BMAC Panel Examines Black Artists’ Challenges in Nashville, Asks Whether Beyonce’s ‘Cowboy Carter’ Will Help or Hinder Country Artists of Color
variety.comJem Aswad Executive Editor, Music At the Black Music Action Coalition‘s “Rooted in Country” discussion panel Thursday night — addressing the many challenges Black country artists continue to face breaking into the genre — it was just a matter of time before the conversation turned to Beyonce’s “Act II: Cowboy Carter” country-themed album that drops next Friday.
The all-female panel (in honor of Women’s History Month) featured Rissi Palmer, a pioneering country singer-songwriter and host of the “Color Me Country” podcast; Holly G, founder of the Black Opry collective; and Live Nation Country’s Julie Matway; it was moderated by label veteran and author Naima Cochrane, who wrote a powerful study on the subject called “Three Chords & the Actual Truth: The Manufactured Myth of Country Music & White America” that was published in June of 2022.
The event, which was presented by the BMAC, Live Nation’s “Curated” program and Variety, also featured a brief performance from Academy of Country Music OnRamp honoree Carmen Dianne, who performed solo and, unusually for a singer-songwriter, accompanied herself only on bass. (Pictured above, L-R: Palmer, Holly G, BMAC CEO WIllie “Prophet” Stiggers, Cochrane, Matway.) Not surprisingly, considering the subject matter, some strong opinions were aired.
Palmer, 42, is an O.G. of the movement: Her 2007 single “Country Girl” was the first song released by an African-American woman to reach the country charts in 20 years.
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