While award season takes hold of Hollywood, it is hard to contain my excitement for what this moment means – the Grammys are near. Quickly, I searched the nominations for my favorite artists. There were your expected nods for Doechii, Sabrina Carpenter, Billie Ellis, Bad Bunny and Kendrick Lamar. Even a well-deserved nomination for Leon Thomas as he pushes through the rejuvenation of R&B. However, following the history setting wins for Cowboy Carter, I really wanted to see how the country categories were ushering in their rejuvenation of the genre.
Then I saw it: the Recording Academy, for the first time in its history, split the Best Country Album category into Contemporary and Traditional – all in response to the record breaking work of a Black woman. I’ve listened to Beyonce’s album “Cowboy Carter” for some 30,000 minutes, placing me in the top .005 percent of fans in 2024, according to Spotify — keeping that energy alive throughout 2025 based on the last Spotify Wrapped report.
At a time when our nation feels more divided every day, the symbolism was hard to miss: the
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