Beyoncé recruited a star-studded line-up for guest appearances on her new album Cowboy Carter.
The pop superstar has made her first foray into country music with the record — which was released on March 29 — and she collaborated with country legends Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson.
Beyoncé has recorded a cover of Parton’s classic track “Jolene” with rewritten lyrics, and the album features an interlude by the country legend herself which references both Jolene and Becky, the name of a romantic rival featured in Beyonce’s Lemonade track “Sorry.”
“Hey, Miss Honey B, it’s Dolly P. You know that hussy with the good hair you sang about reminded me of someone I knew back when. Except she has flaming locks of auburn hair. Bless her heart. Just a hair of a different color, but it hurts just the same,” Parton says in the interlude.
Willie Nelson can be heard on two tracks, “Smoke Hour Willie Nelson” and “Smoke Hour II,” while the record also features guest appearances from Miley Cyrus, who sings on “II Most Wanted,” and Post Malone, who joins Beyoncé for “Levii’s Jeans.”
Beyoncé also features Linda Martell, who was the first Black woman to sing at the Grand Ole Opry back in 1969, as well as Black country artists, including Rhiannon Giddens, Tanner Adell and Willie Jones.
Parton previously let slip that the megastar was considering releasing a version of her timeless song for the album, which part two of her Renaissance project.
“Well, I think she has! I think she’s recorded ‘Jolene’ and I think it’s probably gonna be on her country album, which I’m very excited about that. I love her! She’s a beautiful girl and a great singer,” the country legend said to Knox News, regarding the rumors that they recorded a duet for the album.
“We’ve kind of sent messages back and forth through the years. And she and her mother were like fans … I was always touched that they were fans, and I always thought she was great,” the “9 to 5″ hitmaker said. She also confessed she has wanted the former Destiny’s Child star to cover the song for years.
The ‘”Single Ladies” hitmaker became the first Black woman to top Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart with “Texas Hold ‘Em” after it debuted at No.1 on the U.S. chart, and “16 Carriages” has also racked up some impressive streams.
Cowboy Carter is the second part of Beyonce’s planned Renaissance trilogy, following the 2022 dance record Renaissance.
