Bey-haw everybody, it’s finally here! Beyoncé finally released Act II, Cowboy Carter on March 29. The 27-track album features the heart of country music while also paying tribute to the past, present and future of the country genre. Despite skepticism, Cowboy Carter came out the gate swinging and its safe to say that this album was nothing short of amazing.
My top five on the album took a lot of consideration. Beyoncé has a special place in my heart so trying to rank her songs is like trying to vacuum all the sand from the Sahara desert. So for this list, I used a little help. My ranking is based off of my “On Repeat” playlist on Spotify. This playlist shows which songs I played the most which ultimately translates to my faves on Cowboy Carter. Disclaimer: this list is in no particular order and probably will change in the next month.
II MOST WANTED
Starting off strong with “II MOST WANTED” featuring Miley Cyrus. This song really captures what it means to have that “ride or die” friend. The lush guitar and Miley’s voice really set it off for me. I didn’t know what to expect with Bey and Miley being on a song together, but when I first heard them sing on the chorus I was amazed.
YA YA
This next song instantly puts me in a good mood. What makes it one of my faves is the intro, everytime it starts I just want to play it over and over again. The Tina Turner influence on this song is very evident. This song beautifully plays tribute to her in the best ways. “YA YA” is very high energy, making it impossible to stay still when its on.
AMERIICAN REQUIEM
Hot take: this is one of her best album openers. Besides the lore behind this song, I think “AMERIICAN REQUIEM” beautifully opens up to what the album is about. I almost see it as a declaration to the reasoning behind the album– which stemmed from Beyoncé feeling unwelcome in the country space. The lyric in this song that lives rent free in my mind is when she said, “If that ain’t country, tell me what is.” “AMERIICAN REQUIEM” holds so much passion and power, making it one of my faves.
DAUGHTER
Taking more of a dark turn with “DAUGHTER.” This song is lyrically the best on the album. It tells the story of a woman who realizes that she’s more like her father after the death of her husband. This song shows a very vulnerable side of Beyoncé and heavily reminds me of something that could’ve been on her Lemonade album, thus making it one of my faves.
LEVII’S JEANS
Lastly, we have “LEVII’s JEANS” featuring Post Malone and y’all. I was shocked by this one. I don’t really listen to Post Malone so when I heard he was on a Beyoncé song, I went in with the idea that I probably wouldn’t like it. I was obviously wrong. Post Malone did his thing. This song is simply a fun love song. I could definitely see this song being a slow dance at some type of country event.
If you haven’t listened to Cowboy Carter yet, WYD? Run don’t walk to Spotify, Apple Music, or wherever you get music!