Beyoncé got music icons contemporary and classic to help her out with her new album Cowboy Carter, collaborating with everybody from Dolly Parton to Miley Cyrus to Willie Nelson to Post Malone. It turns out the roster of collaborators goes deeper than the features: The full album credits were revealed previously and Stevie Wonder is credited with playing harmonica on the cover of Parton’s “Jolene.”
Beyoncé referenced this while accepting the Innovator Award at the iHeartRadio Music Awards on Tuesday (April 1). Wonder presented it, and Beyoncé said, “Thank you so much, Stevie, I love you. I love you and I honor you. I want to thank you for making a way for all of us. I’m honored to receive this recognition from you, Stevie Wonder. Whenever anyone asks me if there’s anyone I can listen to for the rest of my life, it’s always you. So thank you, God bless you.”
Wonder responded, “I just want to thank you for motivating the world to become a better place.” Bey replied, “Thank you so much. And thank you for playing the harmonica on ‘Jolene.’”
Beyoncé receiving the Innovator Award at the #iHeartAwards2024 🏆
— Beyoncé Press. (@beyoncepress) April 2, 2024
Looking over the full album credits (again, find those here) reveals some other under-the-radar contributors to the album: Jay-Z, Raye, The-Dream, Pharrell Williams, and 070 Shake all have songwriting credits.
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