Hours before the Country Music Association Awards telecast, Billy Ray Cyrus expressed his disappointment that Beyoncé's country-influenced album Cowboy Carter wasn't recognized.
Cyrus went to Instagram on Wednesday and congratulated those nominated in CMA Awards categories, plus called out the perceived snub of Cowboy Carter. The "Achy Breaky Heart" musician's eldest daughter, Miley Cyrus, appears on Cowboy Carter's track "II Most Wanted."
"I was surprised to see @beyonce wasn't nominated???" Cyrus wrote. "Her album was brilliant… her single ruled. But she knows that. She doesn't need a trophy from the CMA… or permission …. or approval from any of their judges."
After the CMA Awards nominations were announced in September, Cowboy Carter collaborators Shaboozey and Dolly Parton, plus country artist Luke Bryan, showed support for Beyoncé.
"I’m so happy and proud to see country music opening their doors and format to be inclusive to all people, all styles. @lilnasx and I won this award in 2019 for Event Of The Year," Cyrus wrote on Wednesday, referencing the "Old Town Road" remix. "But you wouldn’t have seen it because they didn’t air it in the [CMAs]."
In 2019, Cyrus protested Black artists who have been shut out of country music by hopping on "Old Town Road." The original version of the song had been removed from the Billboard Country Airplay chart.
The BeyHive similarly demanded that lead Cowboy Carter singles "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages" be played on country music radio.
