Beyoncé revealed the tracklist for her forthcoming album Cowboy Carter yesterday (March 27), and there are some interesting names gracing the list. The album features a possible cover of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene,” as well as a track called “Dolly P” which allegedly includes the country legend herself.
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The album is a full 27-song behemoth with tracks like “Smoke Hour Willie Nelson,” “II Most Wanted” which features Miley Cyrus, and “The Linda Martell Show,” which is a nod to Linda Martell, the first Black female country artist to perform at the Grand Ole Opry.
While some features have been revealed, there are some that could be kept a secret still. Beyoncé definitely has the star power to get Willie Nelson and Linda Martell to collaborate with her, but it all comes down to the album release. Are these simply interludes, possible archive recordings, or full collaborations?
Dolly Parton is featured on the track “Dolly P,” which preludes “Jolene.” It’s possible this is an interlude or introduction to the cover. In a similar vein, “The Linda Martell Show” seems like an interlude to “Ya Ya.” However, we won’t rule out a musical collaboration until we hear it.
[RELATED: Dolly Parton Has an Urgent Message for Fans Before Beyoncé’s “Jolene” Cover Drops]
Beyoncé Has Been Working on Cowboy Carter for Longer Than We Knew
Beyoncé’s Renaissance trilogy is a highly involved project, rife with allusion, metaphor, and powerful imagery, especially during her record-breaking live show. As far as Cowboy Carter goes, there are allusions to it being Act II directly in the song titles—many of the ‘I’s in the song titles have been replaced with the Roman numeral two (II). Additionally, according to producer Atia “Ink” Boggs, Queen Bey has been working on this album long before Renaissance.
Boggs, who first started working with Beyoncé in 2020, recently revealed that “16 Carriages” was written before Renaissance, and was the first song she and Bey wrote together.
“So, a lot of people don’t know this, but we actually had [“16 Carriages”] first,” Boggs said, speaking with Alana M. Yzola for her Acknowledge series on YouTube. “So imagine having this timeless, classic music first and having to wait, and then she came up with ‘Act I.’”
As for Act I, Boggs said it transported listeners to “other planets,” but Act II is bringing everyone back down to Earth. “And it’s like, baby, we don’t do just one thing. We do everything and we do it well,” she said. “That’s what she’s letting you know. This is her southern roots, this is her Texas roots.”
Featured Images by Larry Busacca/Getty Images for Coachella; Jason Kempin/Getty Images for American Greetings
