Everybody in the world knows the name Beyoncé Knowles-Carter. She is known for her sweet Texan nature, powerfully beautiful voice, and extreme influence. Unsurprisingly, she’d go big for the release of two new songs, and teasing Act II of her beloved album (released in 2022), “Renaissance”.
The last two years in the music world have practically belonged to Beyoncé. With “Renaissance”, Beyoncé sought inspiration from Detroit house music, disco music, electronic music, club culture, and voguing. The 16-song composition is a masterpiece for the entire run of 1 hour and 2 minutes. With a sold-out world tour, and RENAISSANCE: A FILM BY BEYONCÉ about the tour, “Renaissance” demanded our attention and got it. The tour brought in over half a billion dollars, and that’s understandable as Queen B’s beehive will go above and beyond for her.
“Renaissance” was a change from Beyoncé’s usual style of love-song R&B pieces. A new vision, and the public received it very well.
As most of America viewed the Super Bowl, a lot of us were delighted to see Beyoncé starring in a Verizon commercial titled “Can’t B Broken”. The whole premise of the commercial was that no matter what Beyoncé did, she could break the internet, but they bet she couldn’t beat Verizon’s wireless service. She continuously attempted to do so with outlandish attempts like a surprise jazz music drop, selling lemonade in the attire of her album “Lemonade”, and announcing her presidential campaign, Beyoncé of the United States, or cleverly, BOTUS.
At the end of the commercial, Beyoncé attempted one last time with a performance in space. Her Verizon assistant (Tony Hale) accidentally turns on the gravity in her space vessel, and Beyoncé falls to the ground saying, “Ugh, you ain’t gonna break me.” The commercial switches to her space shuttle flying back to Earth while we can hear Beyoncé quietly say, “Okay they ready, drop the new music!”
Thirty minutes after the commercial aired, “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages” were dropped, along with the release date of Act II on March 29, 2024.
With her western-inspired Grammy outfit, fans speculated that Beyoncé would stray from her “Renaissance” silvery space cowgirl, and would channel an actual, traditional cowgirl appearance. Those speculations were correct as both of her new singles are country songs, and she really pulled from her roots in Houston, Texas.
Out of the two, “Texas Hold ‘Em” is less of an emotional song, unlike its counterpart. It’s more fun and upbeat. Named after the famous poker game, the song features banjos and tambourines as she sings about her roots. Beyoncé just wants to dance in a dive bar in true hoedown fashion with her love. I interpret it as her wanting to escape the bustle of life (hence mentioning a tornado in her city and passing time), drink whiskey, and have an authentic southern night out. I’m not from Texas, and I didn’t grow up here for the most part, but Beyoncé was able to bring such a hometown feel to the song, I feel like this is a song I’ve been listening to my whole life.
“16 Carriages” on the other hand is a gorgeous composition lyrically about her career and legacy from girlhood into womanhood. The song seems to start in her teenage years at 15 years old, where she sings “16 carriages drivin’ away/ While I watch them ride with my dreams away”. This can be viewed as a young Beyoncé feeling her dreams are floating away as she got older until she has to leave her home behind at an early age and begin her journey into stardom. Young Beyoncé’s innocence is gone as she is underpaid and overworked in a place foreign to her, away from her family. The song mentions different situations in her life and the challenges she’s faced in the industry. However, she won’t fold because she is committed to catching up to those dreams that are speeding away from her. As the song goes on and Beyoncé matures, the perspective changes as the carriages are dragging her fears away, instead of her dreams, because she has finally made it. The now 42-year-old singer gets really personal and gives us a look into how she felt throughout her entire journey because her story hasn’t been easy.
Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages” are streaming on all platforms, feeding the beehive until March 29.
