Beyonce has become the first black artist ever to hit number one with a country album in the UK, topping the chart with her eighth record, Cowboy Carter.
Not only that, but the star has done the double – with the album’s lead single, Texas Hold ‘Em, returning to the top spot in the singles chart for a fifth non-consecutive week.
Beyonce follows in the footsteps of Shania Twain, who was the first female country artist to score a UK number one album when Come On Over topped the Official Albums Chart in September 1999.
Incredibly, Queen of Country Dolly Parton, with a career spanning nearly 50 years and hits including Jolene, I Will Always Love You and 9 To 5, has never achieved a number one single or album in the UK.
This is Queen Bey’s second UK charts double, mirroring her instant success as a solo artist when she topped the album and singles charts simultaneously with her smash hit Crazy In Love, featuring Jay-Z, and debut album Dangerously In Love, in 2003.
Plus, she has two other tracks from Cowboy Carter in the singles top 10 – her cover of Parton’s Jolene at number eight, and II Most Wanted, a duet with Miley Cyrus, at number nine. Previously she has achieved two top 10 entries on two separate occasions – in 2008 with If I Were A Boy and Listen, and again in 2009 with If I Were A Boy and Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It) – according to the Official Charts.
Dolly Parton – step aside (for now)
Congratulating the star, Official Charts chief executive officer Martin Talbot said Parton should “step aside (for now)” as “Bey is the *current* Queen of Country”.
In a statement, he said: “In a career of huge achievements, congratulations to Beyonce on securing a slew of UK chart records with her country single and album this week, underlining her position as one of the world’s most ground-breaking musical artists.”
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As well as her cover of Jolene, Beyonce also covers Blackbird, the civil rights-inspired song by The Beatles, on Cowboy Carter.
Sir Paul McCartney has praised the star for her “magnificent” version, saying it “reinforces the civil rights message that inspired me to write the song in the first place”.
Writing on Instagram, he said they had spoken on FaceTime about her recording the song.
“When I saw the footage on the television in the early 60s of the black girls being turned away from school, I found it shocking and I can’t believe that still in these days there are places where this kind of thing is happening right now,” Sir Paul said.
“Anything my song and Beyonce’s fabulous version can do to ease racial tension would be a great thing and makes me very proud.”
Parton has also praised the star, saying: “I’m a big fan of Beyonce and very excited that she’s done a country album.”
In an interview withThe Sun, his first since he underwent the lifesaving surgery, the 36-year-old described the moment when he thought he would die.
He said: “If I could go from being absolutely on top of the world to being told ‘the bottom part of your heart isn’t working’, I kept thinking in my head, ‘Well, what if the top half stops working overnight?'”
“That first night I wrote a will, I thought I was going to die,” the 36-year-old musician added.
On the night of 13 December, George said his heart rate and blood pressure dropped, “I felt like I was dying,” he said.
He had a pacemaker fitted by doctors during the surgery, but the former Strictly Come Dancing star said he made a will on his phone fearing the worst.
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Before the surgery, George said his thoughts turned to his partner, British actress Maisie Smith, and his family who he feared he’d leave behind.
He shared updates on social media throughout the process.
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Tom Parker, who also rose to fame in the 2010s with the boy band along with George, died at the age of 33 after being diagnosed with an inoperable brain tumour.
Former Little Mix star Jesy Nelson has announced she is pregnant with twins.
The singer, 33, said she was “eating for three now” on her Instagram alongside a polaroid picture of her with Zion Foster, with whom she was reported to have split up last year.
Nelson shared the touching post on Sunday, letting the world know she is set to become a mum for the first time – including two baby emojis next to her message.
The cosy picture shows the pair smiling in a kitchen.
Nelson rose to fame with the girl band Little Mix, which formed on The X Factor in 2011 and earned a string of UK number-one singles.
However, she left in December 2020 after nine years, saying the pressures of being in the group had taken a toll on her mental health.
Nelson has since performed as a solo artist but still had praise for her former bandmates, telling The Graham Norton Show in 2021: “To me they are still the sickest girl band in the world.”
Little Mix continued as a trio after Nelson’s departure in December 2020 before going on hiatus in 2022.
The Duchess of Sussex has delayed the release of her new Netflix series due to the devastation caused by the wildfires in LA, the streaming platform has announced.
Meghan’s eight-part series, With Love, will premiere on 4 March instead of 15 January.
“I’m thankful to my partners at Netflix for supporting me in delaying the launch, as we focus on the needs of those impacted by the wildfires in my home state of California,” Meghan said in a statement to Tudum, the official companion site to Netflix.
Harry and Meghan comforted volunteers and handed out food to evacuees during a visit to Pasadena on Friday, where they met with the city’s mayor Victor Gordo and emergency workers tackling the Eaton Fire.
Footage showed the duchess, wearing a blue “LA” baseball cap, and the prince hugging and consoling people who had fled to the Pasadena Convention Center.
They were also seen speaking Doug Goodwin, whose home was destroyed in the wildfires, and also to Jose Andres, founder of World Central Kitchen (WCK) which has been helping feed the public and emergency crews.
A description of the Netflix series on Tudum’s website said: “Produced by Meghan, ‘With Love, Meghan’ blends practical how-to’s and candid conversation with friends, new and old.
“Meghan shares personal tips and tricks, embracing playfulness over perfection, and highlights how easy it can be to create beauty, even in the unexpected.
“She and her guests roll up their sleeves in the kitchen, the garden, and beyond, and invite you to do the same.”