Beyoncé Knowles released 27-track album Cowboy Carter on Friday. Picture: Kevin Mazur / Getty Images
As most were enjoying the beginning of their Easter, Beyoncé Knowles dropped a 27 track album Cowboy Carter.
“I think people are going to be surprised because I don’t think this music is what everyone expects,” Beyoncé said in a statement on Friday.
Guest appearances on the album include Willie Nelson, Mylie Cyrus and Dolly Parton, whose 1973 hit Jolene is one of two covers featured.
Beyoncé said she drew inspiration for the album, in part, from growing up in Texas and watching performances at the Houston Rodeo.
The 42 year-old super star said it took five years to finish Cowboy Carter and she wanted songs throughout the album to sound more down-home, given that a lot of music produced these days is heavily computer-aided.
“With artificial intelligence and digital filters and programming, I wanted to go back to real instruments, and I used very old ones,” Beyoncé said.
“All the sounds were so organic and human, everyday things like the wind, snaps and even the sound of birds and chickens, the sounds of nature.”
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Cheslin Kolbe has been under Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Sports since 2020, but the Springbok player seemingly met the iconic rapper for the first time recently.
The two-time World Cup winning utility back shared a post of himself with Beyoncé and another with Roc Nation co-founded Jay Brown. The meeting happened in Tokyo, Japan where Kolbe plies his trade.
“Special moment meeting Jay -Z and Jay Brown in Tokyo tonight, incredible experience being part of the Roc Nation family,” wrote Kolbe on his Instagram.
Roc Nation is an American multi-disciplinary entertainment company founded by rapper Jay-Z in 2008.
While Roc Nation Sports was established by Jay-Z in partnership with Creative Artists Agency, a prominent talent agency based in Los Angeles in 2013.
Other South African sports figures managed by Roc Nations Sport include Springbok captain Siya Kolisi, cricketers Temba Bavuma and Lungi Ngidi.
Retired World-Cup winning prop Tendai ‘The Beast’ Mtawarira is also under the management of the global company.
Roc Nation Sports Intl also consults for some of the biggest organisations in world sport – A.C Milan, the United Rugby Championship, Mamelodi Sundowns FC and The Sharks.
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