blackbiird

Beyoncé And Tanner Adell Link Up For ‘Blackbiird,’ A Reimagining Of A Beatles Classic

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The power of manifestation is real. Tonight (March 29), Beyoncé dropped Cowboy Carter, her eighth studio album. On the album are some pretty promising collaborations, one of them being Tanner Adell — the self-proclaimed “Beyoncé with a lasso.”

The two dueted on a cover of “Blackbird” by The Beatles (stylized as “Blackbiird” on the album’s tracklist). The song’s lyrics are perfectly fitting for the timing of this collab, as Bey and Adell sing “All your life, you were only waiting / For this moment to arise.”

Adell has long cited Beyoncé as one of her biggest inspirations. Last year, in an interview with Country Now, Adell said a collaboration with Bey would be her dream.

“I really love Beyoncé, so I would love to do a big Beyoncé country moment with dance,” Adell said. “Obviously, I dance too, so I would be over the moon doing something with her.”

Even before the reveal of the collaboration, Adell began dropping hints about the collab as early as Super Bowl Sunday, when Bey released “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages.”

“As one of the only black girls in country music scene, i hope Bey decides to sprinkle me with a dash of her magic for a collab,” said Adell in a tweet, likely having already recorded the song.

Little did we know, the two would soon rock our world.

You can listen to “Blackbiird” above.

Cowboy Carter is out now via Parkwood and Columbia. Find more information here.

Is Tanner Adell On Beyoncé’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ Album?

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Tanner Adell March 2024
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Beyoncé revealed her Cowboy Carter tracklist, giving the BeyHive plenty to buzz about. There’s a cover of The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” a cover of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene,” and songs featuring Miley Cyrus and Post Malone. There are also two lesser-known featured artists whose lives are presumably about to change forever.

Is Tanner Adell On Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter Album?

I didn’t do a very good job of burying the lede here. Yes, Tanner Adell is on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter. According to Genius, Adell is featured on “Blackbiird,” Beyoncé’s aforementioned cover of The Beatles’ 1968 classic “Blackbird.”

In February 2023, Kyle Denis examined Black artists forging a path on TikTok for Uproxx and described Adell as having a sonic profile that “blends the vocal bombast of a young Carrie Underwood with the lyrical flourishes of early Taylor Swift.” This February, after Beyoncé released “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” during Super Bowl LVIII, Adell posted something on X (formerly Twitter) that packs a much heavier punch now: “As one of the only Black girls in [the] country music scene, I hope Bey decides to sprinkle me with a dash of her magic for a collab.” Well, she did!

See the full Cowboy Carter tracklist below.

Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter Tracklist

1. “Ameriican Requiem”
2. “Blackbiird” (The Beatles cover) Feat. Tanner Adell
3. “16 Carriages”
4. “Protector”
5. “My Rose”
6. “Smoke Hour With Willie Nelson”
7. “Texas Hold ‘Em”
8. “Bodyguard”
9. “Dolly P”
10. “Jolene” (Dolly Parton cover)
11. “Daughter”
12. “Spaghettii” Feat. Shaboozey
13. “Alliigator Tears”
14. “Smoke Hour II”
15. “Just For Fun”
16. “II Most Wanted” Feat. Miley Cyrus
17. “Levii’s Jeans” Feat. Post Malone
18. “Flamenco”
19. “The Linda Martell Show”
20. “Ya Ya”
21. “Oh Louisiana”
22. “Desert Eagle”
23. “Riiverdance”
24. “II Hands II Heaven”
25. “Tyrant”
26. “Sweet Honey Buckin’”
27. “Amen”

Cowboy Carter is out 3/29 via Parkwood/Columbia. Find more information here.

The Meaning Behind The Beatles’ ‘Blackbird,’ Which Beyoncé Covers On ‘Cowboy Carter’

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The Beatles released “Blackbird” in 1968. Thirteen years later, Beyoncé was born (thank God), and roughly 42 years later, Beyoncé will release a cover of “Blackbird,” which is listed as “Blackbiird” on her Cowboy Carter tracklist. The highly anticipated country album is due out on Friday, March 29, serving as her Renaissance “Act II.” Cowboy Carter also finds Beyoncé covering Dolly Parton’s “Jolene” and welcoming Miley Cyrus, Post Malone, and Shaboozey as featured artists.

The Meaning Behind The Beatles’ “Blackbird,” Which Beyoncé Covers On Cowboy Carter

In 2018, Sir Paul McCartney explained to GQ how and why he wrote “Blackbird,” as excerpted below:

“I was sitting around with my acoustic guitar, and I’d heard about the civil rights troubles that were happening in the ’60s, in Alabama, Mississippi, [and] Little Rock, in particular, so that was in my mind, and I just thought it’d be really good if I could write something that if it ever reached any of the people going through those problems, it might give ’em a little bit of hope. So, I wrote ‘Blackbird.’

And in England, a bird is a girl, so I was thinking of a Black girl going through this, you know, now is your time to arise, set yourself free, and take these broken wings. One of the nice things about music is that you know that a lot of people listening to you are going to take seriously what you are saying in the song. So, I’m very proud of the fact that The Beatles’ output is always really pretty positive.”

In 2016, McCartney met Thelma Mothershed Wair and Elizabeth Eckford, two Little Rock Nine members who attended his concert in Little Rock, Arkansas, as relayed by Rolling Stone at the time. McCartney posted a photo alongside them and wrote, “Incredible to meet two of the Little Rock Nine—pioneers of the civil rights movement and inspiration for ‘Blackbird.’”

Cowboy Carter is out 3/29 via Parkwood/Columbia. Find more information here.