Tanner Adell is just a few years into her country career, but on Sunday night (April 8) at the 2024 CMT Music Awards she was elated to celebrate her first chart-topper on the Billboard 200. When Billboard‘s Tetris Kelly mentioned that Adell was featured on Beyoncé‘s eighth No. 1 album, Cowboy Carter, the Kentucky native could not suppress a giant smile as she said, “apparently.”
Adell — who sings alongside Bey on the interpretation of the Beatles’ “Blackbird,” (which in Beyoncé’s version is titled “Blackbiird”) — said “it feels incredible. Congratulations to Bey, she’s worked so hard — especially just… Act I, now we’re Act II and I can’t wait for Act III. I’m just starting out and it feels pretty amazing to have one of my… not even one of my, my favorite artist on the planet know my name, put me on this album and now it’s debuted at No. 1. It’s very special.”
Pitching things forward a bit to the 2025 Grammy Awards, Kelly noted that if Cowboy Carter is nominated for the elusive album of the year prize that Beyoncé — the most-decorated artist in Grammy history — has never yet won, Tanner could get a major moment in the sun. Rendered speechless, Tanner smiled and said, “I guess?”
“I’m an independent artist, it’s been a grind and just to have someone of that caliber reach down and lift us up it’s really, really special and i’m just very honored,” said the singer who released her debut album, Buckle Bunny, last summer.
Cowboy Carter debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album chart dated April 13, debuting with 407,000 equivalent album units earned in the U.S. in the week ending April 4 according to Luminate; the album marks the singer’s eighth No. 1 on the all-genre Billboard 200. Cowboy Carter also has dibs on the biggest week of 2024 to date, marking the largest opening frame since Taylor Swift’s 1989 (Taylor’s Version) bowed with 1.653 million units in November.
Another contemporary Black country act who had high praise for Bey on Sunday was Reyna Roberts, who also lends her voice to “Blackbiird,” along with Brittney Spencer, Adell and Tiera Kennedy. “Absolutely! I believe it. I’ve always believed that I was going to history, not sure in what capacity,” said “Stompin’ Grounds” singer Roberts of possibly being part of a major moment if Bey is finally fitted for the AOTY crown next year. “I’m just grateful that Beyoncé allowed us to be part of her dream and her project. This is phenomenal, I can’t even describe how excited and happy I am.”
On the CMT red carpet, tAdell also showed of the new “Blackbiird”-inspired tattoo on her arm, noting that Roberts got her own version as well to commemorate their unexpected place in the Bey universe. “We all did it in our own style kind of how we wanted to,” she said showing off the bird image ink on her right forearm. “We just felt like this is a really big moment and something to commemorate the experience of being able to work together with someone that we all look up to very much.”
