Beyonce praised by celebs as country album Cowboy Carter drops

Beyoncé finally dropped her hotly anticipated new country album Cowboy Carter on Thursday night – and fans were sent into a tailspin of excitement.

After decades of superstardom, the songstress can also count a formidable array of celebrities among her ravenous ‘Beyhive.’

Boldface names galore leapt onto social media when Cowboy Carter debuted, sharing their rapturous reactions to Beyoncé’s latest offering.

Leading the charge was Justin Bieber‘s wife Hailey Bieber, who posted a screengrab of herself listening to Beyoncé’s revamp of Dolly Parton’s Jolene.

Hailey appeared to have been left nearly at a loss for words by the track, as she wrote simply: ‘whew,’ with an emoji that had smoke coming out of its nose.

Corey Gamble, the dramatically younger longtime boyfriend of momager Kris Jenner, was also among the fans listening to Cowboy Carter as soon as he could.

He posted a screen-grab of himself listening to Ameriican Dream, the first track on the album, and wrote with breathless expectancy: ‘LET’S….GO.’ 

Scandal bombshell Kerry Washington was similarly on tenterhooks for Cowboy Carter, marking its release on Insta Stories with a collage of its track names.

Beyoncé’s mother Tina Knowles joyously celebrated the album release with a brief behind-the-scenes clip of her daughter ‘in Japan today!’

The world-famous singer was in Japan to inaugurate her latest album with a signing at the Tower Records in the Shibuya City area of Tokyo.

Tina gushed: ‘I’m about to get the record . So excited I wanto be able to listen to Protector , YAYA , Jolene , with out having to ask’.

Protector is a particularly meaningful song to the family, as it includes an opening salvo by Beyoncé’s six-year-old daughter Rumi by Jay-Z.

The collaboration comes about three years after Beyoncé and her eldest daughter Blue Ivy, 12, won a Grammy for their collaboration Brown Skin Girl.

Kelly Rowland, who became a star with Beyoncé in the 1990s girl group Destiny’s Child, added her voice to the choir of celebs showering warm wishes on her.

Rita Ora said she was ‘Gaggin’ over Beyoncé and Miley Cyrus’ duet II Most Wanted and that she was ‘gaaaasseddddd argghhhh yessss’ over the solo track Ya Ya.

Last week, when Beyoncé unveiled the cover art for Cowboy Carter, she also addressed the backlash she received for entering the genre.

‘Today marks the 10-day countdown until the release of act ii,’ the Grammy winner began. ‘Thank you from the bottom of my heart to all of the supporters of [the album’s singles] TEXAS HOLD ‘EM and 16 CARRIAGES.’

She continued: ‘I feel honored to be the first Black woman with the number one single on the Hot Country Songs chart. That would not have happened without the outpouring of support from each and every one of you.’

The Texas-born songstress added: ‘My hope is that years from now, the mention of an artist’s race, as it relates to releasing genres of music, will be irrelevant.’

Her album cover shows Beyoncé on horseback, brandishing an American flag while wearing a red, white and blue leather outfit with a silver Stetson. 

She has on a massive silver wig that flutters in the breeze, as well as a sash with the album’s name draped across her front. 

‘This album has been over five years in the making. 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,’ Beyoncé wrote in the caption.

‘But, because of that experience, I did a deeper dive into the history of Country music and studied our rich musical archive. It feels good to see how music can unite so many people around the world, while also amplifying the voices of some of the people who have dedicated so much of their lives educating on our musical history.’

She added: ‘The criticisms I faced when I first entered this genre forced me to propel past the limitations that were put on me. act ii is a result of challenging myself, and taking my time to bend and blend genres together to create this body of work.’

Beyoncé teased: ‘I have a few surprises on the album, and have collaborated with some brilliant artists who I deeply respect. I hope that you can hear my heart and soul, and all the love and passion that I poured into every detail and every sound.’

She explained: ‘I focused on this album as a continuation of RENAISSANCE…I hope this music is an experience, creating another journey where you can close your eyes, start from the beginning and never stop.’

In conclusion, she wrote: ‘This ain’t a Country album. This is a “Beyoncé” album. This is act ii COWBOY CARTER, and I am proud to share it with y’all!’

Beyoncé, who grew up in Houston, made her first foray into the genre with a country-tinged song called Daddy Issues on her 2016 album Lemonade.

She delivered a controversial performance of the song at that year’s Country Music Association Awards, taking the stage with the girl group that was then known as The Dixie Chicks and has since rebranded as The Chicks.

When the CMAs posted footage of the performance to their official social media channels, the comments included such attacks as: ‘Beyoncé overrated racist n****r b***h,’ to the point the videos were ultimately pulled down.

Fans demanded that the videos be restored, but when it was reposted to Facebook it received another round of racist comments. 

Beyoncé announced her new country project last month, releasing two singles during the Super Bowl, 16 Carriages and Texas Hold ‘Em.

Both songs were hits, with Texas Hold ‘Em debuting at the top of both the Billboard Hot 100 and the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart.

The commercial success of Texas Hold ‘Em made Beyoncé the first black woman ever to have a country song at the number one position on the Billboard charts.

Texas Hold ‘Em gave Beyonce the chance to provide a platform to black folk musician Rhiannon Giddens, who can be heard playing the banjo on the track.

However, the response to the singles was not uniformly positive, as Beyoncé was also fiercely denounced by rapper Azealia Banks. 

‘Yes black girls can make country music… but you’re just really not hitting the button…. Beyoncé please stop the madness,’ wrote Banks on Instagram.

‘The gay baiting, the overtly narcissistic attempts to lazily encroach into a genre *you think* your popularity is gonna gain accolades for you in… You’re looking like food sis,’ added Banks, who has developed a reputation for scathing outspokenness.

Shortly thereafter, a source exclusively told DailyMail.com that Beyoncé had been braced for the possibility of a backlash to her country album.

‘She knows there will be pushback by those who want her to stay in a narrow lane but she doesn’t care,’ said the insider, explaining that Beyoncé hoped to provide a ‘spotlight’ to ‘the contributions African-Americans made to the genre.’

Beyoncé was ‘given the motivation to make a country record after seeing how many of her fans loved her single Daddy Lessons and her performance at the CMAs.’