CLEVELAND — The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame is celebrating Beyoncé and the release of her new album, “Act II: Cowboy Carter.”
Friday, the Hall hosted Beyoncé Fan Day.
The superstar’s old and new music was played outside and inside the museum, and a music video reel was featured at the Forest City Theater.
The museum’s newest exhibit, “Revolutionary Women in Music: Left of Center,” also features outfits Beyoncé's mom designed for Destiny’s Child's “Independent Women Part I” music video and Beyoncé's dress from the “Run the World (Girls)” music video.
Haley Smith is a member of the BeyHive, a term that refers to fans of Beyoncé, visited the Rock Hall to be a part of the party. She said Beyoncé sounds great doing country music.
“I feel like Beyoncé is breaking out of her box in a way that not many artists don’t get to do,” Smith said. “I feel like she can do whatever she wants. I feel like she's being so creative mixing different genres together to make something really new and fresh that we haven't seen before.”
Maddy Powell is also enjoying the new sound.
“It’s an opportunity to celebrate music. As somebody who’s a proud Beyoncé fan, I'm now being exposed to different genres. Music comes in all types of forms. It’s not meant to be boxed in,” Powell said.
The lead single on the new album, “Texas Hold ‘Em,” landed at number one on the Billboard Hot Country Songs chart weeks ago, making Beyoncé the first Black woman to hold that spot.
Speaking of firsts, Cleveland native Caché McClay is the first Beyoncé beat reporter for the USA Today Network and The Tennessean.
News 5 spoke to her via Zoom Friday morning.
“I'm able to cover short hits from award shows and things on social media, but also deep dives like her evolution as a businesswoman. For example…with the House of Dereon and now Cé Noir, Ivy Park and so much more,” McClay said.
McClay attended Joseph F. Landis Elementary in Cleveland and Hawken School for middle and high school.
The Howard University graduate has worked at a network TV channel, BBC News and TMZ.
She said her first part-time job after college graduation was at Cleveland’s Z107.9. McClay said being from Cleveland means the world to her.
“Cleveland is my home. It will always be home. Cleveland is rooted in who I am,” McClay said. “So, it just means everything to me and just, you know, having people and representing black women and girls in that city…I hope that I'm able to do that."
McClay called Beyoncé's new album groundbreaking.
“I think Beyoncé is multi layered, and Beyoncé sends so many messages throughout the imagery throughout the music with the collaborations. She features music legends in country music but also boundary benders in the music industry and crossover artists as well as highlighting black musicians past and present. I think this is going be huge not just to country music but to the music industry in its entirety.”
The journalist who’s covered hard news, politics, and now Beyoncé has yet to meet the star. But she’s pushing to get a one-on-one.
“I have been in contact with her team and they're lovely,” McClay said. “It hasn't happened yet, but I'm just very hopeful for the future.”
