Lil Nas X gave country music a new identity with his breakthrough hit “Old Town Road” back in 2019, and he still wishes that stakeholders of the genre gave him his props, in light of Beyoncé‘s recent success with Cowboy Carter.
In an interview with BBC published on Sunday (May 19), the 25-year-old rapper and singer reflected on the aforementioned song not being included on Billboard’s Hot Country Songs chart due to, according to those in charge, the fact that it did not “embrace enough elements of today’s country music.”
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Though he is “happy” for Bey having received the recognition he didn’t, the Georgia native admitted: “I wish this would have happened for me. I wasn’t even able to experience this.”
Last month, the Destiny’s Child alum topped Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart thanks to her latest project, making her the first Black woman to ever do so.
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According to Billboard, Cowboy Carter debuted atop the tally with 407,000 equivalent album units in its first week. Twenty-three of the album’s 27 songs have also made it to the Billboard Hot 100 chart, bringing her career total Billboard Hot 100 songs to 106. She is now just the 17th artist and only the third woman to ever bag this accolade.
Ten other songs from the album also cracked the top 50, including the Post Malone collaboration “Levii’s Jeans,” “Bodyguard,” and The Beatles cover “Blackbird.”
As for the LP’s other successes, Queen Bey and Post Malone‘s partnership gave Levi Strauss & Co. a massive push. Soon after the album dropped, the American clothing company altered its Instagram name to mirror the aforementioned song title. According to CBS News, their stock spiked by 20% in early April.
“I would just say that denim is having a moment and the Levi’s brand is having a powerful moment around the world,” chief executive officer Michelle Gass said. “One of the things that really is significant about the Levi’s brand and we place a lot of emphasis and investment is making sure that Levi’s brand remains in the center of culture.
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“And I don’t think there’s any better evidence or proof point than having someone like Beyoncé, who is a culture shaper, to actually name a song after us.”