Dolly Parton praised Beyoncé’s cover of her classic hit “Jolene” on Friday, hours after Beyoncé dropped her highly anticipated country album “Cowboy Carter” and as a number of artists featured on the record expressed gratitude and praise on social media for the singer.
Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” featured artists including Miley Cyrus, Dolly Parton, Willie Nelson and a … [+]
Parton took to Instagram to weigh in on Beyoncé’s cover of her 1973 song “Jolene,” saying: “Wow, I just heard Jolene. Beyoncé is giving that girl some trouble and she deserves it!”
Parton, who is featured on “Dolly P,” an interlude introducing Beyoncé’s version of “Jolene,” and “Tyrant” previously hinted the song could appear on the album and said she loved Beyoncé, calling her “a beautiful girl and a great singer.”
Miley Cyrus—who appears on “II Most Wanted”—posted on X, formerly known as Twitter, thanking everyone who worked on the song and said after creating alongside Beyoncé that her “admiration runs so much deeper,” though she had “loved Beyonce since long before I had the opportunity to meet & work with her.”
Post Malone—who appears on “Levii’s Jeans”—thanked Beyoncé in an Instagram story Friday morning and congratulated her on the album, saying it’s “beautiful.”
Tanner Adell, a country music singer-songwriter who features on the album’s song “Blackbiird,” posted a video of herself Thursday crying at a Beyoncé show and told her fans they could expect “a long sappy post tomorrow, but for tonight I just wanna say thank you to Beyoncé.”
Tiera Kennedy, who also appears on “Blackbiird”—Beyoncé’s cover of The Beatles 1968 song—and performed harmonies on “Tyrant,” said on X: “God is so good” and thanked Beyoncé “for shining your light.”
Reyna Roberts, another featured artist on “Blackbiird” and “Tyrant,” posted on an Instagram story saying Beyoncé had “always been (her) biggest inspiration” and that she was thankful for the opportunity.
Raye, a British singer-songwriter who said she co-wrote the track “Riiverdance,” said on X it was “an honour … to being able to contribute my small piece to this beautiful album” and said Beyoncé “continues to inspire all of us.”
CRUCIAL QUOTE
“I’ve loved Beyonce since long before I had the opportunity to meet & work with her. My admiration runs so much deeper now that I’ve created along side of her,” Cyrus tweeted Friday. “Thank you Beyonce. You’re everything & more. Love you. To everyone who spent time making this song so special thank you from the bottom of my heart.”
BIG NUMBER
2. That’s the spot “Cowboy Carter” held on Apple Music’s top albums chart Friday morning just after 12 p.m. Eastern time. The top album early Friday afternoon was “We Don’t Trust You” by Future & Metro Boomin.
KEY BACKGROUND
“Cowboy Carter” is a 27-track album and the second installment to her 2022 album, “Renaissance.” Beyoncé announced the new record just weeks ago during a Super Bowl advertisement for Verizon. She released two singles from the album, “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em,” which both rose to the top of country charts, making her the first Black woman with a number one single on the Hot Country Songs chart. On March 19, she posted on Instagram that she was honored to hold that title, but hoped “the mention of an artist’s race, as it relates to releasing genres of music, will be irrelevant” in the future. She said the album had been five years in the making and was “born out of an experience” where she felt unwelcome, potentially referring to her time performing at the 2016 Country Music Awards.
SURPRISING FACT
Even before the release of her “Cowboy Carter,” some of Beyoncée’s most dedicated fans came from southern states. Demand for her Renaissance world tTour tickets was highest in Texas, Florida and Georgia, along with California and Illinois, according to ticket marketplace VividSeats.