Beyonce in New Jersey? Not quite, but here are 6 NJ connections to 'Cowboy Carter'

There's always a Jersey connection.

Even to one of the biggest albums of the year.

"Cowboy Carter," which Beyoncé released March 29 and was Spotify’s most-streamed album in a single day in 2024 on its debut day, has achieved overwhelming commercial success with the singer becoming the first Black woman to debut at No. 1 on Billboard's top country albums chart, and critical acclaim with the critic aggregator website Metacritic giving it a 92 rating.

The 78-minute album, which was five years in the making, has received attention for its deep, experimental dive into the country music genre.

New Jersey fans who have been listening on repeat to the first two released tracks, "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages" — both of which premiered during the Super Bowl in February — now have 6 other reasons to dive deep into other tracks.

Here are 6 Garden State connections on "Cowboy Carter."

The album features various takes on 'Jersey Club beats'

Various reviews of the album have noted that it contains "Jersey Club beats," a reference to a form of electronic club music with a fast, upbeat tempo that became popular in Newark-area dance clubs starting in the late 1990s.

The champions of Jersey Club music, which originated from the Baltimore club scene, include DJ Tameil and DJ Tim Dolla, who in the early 2000s were part of the Brick Bandits collective that played in banquet halls and at warehouse parties.

The presence of Jersey Club has been cited in the track, "Sweet Honey Buckin” with a Complex review noting how the song "mixes a contagious six-beat pattern of Jersey Club with country acoustics."

Beyonce samples 'These Boots Are Made for Walking' by New Jersey native Nancy Sinatra

In "Ya Ya," the 20th track on the album, Bey samples the 1960s pop-influenced 1966 hit, "These Boots Are Made for Walkin'" by Nancy Sinatra, Frank's daughter. Nancy was born in Jersey City and was raised in Hasbrouck Heights.

'Boots,' written by Lee Hazlewood, was No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, and has been covered by many musicians, including The Supremes, Megadeth, Loretta Lynn, Jessica Simpson and Billy Ray Cyrus — which brings us to another connection to the album, though admittedly not a Jersey one. Billy Ray Cyrus is Miley Cyrus's dad; Miley sings with Beyonce on “II Most Wanted," the album's 16th track.

Despite all those "Boots" covers, Beyoncé stands above with her sample, at least according to Nancy Sinatra. Sinatra posted on X that "this may be the best sample of 'Boots' yet!"

North Bergen native Danielle Balbuena is writer, producer and background singer on 'Amen'

The final track, the gospel-tinged "Amen," includes as writer, producer and background singer, the rapper 070 Shake, the stage name for North Bergen native Danielle Balbuena.

070 Shake, who as Balbuena played basketball for North Bergen High School, formed with her high school friends an artists collective called the 070 Crew, named for the first three digits of some of Bergen's local zip codes, according to Billboard.

She rose to fame in 2018 when she was featured on two tracks — "Ghost Town" and "Violent Crimes"— on Kanye West's eighth album, "Ye." She has two albums, "Modus Vivendi," released in 2020 and "You Can't Kill Me," from 2022.

070 Shake was also credited on "Alien Superstar," the third track on Beyonce's 2022 album, "Renaissance."

Steve Chadie of Princeton produced 'Smoke Hour II' with Willie Nelson

Parts of "Cowboy Carter" unfurl like a radio station, with DJ-style interludes — two of which feature the voice of Willie Nelson. Chadie was born in Princeton but moved to Texas in 1978 and has long collaborated with Nelson.

Chadie won a Grammy last year for his audio engineer work on Nelson's album, "A Beautiful Time." He began as an intern in 1995 at Willie Nelson's Pedernales recording studio.

There are samples of 'Don't Let Go' by Jersey City singer Roy Hamilton

The other Willie Nelson interlude, "Smoke Hour / Willie Nelson" includes excerpts of several songs including the 1958 hit, "Don't Let Go," by singer Roy Hamilton, who grew up in Jersey City.

Hamilton, who grew up singing in choirs, was discovered in 1953 while singing in a Newark nightclub, The Caravan.

He gained fame for his classics, "You'll Never Walk Alone," and "Unchained Melody," and was considered a major influence on Elvis Presley's ballad singing style.

Black cowboy culture is a real thing in New Jersey

The "Cowboy Carter" album announcement mentions it was created in part from Beyonce learning of how numerous Blacks were cowboys in the American West and out of her childhood experiences of attending the Houston Rodeo. New Jersey listeners, just like Beyonce, can also find a connection to African cowboy (and cowgirl) culture in their home state.

New Jersey is home to the Crazy Faith Riders Club, who call themselves "the first and only African American Faith Based trail riding club in New Jersey." It is where a unique two-day rodeo took place in 1973 at the Freehold Raceway where all the cowboys and cowgirls were Black.

And the Garden State is where "Cowtown Gene" Walker and Miles Dean came from who helped shine a spotlight on Black cowboy culture.

Ricardo Kaulessar covers race, immigration, and culture for NorthJersey.com. For unlimited access to the most important news from your local community, please subscribe or activate your digital account today.

Email: kaulessar@northjersey.com

Twitter: @ricardokaul

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Beyonce in New Jersey? NJ connections to 'Cowboy Carter' album