Beyonce’s dad Matthew Knowles is slamming the Country Music Association Awards after his daughter was snubbed.
Knowles told TMZ that he thought race was a factor in Beyonce receiving zero nominations from the CMA Awards for her “Cowboy Carter” album.
Knowles told TMZ that voters are “showing it still comes down to white and black” by snubbing Beyonce’s album. “There’s more white people in America and unfortunately they don’t vote based on ability and achievements, it’s still sometimes a white and black thing,” he told TMZ.
TMZ noted that Knowles said he was not calling the CMAs racist but added that the nomination shutout “speaks for itself.”
Beyonce’s Dad Said There Is ‘No Accountability’ in America When It Comes to Race
GettySinger Beyonce Knowles (C) poses with her father and manager Matthew Knowles and her mother Tina Knowles at the “Beyonce: Beyond the Red Carpet auction presented by Beyonce and her mother Tina Knowles along with the House of Dereon to benefit the VH1 Save The Music Foundation June 23, 2005, in New York City.
Knowles told TMZ that he isn’t surprised Beyonce was left out because of “the current state of American culture.”
“In America, there’s no accountability for people not being accepting of other cultures,” he told TMZ. He said that country music can trace some of its roots to Africa, TMZ reported.
Country artist Rissi Palmer wrote on X, “I think that a larger conversation should be had about the fact that no other Black woman or woman of color could even qualify for certain CMA awards and why that is…” She added in another post, “Well… these noms set a really interesting precedent. The message is extremely loud.”
However, there was another view. An anonymous music executive told Billboard of Beyonce, “There was really only one single from the album that did anything. She really didn’t embrace the genre, unlike what Post Malone has done with his album.”
Amanda Marie Martinez, a researcher at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, told NBC News that country music artists are expected to “pay their dues” in Nashville “by playing honky-tonks, participating in writers’ rounds, and showcasing their work around the city in order to build a successful career in the genre.”
“There’s a real culture of deference where you’re supposed to bow down to the gatekeepers and fall in their good graces,” said Martinez, to NBC. Unlike Post Malone, Beyonce did not do those things, NBC reported.
Emmett Price III, dean of Africana studies at Berklee College of Music, told NBC that Beyonce was “calling into question not only the historical and cultural roots of country and Western but also how we normalize certain cultural aspects of country culture.”
Billboard reported that Beyonce did not need to submit “Cowboy Carter” to be eligible to receive a nomination from the CMA Awards. “The roughly 6,600 voting members each receive a write-in ballot to list their choices,” with the exception of single of the year, where they are given 10 choices, Billboard explained.
Beyonce’s 2016 Appearance at the CMA Awards With the Dixie Chicks Caused Controversy
GettyBeyoncé speaks onstage during the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards at Dolby Theatre on April 01, 2024, in Hollywood, California.
In 2016, The New York Times wrote about the “backlash” Beyonce received when she performed with Dixie Chicks at the 50th annual Country Music Association Awards. Some of the criticism Beyonce received online at the time stemmed from her support for police reform and Black Lives Matter, The Times reported, adding that other fans leaped to her defense. According to NPR, some of the criticism of Beyonce at the time was “racially charged.”
NPR noted that country music’s roots “entwine with African-American folk, blues, string band and pop contributions.”
Beyonce’s dad wasn’t the only person leaping to her defense. Shaboozey spoke out about the snub in an interview with E! News.
“It’s unfortunate. I mean, if that’s something she was looking to receive and that’s something that she worked for, it really sucks,” Shaboozey told E! News. “I know as an artist, you put a lot of time and a lot of work and a lot of things and a lot of energy into music.”
Shaboozey received two nominations at the CMA Awards, Billboard reported.
He also wrote on X, referring to Beyonce, “Thank you for opening a door for us, starting a conversation, and giving us one of the most innovative country albums of all time!”
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