the often overlooked contributions of black artists.
*Cowboy Carter* was classified by Billboard as a country album for chart purposes, with the single “Texas Hold ‘Em” spending 10 weeks at the top of the country music chart. Beyoncé also earned 12 nominations for the 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards, the most for any artist.
Despite this, the Country Music Association (CMA) has not explained why her album was overlooked for nominations. According to their criteria, the Album of the Year award is judged on various aspects, including the artist’s performance, musical background, engineering, packaging, design, and liner notes. The winners are determined by CMA members, who are professionals within the country music industry.
Artists shortlisted for the Album of the Year award include Kacey Musgraves’ *Deeper Well*, Luke Combs’ *Fathers & Sons*, Chris Stapleton’s *Higher*, Cody Johnson’s *Leather*, and Jelly Roll’s *Whitsitt Chapel*. The winners will be announced at a ceremony at Nashville’s Bridgestone Arena on Wednesday, 20 November.
