‘Cowboy Carter’: Country crossover artists laud second act of Beyoncé’s album trilogy

Beyoncé has been crowned rodeo queen.

The Houston-born superstar on Friday released her eighth studio album, “Cowboy Carter,” the second act in an album trilogy conceived during the COVID-19 lockdown. The first act, 2022’s “Renaissance,” explored the forgotten Black and queer roots of house music but was not supposed to precede her genre-busting foray into country music.

Originally, the 42-year-old singer intended to release “Cowboy Carter” before “Renaissance.” But she switched the order because “there was too much heaviness in the world,” she said in a press release. “We wanted to dance. We deserved to dance.”

With the arrival of “Cowboy Carter,” billed as a “multi-genre nod to Americana country culture,” came a chorus of praise from traditional country and country crossover artists — including several featured on the album.

Miley Cyrus, who served as a collaborator on