In late February 2024, Latherland.com published an article positing that the Academy of Country Music (ACM) rejected Beyoncé's membership request because they thought she was joking.
The article was published shortly after reports that a country music station in Oklahoma rejected a fan's request to play Beyoncé's song "Texas Hold 'Em," saying that they only play country music, resulting in widespread uproar about Black artists' exclusion from the genre. After facing criticism, the station procured a high quality version of "Texas Hold 'Em," which they played.
The article on Latherland stated:
Beyonce Knowles wants to be a country star. Apparently, having more Grammys than anyone on the planet isn't good enough for her; she wants in on that country love.
Unfortunately, the Academy of Country Music understands the ruse and has denied her request for membership.
"Honestly," said ACM Executive Director Joe Barron, "We thought she was joking. She put out a song that sounds a little country and she wants to do an album. Our answer was…go head. It won't make you one of us."
The article went on to say that without membership, Beyoncé would not be eligible for ACM Music Awards and likely would not get to play the Grand Ol' Opry, a live music venue in Nashville.
This item was not a factual recounting of real-life events. Latherland.com is a subsidiary of America's Last Line of Defense — a network of websites that all contain disclaimer pages that explain how they publish "parody, satire and tomfoolery." As such, we rate this claim as "Labeled Satire."
We also found no credible news outlets reporting on this story. Had it been true, it would have been more widely covered in music and entertainment news. Furthermore, there is no individual named "Joe Barron" who is serving as "Executive Director" of the ACM. For that matter, we found no reliable reports saying Beyoncé had even applied for ACM membership.
A Facebook post published by "America's Last Line Of Defense" shared the story with the caption, "Beyonce thinks the hat makes her country. The Academy set her straight." Some commenters assumed the story to be true, writing, "Exactly as they should," and "Good job!" in response to the satirical article.
Beyoncé's latest singles "Texas Hold 'Em" and "16 Carriages" reached the top of the Billboard Hot Country Songs, with the former reaching number one. Her latest songs are part of an upcoming album that she referred to as "Act II," a project that music critics said is about reclaiming Black roots in popular music.
When Beyoncé submitted her 2016 song "Daddy Lessons" in the Grammy Awards country music category, the committee rejected it. She performed the same song with the Chicks that year at the Country Music Awards. Her exclusion ignited a debate among music fans about what constituted country music and the contributions of Black artists to the genre.
For background, here is why we sometimes write about satire/humor.