Billy Ray Cyrus has called out the CMAs for snubbing Beyoncé's country album Cowboy Carter.
The "Achy Breaky Heart" singer posted a heartfelt message on Instagram on awards day, Nov. 20, alongside a video montage of him and Lil Nas X celebrating their 2019 Event of the Year award for "Old Town Road."
"Congratulations to ALL @cma nominees!" Cyrus wrote.
"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… but you wouldn’t have seen it because they didn’t air it in the show."
He continued, "I was surprised to see @beyonce wasn't nominated??? 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. 'When ya knock em out…. Ya don’t need no judge'. - Muhammad Ali"
When Beyoncé announced Cowboy Carter in early 2024, she addressed how her being Black had played out as she ventured into country music.
"I feel honored to be the first Black woman with the number one single on the Hot Country Songs chart," she wrote of the first single, "Texas Hold 'Em." "That would not have happened without the outpouring of support from each and every one of you. 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."
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."
Lil Nas X' solo song "Old Town Road" caused discussions about racism within country music. At the time, Billboard made the decision to remove the song from the country charts because it "does not embrace enough elements of today's country music to chart in its current form," according to BBC News.
This led fans to accuse Billboard of racism, and Cyrus to hop on a remix of the song to help Lil Nas X get a spot back on the country charts.
