Beyoncé's 'Cowboy Carter' May Not Be For Everyone, But It Is Not 'Cosplay'

It’s hard to fully review an album only released days ago during a major holiday weekend, but I can confidently acknowledge being blown away by “Cowboy Carter,” which has been on repeat, of course.

Beyoncé accomplished her goal — of reclaiming a genre of music that Black people played a pivotal role in creating and bending it to her will — and for that, “Cowboy Carter” is a resounding success.

It is very much the gumbo of sounds she describes in the album’s press release. You hear country, soul, funk, opera and so on. The influences range from Sly and the Family Stone to Burt Bacharach. I don’t know how she decided to mix samples from The Beach Boys with Nancy Sinatra on “Ya Ya” or tap Post Malone for a country-leaning duet on “Levii’s Jeans.” Her duet with Miley Cyrus on “II Most Wanted” is so stunning, and almost makes me want to totally forgive and forget Billy Ray’s daughter’s twerk era.

Beyoncé sounds amazing throughout the album, and I am happy she channeled the layering reminiscent of Destiny’s Child production. I continue to be so fascinated by her ability to blend and create something that still manages to sound like her.

True to her word, “this isn’t a country album, it is a Beyoncé album.”

Despite my praise for “Cowboy Carter,” some of Beyoncé‘s detractors are undervaluing the value of Beyoncé to directly confront the racism of the country music industry. No artist is beyond reproach, but when it comes to recent criticism about Beyoncé and her foray into country-ish music, some critiques register as goofy while others are more reflective of some folks’ inability to get past their own ideas of who they think she should be and what music she can make.

In the days leading to the release of “Cowboy Carter,”