Reba absolutely crushed this.
Back in 2010, she turned Beyoncé’s mega hit “If I Were A Boy” into a country heater on a cover of the song that was included on Reba’s 28th studio album, All the Women I Am. She actually put it out as a single in 2011, which peaked at just #22 on the U.S. Billboard Country Airplay chart.
And of course, with all of this talk about Bey going country, and already dominating the country charts with her song “Texas Hold ‘Em,” I’ve found myself looking back at some of the times Beyoncé has gone country in the past, and some of the times she’s inspired country stars like Miranda Lambert and the aforementioned Reba.
“If I Were a Boy” was written by BC Jean and Toby Gad, and originally performed by Jean in 2008. Obviously, Bey made it extremely popular when she included it on her third solo studio album I Am… Sasha Fierce in 2008, and it’s remained a fan-favorite for over 15 years now.
The song peaked at #2 on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, and earned multi-Platinum certifications in Australia, Canada, and the US, as well as a diamond one in Brazil.
In addition to releasing “If I Were a Boy” as a single to country radio in 2010, Reba put out a stunning music video to go along with it, and I had forgotten just how dang good her version of it was. Of course, Reba is a country legend, and I actually think it would be cool for the two of them to team up for some sort of duet version of it.
I mean, it’s not hard to believe that Dolly Parton could potentially be featured on Beyoncé’s forthcoming Renaissance: Act II album that has everyone all stirred up, and this is a great song that could really work in any genre, in my very humble opinion.
I loved this song when Beyoncé released it in 2008, I still love it now, and it’s certainly a timeless message and story that will never get old… and at times, it feels especially applicable to all of the ladies in country music, and the music business in general.
If you’ve never heard Reba’s rendition before, I’d highly recommend checking it out:
“If I Were A Boy”
