Reyna Roberts and Beyoncé. Getty Images (2)
Reyna Roberts has more fans than ever since appearing on Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter — and her career just keeps soaring further.
“So many things are happening,” Roberts, 26, exclusively told Us Weekly while promoting her partnership with Jim Beam Black. “There are so many areas in my life where things are changing in a positive way. You’ll be seeing me in multiple forms of entertainment and not just music, so you might catch me on some TV shows. I don’t wanna give anything away that I’m not supposed to yet, but I’ll be making history in some areas that I’m excited for people to know about.”
Roberts released her debut album, Bad Girl Bible, Vol. 1, last year, but her appearance on Cowboy Carter skyrocketed her to a new level of fame. She was one of four guest artists on Beyoncé’s cover of The Beatles’ “Blackbiird” and contributed backing vocals to “Tyrant.”
“I was so excited,” Roberts told Us of working on Cowboy Carter. “She is my favorite artist in the world, so to be championed and uplifted by my favorite artist is so encouraging and inspiring, and I’m thankful that I get to be a part of her legacy in some small way.”
Reyna Roberts on ‘America’s Got Talent.’ Trae Patton/NBC
Roberts, who also stunned viewers on America’s Got Talent last month, noted that she wasn’t “completely surprised” to hear from Beyoncé, 42.
“I had prayed about it in November,” she explained. “I was like, ‘Lord, can you please put me on a song with Beyoncé?’ I kid you not. Then you have 2024 now and it’s actually happening. So I knew it was gonna happen, I just didn’t know when it was gonna happen.”
Roberts is part of a new wave of country artists like Shaboozey and Rvshvd who incorporate pop and hip-hop sounds into their music, leading some critics to declare them not “country enough,” but she has zero interest in giving those opinions any credence.
It’s Beyoncé’s rodeo, and everyone’s invited! Beyoncé, 42, dropped Cowboy Carter on Friday, March 29, the second installment in the trilogy that began with Renaissance in 2022. The country-flavored album lassoed in stars from all across the music world to help make it one of the year’s biggest pop culture events. From Dolly Parton to […]
“Sometimes it can be bothersome if it gets me on not a good day, but for the most part, I don’t spend my time thinking about people who are criticizing me or who don’t see me for the artist that I am,” she told Us. “I know who I am and what I was created to do, and I feel like if you’re doing something new and innovative and something that’s not familiar to people and it makes people uncomfortable for some reason, there’s gonna be pushback and it just is what it is. I would be doing a disservice to myself if I paid attention to people who are like that.”
Roberts is currently working on the follow-up to Bad Girl Bible, Vol. 1 and notes that she’s written so many songs she could make three more volumes. “I’ve been writing nonstop,” she said. “I wanna make sure that I’m bringing people into my — I call it my Outlaw Universe. I wanna make sure that when people listen to Bad Girl Bible, Vol. 2 they’re getting a completely different experience. I’m trying to work on it to make it one of the best albums of this generation.”
Jim Beam Black celebrates with Reyna Roberts at “The Seventh Sense” relaunch event in New York City on June 12, 2024. Sean Zanni/Getty Images for Jim Beam
Amid all of these exciting career developments, Roberts still makes time for celebration — sometimes with a bourbon drink in hand.
“If there’s a drink shared, it’s usually between my dad and me,” she told Us. “We don’t drink often, but when we do it’ll be like for the Beyoncé collaboration or my first time being on the Hot 100. We’re like, ‘OK, let’s let’s break out the Jim Beam.’”
Roberts noted that her dad usually makes the drinks, but she trusts his judgment. “He’s absolutely in love with choosing different things, mixing them together,” she explained. “That’s kind of been the tradition for us.”
Straight bourbon, however, is another story. “If I go in there just with one shot, it’s gonna be a problem,” she joked. “You don’t wanna see that side of me! We’ll just stick to things a little bit more safe.”
