Country music station that refused to play Beyoncé’s new song changes course after pushback

A country music radio station in Oklahoma that refused to play Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” has changed course and is now playing the song after receiving criticism.

Beyoncé announced two new songs — “Texas Hold ‘Em” and “16 Carriages” — in an ad during Sunday’s Super Bowl. The songs have a significant country influence, marking a departure from her typical musical style.

In a Tuesday post on X, formerly known as Twitter, a user shared an email from the Oklahoma radio station KYKC that said, “We do not play Beyoncé on KYLC as we are a country music station.”

Following the refusal, fans called on county radio stations across the U.S. to play the new songs.

Roger Harris, a general manager for KYKC, told CBS News on Wednesday the station had added “Texas Hold ‘Em” to its playlist. Harris said the radio station didn’t initially know Beyoncé released country songs and said the response was a “standard reply.”

He added that because KYKC is a small station, it doesn’t get “serviced by the big labels like bigger stations do,” so it didn’t initially “have the song.”

Harris told the outlet the station tracked down the song and agreed it sounded country enough to play after receiving calls, emails and requests to play it.

KYKC on Wednesday posted an image showing “Texas Hold ‘Em” on its playlist.

“Lots of call coming in for Beyoncé’s Texas Hold ‘Em. It’s coming up in minutes,” the station wrote in the post on X.

“We have nothing against Beyoncé … and we wish her the best in her foray into country music,” Harris told CBS News. “We actually wish that artists WOULDN’T get boxed in to certain genres or formats.”

“If it’s good music, it’s good music,” he said.

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