Beyoncé’s new country era is already facing backlash from country music professionals.
Country music station KYKC in Oklahoma refused to play Queen Bey’s new song, “Texas Hold Em'” following a fan’s request for the latest track. The fan, who goes by @jussato on Twitter, jumped on social media to share his experience.
He posted the response he received via email from the station.
“I requested Texas Hold’ Em at my local country radio station (KYKC), and after requesting, I received an email from the radio station stating, ‘We do not play Beyoncé on KYKC as we are a country music station,'” he wrote.
The fan, whose name is Justin according to Twitter, continued a thread. He said the station should be “held accountable for their blatant racism and discrimination against Beyoncé,” adding, “@1001KYKC This is absolutely ridiculous and racist. You guys should be ashamed. I grew up listening to your station.”
The call for accountability reached the Beyhive, who immediately jumped on board. Several users said they would follow suit and email the station after Justin listed it. One fan said KYKC not playing the song in the name of pride is “fumbling a bag.”
“They don’t realize by them refusing to play one of the biggest stars on the planet is a huge beg [sic
] they’re fumbling; Beyoncé can get them millions of new listeners onto country music, but they want to be prideful, let em know Beyhive,” @knowlesvatoo said.Another provided receipts and sent a screenshot of the email she sent.
The most decorated Grammy winner of all time broke the internet—again—on Super Bowl Sunday by dropping two new country singles, including “16 Carriages.” Beyonce’s latest project, Act II of her Renaissance journey, will drop on March 29. With this new sound, the Houston native is prepared for the pushback while she adds the “spotlight the contributions African-Americans [have] made to the genre.”
“She knows there will be pushback by those who want her to stay in a narrow lane, but she doesn’t care,” a source revealed. “In fact, it has made her more daring. By the time the summer is over, her detractors will know the difference between yee and haw.”
One can only hope that will be the case by the time Broadcasting South Central Oklahoma Radio (S.C.O.R.E.) Enterprises play Bey’s music. After facing claims of racism, the station told Newsweek everything was a misunderstanding.
“The manager was just completely unaware that playing Beyonce on country radio] would be an option,” Craig Stone, a DJ at the station, said. “It’s not that we have something against the songs or anything against Beyoncé. We’re kind of shocked at how everything broke out here a couple of hours ago.”