Beyoncé snubbed with no nominations for CMA Awards for 'Cowboy Carter'

Beyoncé Knowles-Carter is not amongst the list of nominees at this year's Country Music Association Awards, despite her history-making album "Cowboy Carter."

The nominees for the 58th CMA Awards were announced Monday. The Grammy Award-winning singer was not nominated for any awards, let alone album of the year for her eighth studio album.

The awards are considered one of the most prestigious awards in the country music industry, and fans suspected this year the megastar would be the first Black woman to be nominated and win album of the year for her groundbreaking and culture-shifting project.

According the Country Music Association, the album of the year award "judged on all aspects including, but not limited to, artist’s performance, musical background, engineering, packaging, design, art, layout and liner notes."

The awards are "determined by eligible voting CMA members comprised of professionals within the Country Music industry," according to an official release.

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Morgan Wallen received the most nominations with a total of seven nods. Other top nominees include Cody Johnson, Chris Stapleton, Post Malone and Lainey Wilson. "Cowboy Carter" collaborator Shaboozey was nominated for single of the year for his hit song "A Bar Song (Tipsy)."

On X he wrote, "That goes without saying. Thank you Beyoncé for opening a door for us, starting a conversation, and giving us one of the most innovative country albums of all time!"

As fans know, Beyoncé released "Cowboy Carter" on March 29 and has since made history and broken multiple records. And she has been a huge catalyst for the recent spotlight on Black country artists and the genre's roots.

"Cowboy Carter" has received praise from fans and country music legends alike. Recently, Beyoncé became the most nominated artist at the 2024 People's Choice Country Awards with 12 nods.

Prior to sharing the album with the rest of the world, Beyoncé got candid about creating the 5-year project and alluded to her 2016 performance at the CMA Awards.

In a post on Instagram, she wrote: "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. 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 wrote. "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."

Last year, Tracy Chapman became the first Black woman to win a CMA Award 35 years after she debuted her hit "Fast Car." At the 2023 ceremony, country star Luke Combs' cover of the song won song of the year. Since it was a cover, the award went to the writer of the winning song. Combs still took home a trophy for the tune when the song won single of the year — an award that goes to the performer. Combs' rendition of the song was released on his 2023 album "Gettin' Old."

Music legend Charley Pride was the first Black artist to win a CMA Award. The three-time winner earned his first nominations, entertainer of the year and male vocalist of the year, in 1968. He won both in 1971, becoming the first Black artist to win in both categories.

This year's awards will air live Nov. 20 from Nashville, Tennessee.

Follow Caché McClay, the USA TODAY Network's Beyoncé Knowles-Carter reporter, on Instagram, TikTok and X as @cachemcclay.

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