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After a year filled with highs and lows, Beyoncé won Best Country Album at the Grammys for Cowboy Carter after skipping the red carpet.
The “Halo” singer, 43, took a pass on the red carpet and was first shown seated in the audience during the live telecast on Sunday, February 2. In fact, she didn’t appear in the crowd until the Best Country Album category was presented by Taylor Swift.
She was accompanied by husband Jay-Z and their eldest child, daughter Blue Ivy Carter. The rapper, 55, was accused in a December 2024 civil lawsuit of raping and drugging a 13-year-old girl in 2000 with Sean “Diddy” Combs. Jay strongly denied the allegations and filed a motion to dismiss his anonymous accuser’s case on January 9.
The Grammys marked Bey’s first major public appearance of the year. She performed at the Christmas Day halftime show during the Houston Texans vs. Baltimore Ravens December 25, 2024, game in her hometown. For the occasion, Beyoncé limited her set to only showcase songs from her Grammy nominated country album, Cowboy Carter.
Immediately after the performance, Beyoncé teased that a major announcement would be dropping on January 14, 2025. While some fans speculated that it could be a concert tour, the revelation was put on hold due to the devastating wildfires in the Los Angeles area the week prior.
Beyoncé came into the night with 11 Grammy nominations, more than any other artist. The superstar is hoping to take home her first-ever win for Album of the Year with her first country album, Cowboy Carter. Bey is also up for Song of the Year and Record of the Year for “Texas Hold ‘Em.”
The genre change away from pop and R&B also landed Beyoncé a Country Album of the Year Grammy nomination, as well as three other nods in the country category.
The Houston, Texas, native holds the record for most Grammy wins by any artist with 34 (32 prior to show.)
Jay-Z famously called out the recording academy at the 2024 Grammys for Beyoncé failing to be recognized in the Album of the Year category despite four previous nominations. He made the comment while accepting the Dr. Dre Global Impact Award.
“I don’t want to embarrass this young lady, but she has the most Grammys than everyone and never won Album of the Year,” the Brooklyn, New York, native pointed out as Beyoncé watched from the audience. “So even by your own metrics, that doesn’t work. Think about that. The most Grammys. Never won Album of the Year. That doesn’t work.”
Beyoncé was nominated for music’s top prize for 2008’s I Am… Sasha Fierce, 2013’s Beyoncé, 2016’s Lemonade and 2022’s Renaissance. In those years she was respectively beaten by Taylor Swift‘s Fearless, Beck‘s Morning Phase, Adele‘s 25 and Harry Styles‘ Harry’s House.
Jay-Z also ripped into the recording academy ahead of the 2023 Grammys in an interview with Tidal.
“Look what it’s done to the culture. Look how the energy of the world moved,” he said of Lemonade. “They play her whole album in the club. I don’t know if I’ve ever seen that. The whole entire joint — like, everything! Every remix is amazing. Everyone’s inspired. It has inspired the world. Every remix is better than the other one.”
He continued, “When it just inspires creativity, that’s an album. That has to be Album of the Year. It has to be … Even with Bey, I felt like they missed the moment. Not just Lemonade, when Beck won over her. I was like, ‘Oh, y’all missed it.'”
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