Country music legend Dolly Parton is standing up for the Country Music Association (CMA) Awards after Beyoncé’s album, Cowboy Carter, was left out of the 2024 nominations. Despite the snub, Parton believes there’s no ill intent behind the decision. In a recent interview with Variety, Parton emphasized that the exclusion wasn’t deliberate, even though many fans feel otherwise.
“Well, you never know,” Parton said, addressing the controversy. She added, “There’s so many wonderful country artists that, I guess probably the country music field, they probably thought, well, we can’t really leave out some of the ones that spend their whole life doing that.”
Parton’s Praise for “Cowboy Carter”
Parton, who contributed to the album with the interlude “Dolly P” and gave Beyoncé her blessing to cover her hit “Jolene,” praised the project. She called the album “wonderful” and remarked that Beyoncé should “be very, very proud” of her work. “I think everybody in country music welcomed her and thought that, that was good,” Parton said.
Although Beyoncé’s album performed well commercially, topping the Billboard charts and producing several hit singles, it failed to secure a single nomination for the CMAs. Parton dismissed claims that Beyoncé was intentionally shut out, saying, “I don’t think it was a matter of shutting out, like doing that on purpose. I think it was just more of what the country charts and the country artists were doing, that do that all the time, not just a specialty album.”
Country Roots Acknowledged
Parton further noted that Beyoncé’s background has ties to country music. “She’s a country girl in Texas and Louisiana, so she grew up with that base,” Parton said. The country star also expressed her admiration for Beyoncé’s deep dive into the genre.
Though Beyoncé didn’t receive CMA recognition, her album remains a standout, and many believe it will fare better at the 2025 Grammy Awards. As Parton remarked, Cowboy Carter was embraced by country music fans, despite its absence from the CMA nominations.