A new course at the University of Houston will use Beyoncé's latest album, Cowboy Carter, as a launching pad to discuss forgotten the Black history of the American West. The course, "Before Cowboy Carter: Black Towns,

Country voters in the Recording Academy have been friendly to outsiders. Artists like Pink, Kelly Clarkson and Bebe Rexha lassoed Grammy nominations in country categories in recent years and this year’s race for Best Country Album is led by genre newcomers.

Beyoncé is dressed head to toe in white with an enormous fur cowboy hat and a shaggy coat cascading around her. With the point of