Beyoncé has claimed her first-ever award in the country music category, thanks to her latest album “Cowboy Carter,” which won at the 2024 Billboard Music Awards.

The Grammy-winning artist secured the title of top country female artist on Thursday during the BMAs. She was also in contention for top dance/electronic artist and top country album.

This marks Beyoncé’s inaugural win in the country music field, bringing her total career wins at the Billboard Music Awards to 17.

Prior to the event, country rock artist Zach Bryan and pop icon Taylor Swift had the highest nominations with 18 and 16, respectively. The eligibility period for this year’s awards aligns with Billboard’s year-end chart tracking, from October 28, 2023, to October 19, 2024.

Beyoncé, who holds the record for the most Grammy wins at 32, has also recently become the most-nominated artist at the 2025 Grammy Awards with 11 nominations for her genre-blending album. This includes her first nominations in the country and American roots categories.

She is nominated for best country album, best country duo/group performance for “II Most Wanted” featuring Miley Cyrus, best country song for “Texas Hold ‘Em,” best country solo performance for “16 Carriages,” and best Americana performance for “Ya Ya.”

In addition, she is in the running for the top accolade of the night – album of the year. Her collaboration with Post Malone, “Levii’s Jeans,” is also nominated for best pop duo/group performance.

A week before Beyoncé received the highest number of Grammy nominations, she faced a disappointing snub at the Country Music Association Awards, where she received no nominations for the same album.

The lack of acknowledgment at the CMA Awards drew criticism from fans who questioned the absence of recognition for her album, with fellow country artists also coming to her defense.

Before this, Beyoncé led the nominations at the 2024 People’s Choice Country Awards with a total of 12 nods but unfortunately did not win any awards.