:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(725x309:727x311):format(webp)/Beyonce-Shaboozey-perform-020425-tout-6a3d580728c74680b7d0c5986c1e8cd2.jpg)
NEED TO KNOW
- Shaboozey says his collaboration with Beyoncé sparked a lasting friendship and her continued support of his career
- Beyoncé encouraged Shaboozey to embrace his uniqueness while working on Cowboy Carter
- Shaboozey recently released a concept album featuring stars like Jamie Foxx and Teyana Taylor
Shaboozey hopping on Cowboy Carter didn’t just help launch him to mainstream fame — it marked the start of a real friendship with Beyoncé.
The country star, 31, told GQ that in the two years since he appeared on Beyoncé’s Grammy-winning record, he and the singer, 44, have stayed in touch, and she’s been a pillar of support.
“I honestly consider her a really good friend at this point. Anytime there’s anything going on, she’s always sending congratulations, posting me on the page, always celebrating my accomplishments,” he told the outlet. “We need that.”
Shaboozey added that he’d recently been in an Uber and heard a conversation about how people should be celebrating one another more frequently.
“She’s really someone who does that every step of the way,” he said.
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(749x0:751x2):format(webp)/beyonce-050426-7bebfb35628c42f391cbd43ad8271033.jpg)
The “Cowgirl” singer was featured on two Cowboy Carter tracks: “Spaghettii” and “Sweet Honey Buckiin.”
Last year, he told PEOPLE that the best advice he received from Beyoncé was to stick with what made him special.
“When I was recording the songs on her album, [I was like], ‘Oh man, I can’t do these runs’ or ‘I am nowhere near the vocalist, performer or anything Beyoncé is.’ And I kind of got in my head about that,” he said. “What they told me was, ‘Hey, we brought you here for you to do you, for you to be yourself.’ Just be confident in the fact that you are different, you are unique and that’s what people are going to resonate with.”
Shaboozey also described the “16 Carriages” singer as a “God” in a 2025 interview with the Cincinnati Enquirer.
“Seeing someone at that level still kind of giving it their all, putting on a hell of a show. But also, she’s just very warm and inviting, very welcoming,” he said. “It’s like family to me, honestly. It was awesome. She’s a legend. We grew up listening to her on the radio all the time.”
:max_bytes(150000):strip_icc():focal(821x185:823x187):format(webp)/shaboozey-glastonbury-festival-021226-b07e945840d54b3e8dbde5e2ec63705a.jpg)
The star is fresh off the release of his cinematic concept album The Outlaw Cherie Lee & Other Western Tales, which includes features from stars like Jamie Foxx, Teyana Taylor, Sam Elliott and more.
He told GQ that he sees the legacies of artists like George Lucas, Roger Waters and Prince, and that pushed him to create something that will outlast him.
“It’s really, really important to continue to push what I could be as an artist, especially in today’s music scene. We don’t find a lot of those,” he said. “Pink Floyd’s The Wall is one of my favorite albums. It produced hits like ‘Hey You’ and ‘Another Brick in the Wall,’ but it also came with this movie component. I really felt that as a storyteller, as someone who wants to push the boundaries, why not make a concept album?”