BY: HANNAH WEST, STAFF WRITER
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons
Out of the three country categories at the GRAMMY Awards, Beyoncé questionably won two and was nominated for all three. Her “country” album, “COWBOY CARTER,” was, in fact, very popular. It surpassed 1 billion streams last year and broke the record for the most streams in one day. This is impressive, but are her songs country?
Beyoncé’s song, “II MOST WANTED,” featuring Miley Cyrus, beat out some tough opponents, ultimately receiving the Best Country Duo/Group Performance. This is a good song, but it’s the least country on the list. I would argue that it lacks a country feeling altogether.
Though “II MOST WANTED,” is not very country, the other songs on the list also lean in the pop direction. For example, Post Malone’s “I Had Some Help,” cannot be considered country just because it features Morgan Wallen.
On top of winning Best Country Duo/Group Performance, Beyoncé’s “COWBOY CARTER” album was awarded Best Country Album. It was the most popular album on the nominee list, but it is a pop album. Sitting next to albums like Chris Stapelton’s “Higher” and Lainey Wilson’s “Whirlwind,” it does not belong to the country category.
It is difficult to tell if listeners prefer pop-country to true country, or if there simply were not enough popular country albums to fill the categories. This is the first year where the country category has truly taken some left turns away from its roots.
