Beyoncé's 'Texas Hold 'Em' debuts at No. 1 on the country chart

Beyoncé's country single, "Texas Hold 'Em" has debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Hot Country Songs chart, the publication announced Tuesday, after the song had sparked conversations about whether the genre would be accepting of her.

Beyoncé became the only other solo woman alongside Taylor Swift to achieve the feat with no accompanying artists, Billboard said.

"Texas Hold 'Em" was released Feb. 11 during the Super Bowl. Between then and Feb. 15, the song has garnered 19.2 million official streams, 4.8 million radio plays and sold 39,000 units. It additionally debuted at No. 2 on the Hot 100 chart, Billboard said.

Some controversy flanked the song after an Oklahoma country station said they didn't play Beyoncé in response to a request. After backlash from fans and thousands more requests, the station said they didn't know the song was out at the time and also didn't have access to it. They have since played it.

Though, the station's initial response generated longstanding conversations about how much the tastemakers in country music value diversity and inclusion.

Additionally, the other country single Beyoncé released, "16 Carriages," debuted at No. 9 on the Hot Country Songs chart and No. 38 on the Hot 100 chart. It had 10.3 million streams, 90,000 radio plays and 14,000 units sold. [Copyright 2024 NPR]