Beyoncé’s CMA Snub: Kelly Clarkson Speaks Out

The upcoming 58th Annual Country Music Association Awards will be broadcast live from Nashville Bridgestone’s Arena on Wednesday, November 20th, 2024. The nominees for the prestigious awards, chosen by experts and eligible individuals from country music, were recently disclosed.

Among the talented luminaries are popular names like Morgan Wallen , Cody Johnson , and Chris Stapleton, with Wallen taking the lead with 7 nominations and the latter two closely following behind.

One radiant name which, although starkly absent from the nominees, yet garnered the most attention is none other than Beyoncé, whose Cowboy Carter made history after topping the Billboard Country Albums chart for four consecutive weeks.

However, despite the record-breaking achievement, Beyoncé was notably excluded from the nominations, although her album qualified for several notable categories, including ‘Song of the Year’ and ‘Female Vocalist of the Year’ category, because according to some country-music devotees, Beyoncé is not a country artist.

The qualifying criteria here seem to be biased and unjust, solely discriminating against artists on whether they ‘look’ country or not and based on their skin colour.

This article will take you through instances from the music industry where the siloed award shows have failed artists and fans because of the rigid genre classification that has limited artistic expression and growth.

The facts behind Beyoncé’s snub

Beyoncé being left out of the nominations may or may not have been done on purpose. As a fact, Dolly Parton , the veteran country music singer , guitarist and actress, claimed that not nominating Beyoncé may not be an act done ‘on purpose’.

This fact is known by her followers worldwide, her fans have argued and her father, Mathew Knowles has publicly slammed the CMA as well.

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Some popular individuals from the music industry have also come forward, speaking against the CMA and their inflexible nomination criteria while highlighting any possible reasons for Beyoncé’s snub.

One such dignitary is Kelly Clarkson , the pop-rock star who emerged from the list of famous names when she won the popular television talent contest,  American Idol,  in 2002. Clarkson stated she was very similar to Beyoncé, as they were both Texans and had to face troubles in the Country Music genre.

She said that it was unfair that Beyoncé’s latest hit was not listed among the nominees, while also pinpointing that she had faced similar issues. The pop-rock star frankly discussed how she had unabashedly been given the ultimatum to leave pop music and opt solely for the country genre, in the opposite case of which she will not be played.

However, Clarkson dismissed the notice, saying she would never ‘pick one’ and also pointed out that like Beyoncé, she loved ‘dabbling’ into multiple other genres as well.

From these facts, it seems that the nomination process is based on some kind of biased criteria, that will be unveiled from the following facts as we move forward.

Genre Classification and its Cons

While genre classification for music is an efficient technique for categorizing the different types of music into defined groups that people can relate to, it has somehow led to limitations to the imagination of the listeners, preventing them from having a more soulful musical experience.

“Genre” when pertaining to music is limiting our imagination for a more meaningful musical experience.
by u/MC_Ibprofane in unpopularopinion

• Limiting artist diversity

Not only this but the classification of music into certain distinct genres has also confined artists to stick to only one type for their music to be played and sold by agents and labels. This restriction does not allow for the creativity of the multifaceted artists to flourish and thrive in the way it can when given the full opportunity.

Several artists possess the potential to tap into more than one genre of music, presenting the ability to create diverse music, Beyoncé and Kelly Clarkson being among them. However, the genre confinement limits their power, marginalizing artists and creating boundaries, going against the free spirit of music.

• Subjectivity

Along with this, the concept of genre classification has led to the birth of a subjective approach to music, curbing the spontaneity of the field and permitting audiences to comment on music based on their one tastes and interests, rather than the quality of the sound.

This approach has also given diverse audiences across the world to comment on the ability of the artists who try to dabble with different music styles.

For example, according to NBC News , where experts have commented on why Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter did not make it to the CMA nominees list, the reason Beyoncé and artists coloured like her have not been able to ‘break into’ country music is solely based on the acceptance from their audiences.

Firstly, it has become evident from the past black artists’ snubs that the executives cater to white consumers and the country music industry’s targets are mostly adults inhabiting the suburbs of the country who are exclusively white and fall in the ages of 20-40 years.

These audiences are ‘socially conservative’ and hence argue that Beyoncé is not a country artist.

This is the reason the country music executives have not frequently aired Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter , aligning with their belief that their audience will not like it. This reduced air time led the CMA to not nominate Beyoncé for the upcoming awards.

• Gender Biases

According to insights on country music radio gender gap provided by 19th News, country music exclusively selects white men and anyone who does not fit the stringent criteria, ‘don’t exist within that space’.

These reasons serve as the backdrop for the current prevalent situation in the country music industry and effectively highlight the reasons why Beyoncé was ousted from this year’s CMA nominees, despite topping the charts with her latest innovation.

Other Notable Snubs

The table highlights artists across the music industry who have been similarly marginalized:

Conclusion

• Beyoncé was recently snubbed at the latest CMA nominations, despite having ranked the highest for her Cowboy Carter , she was not listed among the nominees.
• Other luminaries who have spoken against this action include Kelly Clarkson
• Kelly Clarkson has also commented on how she, being a Texan like Beyoncé, has faced similar issues while trying to make a name in the country music industry.
• Reasons which explain why deserving artists like Beyoncé, have been frequently snubbed include genre classification that subjectivizes the approach to music and limits artistic expression.
• Another factor that has played a role in marginalizing certain artists is the gender biases.

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