Beyoncé Becomes First Black Woman To Top Country Album Chart With “Cowboy Carter”

Once again, Beyoncé Knowles-Carter makes history. The 32-time Grammy Award winner is the first Black woman to go No. 1 on Billboard’s Top Country Albums chart.

Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter became the best-selling country album this week by amassing 407,000 first-week units. The Columbia Records-backed body of work also leads the all-genre Billboard 200 chart.

In addition, Cowboy Carter’s 407,000 opening haul marks the biggest weekly album sales total of 2024. That number also represents Queen Bey’s best sales week since Lemonade racked up 653,000 units in 2016.

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Beyoncé now has eight leaders on the Billboard 200 as a solo act, giving her the fourth most Number Ones among female artists. She also reached the pinnacle of the chart two times as a member of the Destiny’s Child girl group.

Cowboy Carter came out on March 29. Beyoncé’s eighth studio LP received widespread critical acclaim upon its release. The 27-track project features Miley Cyrus, Post Malone, Reyna Roberts and more. Country legends Dolly Parton, Linda Martell and Willie Nelson also contributed to the LP.

Beyoncé dropped “16 Carriages” and “Texas Hold ‘Em” as singles from Cowboy Carter. The latter song peaked at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, giving the Houston native her ninth chart-topper. “16 Carriages” made it to No. 38.