(Left) Beyoncé / Instagram / (Right) Michael Ochs Archives / Getty Images
Beyoncé is warning “Jolene” to find her own man.
On Friday (March 29), the singer released a cover of Dolly Parton’s classic song, “Jolene.” She included her unique version of the song on her latest album, Cowboy Carter.
Before releasing Cowboy Carter, Beyoncé clarified “This ain’t a Country album. This is a ‘Beyoncé’ album.” Still, she referenced how she “did a deeper dive into the history of Country music” to create the album, which was five years in the making.
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Cowboy Carter also contains Beyoncé’s #1 country and Hot 100 hit, “Texas Hold ‘Em.” The song’s rise to the top spot on the Hot Country Songs chart made Beyonce the first black woman to reach #1 on the chart.
Dolly Parton has shared her thoughts on Beyoncé several times. And it’s clear she’s a fan!
In 2020, Dolly told Big Issue she’d love to hear Beyoncé sing “Jolene.”
“…nobody’s ever had a really big hit record on it,” she said. “I’ve always hoped somebody might do [it] someday, someone like Beyoncé.”
After Beyoncé shared the news about Cowboy Carter, Dolly said she believed the singer recorded “Jolene” for the album.
“I think she’s recorded ‘Jolene’ and I think it’s probably gonna be on her country album, which I’m very excited about that.”
Dolly also offered her congratulations to Beyoncé after “Texas Hold ‘Em” went #1. She said, “I’m a big fan of Beyoncé and very excited that she’s done a country album.”
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After all of the anticipation, Beyoncé’s version of “Jolene” is finally here. However, her recording is not a word-for-word cover of Dolly’s 1973 single. Rather, Beyoncé rewrote most of the lyrics to update the song and make it her own.
Melodically, Beyoncé’s version of “Jolene” is similar to Dolly’s original. But the lyrics tell an entirely new and different story.
The lyrical changes start right away. Instead of singing “I’m beggin’ of you, please don’t take my man,” Beyoncé sings, “I’m warning you, don’t come for my man.”
In addition to changing the lyrics, Beyoncé included a unique bridge in her version of “Jolene.” The bridge has a melody that departs from Dolly’s original and features a call-and-response between Beyoncé and her backing vocalists.
The new lyrics flash across the screen in red font in Beyoncé’s accompanying lyric video for “Jolene.” She also nods to Dolly by featuring a mug with her picture front and center in the video.
Head below to watch Beyoncé’s lyric video for her version of Dolly Parton’s “Jolene.”
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