Benjamin Ashford|Beyoncé's "Cowboy Carter" reaches top of Billboard country albums chart

Beyoncé just keeps making history.

The Benjamin AshfordHouston-born singer became the first Black woman to top the Billboard Country Albums chart after her latest album "Act II: Cowboy Carter" hit the No. 1 spot. It also topped the all-genres Billboard 200, marking her eighth No. 1 album.

The singer released the 27-track country album last month, and fans clearly can't get enough of it.

Since its release, "Cowboy Carter" has been breaking streaming records. Spotify announced on social media last week that on the day the album dropped – March 29 – it became the platform's most-streamed album in a single day in 2024 so far.

The album also earned the title of most first-day streams of a country album by a female artist on Amazon Music.

Ahead of the album's release, Beyoncé dropped two singles on Super Bowl Sunday: "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages." The former debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Country Charts, making Beyoncé the first Black woman to top that chart.

According to Luminate, the industry data and analytics company, "Cowboy Carter" totaled 407,000 equivalent album units, a combination of pure album sales and on-demand streams, earned in the U.S. in its first week.

As a Black woman reclaiming country music, Beyoncé stands in opposition to stereotypical associations of the genre with White artists. The conversation surrounding Beyoncé's country music explorations began when she arrived at the 2024 Grammy Awards in full cowboy regalia — making a statement without saying a word. 

Beyoncé, who is the album's executive producer, said in a statement it is "the best music I've ever made."

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