Jon Batiste praises Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’: ‘Dismantle the genre machine’
The Grammy winner, who contributed to the country-themed album, sang Queen Bey's praises on social media.
Jon Batiste is giving Beyoncé all of her flowers.
The Grammy winner, who collaborated with Bey on her newest project, “Cowboy Carter,” celebrated the “Break My Soul” singer for overcoming music barriers and embracing a new sound.
Batiste took to social media on Saturday to share his admiration, emphasizing how “Cowboy Carter” dismantles “the genre machine.” Beyoncé released the 27-track, country-themed album on Friday to rave reviews. Just last month, Bey made history as the first Black woman to have a No. 1 single, “Texas Hold ‘Em,” on the Hot Country Songs chart, according to Billboard.
“This is the moment yall, where we dismantle the genre machine,” Batiste posted on X (formerly Twitter). “Quincy Jones told me, as he also wrote in his forward to my WE ARE album, ‘it’s up to you to de categorize American music!! ‘ , which is what Duke Ellington told him. I really believe that is our generations role, led by a few artists willing to take this leap.”
Batiste went on to share how he produced and wrote the first track on the album, “Ameriican Requiem,” alongside Beyoncé and Dion “NO ID” Wilson. He called the song “an example of extraordinary alignment — when many leading artists see a similar vision at the same time, that’s when you know a major shift is happening.”
“Ameriican Requiem,” and the entire “Cowboy Carter” album, represent “a new era, long time coming,” according to Batiste. “Let’s liberate ourselves from genre and break the barriers that marginalize who we are and the art that we create.”
Batiste thanked the “once in a generation artist” for being able to contribute to her “brilliant album.”
“So glad that we finally got to collaborate with each other at this time,” he said.
Batiste joins an impressive list of collaborators on the critically acclaimed “Cowboy Carter” album, including Linda Martell, Stevie Wonder, Chuck Berry, Miley Cyrus, Post Malone, Willie Jones, Brittney Spencer, Shaboozey, Reyna Roberts, Tanner Adell and Tiera Kennedy.
Recommended Stories
“I think people are going to be surprised because I don’t think this music is what everyone expects,” Beyoncé said in a press release. “But it’s the best music I’ve ever made.”
It seems as though fans would agree. “Cowboy Carter” broke the record for the most-streamed album in a single day in 2024, according to Spotify.
Never miss a beat: Get our daily stories straight to your inbox with theGrio’s newsletter.
