"Most innovative country albums of all time!"— Shaboozey praises Beyonce's Cowboy Carter after CMA nomination snub controversy

The 2024 CMA Awards nominations have sparked controversy, particularly with Beyonce's Cowboy Carter being completely overlooked despite its massive commercial success. While artists like Morgan Wallen and Post Malone were celebrated with multiple nominations, Beyonce's contributions to country music through Cowboy Carter went unrecognized, leading many, including her collaborator Shaboozey, to express disappointment.

Shaboozey, an American rapper who has two songs on Cowboy Carter, praised Run The World singer's efforts in an X post and wrote:

"That goes without saying. Thank you @Beyonce for opening a door for us, starting a conversation, and giving us one of the most innovative albums of all time!"

Shaboozey's words reflect a growing acknowledgment that country music is evolving, and Queen Bey's music is a major part of that transformation.

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Beyonce's CMA snub sparks debate over genre inclusivity and innovation

Country music singer-songwriters Chris Stapleton and Cody Johnson got five nominations each and Morgan Wallen tops the list with seven nominations at the 2024 CMA Awards. Post Malone and Lainey Wilson locked four places each.

However, the multiple Grammy winning artist was completely snubbed from every important category, even though Cowboy Carter set several records since its release in March. The album remained at the top spot for four weeks on Billboard's Top Country Albums list. Its lead single Texas Hold 'Em topped the Billboard Hot Country Songs list and with this Beyonce became the first black woman to top this chart in its history.

Many greats of the country genre were included in Cowboy Carter, such as Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson, as well as cross-genre artists such as Miley Cyrus and Post Malone.

Many argue that Beyonce should have been nominated for Album of the Year, Single of the Year, and Female Vocalist of the Year if her iconic album was not ignored.

Cowboy Carter's lack of nominations has once again opened the debate about how accepting mainstream country music is of artists outside the norm.

While introducing Cowboy Carter back in March, Shaboozey praised Beyonce and Linda Martell for paving the way and wrote:

"Honored to be in the company of two historically significant black voices 🖤. Love you Linda Martell, Love you Beyoncé! Thank you for always being the one to step up and kick in a door when others are afraid to. Texas born & raised, worked hard for yours. You are country."

Although Beyonce was not nominated for the CMA Award, Shaboozey was nominated for Best New Artist and Single of the Year. His hit song A Bar Song (Tipsy) is progressively ruling both the Billboard Hot 100 and Hot Country Songs where it has occupied the top rank for seven successive weeks.

This is not the first time that the Crazy in Love singer has faced barriers within the country music scene. In the 2016 CMAs, when she performed Daddy Lessons with The Chicks, she became the target of a slew of racist remarks. Her performance was removed from the CMA's official website.

Many speculate that Beyonce referred to this incident when she teased Cowboy Carter, stating:

“This album has been over five years in the making. It was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t. But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive.”

Cowboy Carter continues to achieve significant success despite missing out on CMA nominations. Beyoncé is likely to continue promoting it through performances and potential new projects.

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This year's CMA Awards will be held on November 20 at The Bridgestone Arena located in Nashville and broadcast live on ABC.