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Now that Beyoncé’s country-informed Cowboy Carter is out in the world, we get to find out about all the surprising people who contributed to it.
Thanks to the advance singles, we already knew figures like Rhiannon Giddens, Robert Randolph, and Raphael Saadiq would be on there. And behind the scenes Bey worked with Jay-Z, Pharrell, The-Dream, Swizz Beatz, NO I.D., Ryan Tedder, Sounwave, Ryan Beatty, Khirye Tyler, Derek Dixie, Ink, Nova Wav, Mamii, and Tyler Johnson. Featured guests Post Malone and Miley Cyrus and cameos from Dolly Parton and Willie Nelson were confirmed earlier this week. But did you know Adam Granduciel from the War On Drugs was on there, playing guitar on the Beyoncé/Miley duet “II Most Wanted”? Also on that track is Foxygen’s Jonathan Rado, who contributes guitar, keyboards, and additional production. Both of them seem to have been looped in by Act II producer Shawn Everett.
Country singer Cam contributes vocals to five tracks, while R&B producer Leven Kali had a hand in “Bodyguard.” Producer Dave Hamelin, former drummer of the Stills, is credited with writing, producing, and keyboards on “16 Carriages.” Nickel Creek’s Sean and Sara Watkins are in the mix too, while Raye, who recently had a record-breaking night at the BRIT Awards, co-wrote “Riiverdance.” Less surprising but still cool is the presence of bassist Pino Pallidino and Chic legend Nile Rodgers. And the voices you hear with Beyoncé on the “Blackbird” cover are Brittney Spencer, Reyna Roberts, Tanner Adell, and Tiera Kennedy.
We’ll jot down any other intriguing names here as they pop up. (Alas, no KT Tunstall.)