Remember when Beyoncé sat atop a disco horse, donning a cowboy hat and bejewelled fringe dress for her Renaissance album cover art? Looking back, it appears that she was setting the stage for her country era. Queen Bey has recently dropped her highly-anticipated country album, Cowboy Carter which instantly became Spotify’s most streamed album of the year. Yet, her music isn’t the only artistic choice that paid homage to her Southern roots. Beyonce shows the world that she’s a cowgirl at heart through her glamorous Western style.
Below, GRAZIA spotlights some of Beyoncé’s most iconic looks this season.
Grammys 2024
Beyoncé rolled into the 2024 Grammys Award show dressed in the closing look of Louis Vuitton’s Fall/Winter Menswear 2024 collection envisioned by Pharrell Williams. She opted for a black leather jacket and a pair of shorts emblazoned with crystals in the house’s signature Damier pattern. To add a splash of rodeo flair, she accessorised with a white Stetson cowboy hat.
New York Fashion Week
Perhaps the most show-stopping moment at New York Fashion Week was when Beyoncé made a surprise appearance at Luar’s Fall/Winter 2024 show dripped in blinding jewels from head to toe. The look was plucked from Gaurav Gupta’s Spring/Summer 2024 couture show, featuring a blazer dress with a plunging neckline and thigh-high boots adorned with cascading gems on every surface. The look was tied together with a pair of opaque shades, a holographic handbag and, of course, a grey cowboy hat.
IHeartRadio Music Awards
Just days after the release of Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé clinched the Innovator Award at IHeartRadio Music Awards. Once again, she bedazzled the crowd by sporting a vintage Versace black leather set that’s been on every fashion aficionado’s wishlist for ages. This archival attire was first showcased on the runway of Versace’s Fall 1992 collection and was modelled by OG supermodel Naomi Campbell. The ensemble featured a fringed black leather top and matching slim tight bottoms embellished with gold hardware buttons and western swirls. She wore not just one but two studded belts and a Versace cowboy hat from the house’s Spring/Summer 2018 collection.
Coastal Cowgirl Aesthetic
Beyoncé might have fuelled our obsession for all things cowboy-related but she isn’t the first to kickstart the Western fashion trend. Cowboy fashion started gaining traction last summer when the Coastal Cowgirl aesthetic took off on Tiktok. The wardrobe of a Coastal Cowgirl would encompass cowboy boots, crotchet garments, linen dresses, denim jackets and bolo ties. Just think of what you would wear to Coachella.
Louis Vuitton Fall/Winter 2024 Menswear
Earlier this year, cowboy fashion permeated the luxury fashion market with Louis Vuitton delving into the essence of American Western wardrobe in its Fall/Winter 2024 Men’s collection. As we all know, the cowboy is an iconic symbol of American culture. A lesser-known fact is that some of the original cowboys were African Americans.
Pharrell Williams discussed how we typically only recognise one variation of the American cowboy and African-Americans are often erased from the narrative. “You never really get to see what some of the original cowboys looked like. They looked like us. They looked like me. They were black and they were Native American,” said Williams backstage.
When a black woman like Beyoncé poses as a glamorous cowgirl, she isn’t just making a fashion statement; she’s leaving a cultural impact.