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Beyoncé just dropped her highly anticipated country album, but Dolly Parton fans are not happy with her “Jolene” cover. Keep reading to find out what country music fans are saying.
Dolly Parton Fans Not Happy With Beyoncé “Jolene” Cover
Beyoncé announced in February that her next album would be a country one. Many country music fans were skeptical of the genre jump. Cowboy Carter came out earlier this week to much fanfare.
As expected, she covered Dolly Parton’s 1973 hit song “Jolene.” But Beyoncé didn’t stay true to the original. She reimagined it with new lyrics.
Dolly’s version begins with the pleading lyrics, “Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/I’m begging of you please don’t take my man/Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/Please don’t take him just because you can.”
However, the opening of Beyoncé’s version sets the warning tone for the rest of the song: “Jolene, Jolene, Jolene, Jolene/I’m warning you, don’t come for my man.”
In another part of the song, she sings, “I can easily understand why you’re attracted to my man/But you don’t want this smoke, so shoot your shot with someone else (you heard me).”
The final line of Beyoncé’s rendition declares, “I’ma stand by him, he gon’ stand by me, Jolene.” Click here to read the full lyrics changes.
Listeners took to social media to share negative reactions to the “Jolene” cover:
- Went from Lemonade to Lemon Water real quick apparently
- Probably unpopular opinion I love a bit of ‘Country’ But Beyoncé’s Jolene. Has “call the ambulance, but not for me” energy.
- #Beyoncé is such a cop out banging out #Jolene & #Blackbiird
- Beyoncé has ruined Jolene don’t mess with a classic!
- I like The White Stripes version better…
What Does Dolly Think?
Beyoncé’s cover of “Jolene” did earn praise online. One fan of the rendition wrote, “I’ve heard a lot of different versions of Jolene, but this one has got to be my new favorite.”
What about Dolly Parton? She previously told Trevor Noah during an appearance on The Daily Show in 2022 that she would “love to hear” the pop star take on the song.
Dolly took to social media to share her reaction to the long-awaited cover. “Wow, I just heard Jolene,” she wrote in a statement. “Beyoncé is giving that girl some trouble and she deserves it! Love, Dolly P.”
Have you heard Beyoncé’s cover of “Jolene”? Do you think it lived up to the original? Share your thoughts in the comments.