Heavy/Getty Beyoncé, Luke Bryan
As country star and “American Idol” judge Luke Bryan wrapped up his latest tour on October 6, 2024, he fired off a late-night tweet, slamming the “false narrative” he thinks certain media outlets have created regarding his recent comments about Beyoncé‘s foray into country music.
Beyoncé’s “Cowboy Carter” album, released in March, made her the first Black woman to ever top Billboard’s Top Country Album chart, according to People. But many fans were upset when she didn’t receive any nominations for the 2024 CMA Awards, announced in early September.
After an interview on SiriusXM “Andy Cohen Live” on October 2, when Cohen asked Bryan what he thought about the CMA snub, the “Love You, Miss You, Mean It” singer was criticized by some for saying Beyoncé and other artists whose music is typically outside the genre should “come into our world and be country with us a little bit.”
“Beyoncé can do it exactly what she wants to,” Bryan told Cohen. “She’s probably the biggest star in music. But come to an award show and high-five us, and have fun and get in the family too. And I’m not saying she didn’t do that.”
But Bryan’s clarification tweet, in which he said he meant no harm and has “respect” for Beyoncé and her fans, has created a new firestorm of backlash among some of his own fans.
Luke Bryan Says He Felt He Had to Respond to ‘Ridiculous Headlines’ About His Comments
Bryan faced a great deal of scrutiny for his comments, including heated Reddit threads where many fans pointed out that Beyoncé’s album included multiple country legends.
“The goalpost moving is hilarious,” one person wrote on Reddit, “considering Willie Nelson, Dolly Parton and Linda Martell featured on the album AND she gave up and coming Black country artists features, too.”
On another thread, someone wrote, “Does this man not remember how the CMA’s treated Beyonce when she tried to “be a part of the family? 🤔”
After the CMA nominations were released, commentaries by multiple media outlets, including Rolling Stone, echoed that sentiment, recalling that Beyoncé received boos from the audience when she performed at the 2016 CMAs with the Dixie Chicks. That experience, she wrote in a March Instagram post, motivated her to create her own country-inspired album.
“This album has been over five years in the making,” she wrote ahead of her album’s release. “It was born out of an experience that I had years ago where I did not feel welcomed…and it was very clear that I wasn’t. But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive.”
Bryan said in his October 6 tweet that his comments were taken out of context and blown out of proportion, insisting that he has “respect” for Beyoncé.
Hey yall, I’m wrapping up the last night of my tour tonight and it’s been an amazing time. For that I am thankful.
I am posting tonight based on the ridiculous nature of the headlines I have read the last couple days from an interview on the Andy Cohen show I did this week when…
“I am posting tonight based on the ridiculous nature of the headlines I have read the last couple days,” Bryan’s tweet said. “I feel in my heart I could not let media create a false narrative.”
“As I read thru the comments of some of you,” he continued, “I just want to say that I encourage all of you to listen to the interview instead of reading click bait headlines. You will hear my tone and intentions which were not negative. I respect Beyonce and I love how loyal her fans are. I spend a lot of time supporting other artists. I want everyone to win. Love yall”
Fans Divided Over Luke Bryan’s Tweet
GettyBeyoncé accepts the Innovator Award from Stevie Wonder onstage during the 2024 iHeartRadio Music Awards in Los Angeles on April 1, 2024.
Though Bryan was hoping his tweet, which he also shared in his Instagram Stories, to quiet the noise around his comments, it may have done the opposite. Not only were Beyoncé fans unimpressed by his clarification, wondering why he didn’t acknowledge her attempts to “get in the family,” some country fans also lashed out at him for being too soft.
One upset country fan responded, “Luke. Ya need to get right son. If you’re with ‘beyonce’ and her fans, ya ain’t for us, #AmericanCitizens will figure that out. Pick a lane brother. Do the right thing.”
Another wrote, “Luke, from one south Georgia boy (Americus) to another…..you need to get the Hollywood out cha life, take a page from Aldean and tell em to pound sand.”
“Oh c’mon Luke,” someone else tweeted. “Stop with the political correctness. Stay as far away from Beyoncé as possible. Nobody who listens to your music gives a single F about her. BTW: Love you, love your music. Saw you 5 times in Vegas”
But plenty of others stuck up for Bryan, saying he needn’t worry himself with the critics, including one who wrote, “Luke u shouldn’t have to explain yourself. Your actions speak for themselves & anyway who has followed your career knows u have nothing but respect for other artist”
Beyoncé, meanwhile, had not addressed Bryan’s comments at the time of publication.
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Luke Bryan Slams Response to His Beyoncé Comments, Angering Even More Fans