When Beyoncé announced she was stepping into country music, a lot of people had a lot of opinions.
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Though Gavin Adcock has made headlines for his distaste over Beyoncé’s entrance into the genre with Cowboy Carter, other country stars have welcomed the pop star into their realm.
Read on for three country stars that spoke out in favor of Beyoncé’s country era.
Carrie Underwood
Since winning American Idol in 2005, she’s been a staple in country music. As such, people took note when, in an interview with Yahoo!, Underwood praised the inclusivity in the genre.
“There really is something for everybody now,” Underwood said of country music. “One of the great things about country music, and this is true for music in general, is that every genre has really just broadened itself.”
“If you like things that are more traditional, you can find those. If you like things that seem more pop, you can find that. If you like things that can cross over into other genres, you can find something that you love—and it’s all part of the same family,” she added. “I always welcome that.”
That means that, for Underwood, Beyoncé is a welcome addition to the genre.
“I love that people like Post Malone and Beyoncé and Jelly Roll, and people like that are artists first and foremost,” she said. “They kind of weave in and out of different genres of music, and I think that’s really cool.”
Lainey Wilson
Lainey Wilson has found herself at every major country event in recent years. In a series of interviews, Wilson explained why she’s happy to have Beyoncé on hand for those moments as well.
“The truth is, country music is about storytelling, and Beyoncé knows how to tell a story,” she told Billboard. “So I think it’s awesome. I think it’s awesome for the country music genre. Everybody wants to feel at home, and country music makes you feel at home. So Beyoncé, come on home, girl!”
She reiterated those feelings in an interview with Extra, stating, “The more the merrier. [Country music] is about that storytelling. It’s about making people feel at home. And everybody wants to feel at home.”
After Beyoncé beat out Wilson to win the Best Country Album Grammy Award, the latter woman’s opinions didn’t change. In fact, when a U.K. interviewer asked Wilson if the loss was “frustrating,” she denied as much.
“Not for me at all,” she said. “Just because, at the end of the day, when I first started doing this and dreaming about doing this, I never in a million years was thinking, like, ‘I’m doing this just for the awards.’”
Of Beyoncé specifically, Wilson added, “We both share a deep appreciation for what each other does and I think that she’s introduced a lot of people to the country genre that maybe never even knew that they liked it. Country’s on fire right now.”
Maren Morris
Maren Morris is soundly in Team Beyoncé. The singer spoke out in favor of country music’s newest artist in multiple interviews.
During one such chat, Morris told E! News, “I feel like she’s always been genre-less, but I think the leaning into country elements and sort of reclaiming country music back to Black people because they created the genre is such a statement.”
As for whether country music has accepted Beyoncé, Morris told Billboard that “the right people have let her in” to the genre.
“This woman just constantly raises the bar,” Morris said of Beyoncé. “I don’t know what to say, I am so inspired, have taken so much inspiration from her with my own music and performances. She’s not a peer. She doesn’t have peers.”
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