Shannon Sharpe Confused With CMAs Over Beyoncé Snub

Shannon Sharpe was excited to celebrate Beyoncé‘s impressive win for Album of the Year at the 2025 Grammy Awards. However, the three-time Super Bowl champion expressed his confusion with the Country Music Awards for snubbing her in late 2024.

During an episode of his podcast, Sharpe praised Beyoncé for her achievement, which the singer has spent “25 years” working toward, before slamming the CMAs for not recognizing her.

For those unfamiliar with the news, Beyoncé broke the internet once again on February 2, 2025, after she won three gramophones during this year’s Grammy Awards ceremony.

The singer’s win for “Best Country Song By A Duo” certainly surprised viewers and her fans. However, the two trophies that most people were excited and stunned to see her earn were “Best Country Album” and “Album of the Year.”

On his podcast, “Nightcap,” Sharpe was visibly taken aback when discovering the new Grammys Beyoncé would add to her collection.

“Hold up,” he said. “How she win [a] Grammy for ‘Album of the Year,’ and she [didn’t get any] Country Music Awards?”

He said that the CMAs decision to snub Beyoncé was “some bulljive” before comparing the situation to himself on the football field.

“How am I the MVP of the league, and I don’t make the Pro Bowl?” he wondered.

After Beyoncé announced her eighth studio album, “Cowboy Carter,” she received pushback from some longtime country music fans.

Her critics were likely overjoyed to learn that the Country Music Awards association had glossed over her project completely, leaving her off the ballot for the 2024 awards.

Members of the BeyHive swarmed social media, sharing their negative thoughts and beliefs about the organizers in charge of putting on the show.

The CMA’s host, Luke Bryan, another country hitmaker, also discussed the association’s decision when chatting with Andy Cohen in October 2024.

The “Country Girl (Shake It For Me)” singer called the situation “tricky” before saying he loved that Beyoncé decided to release a country project.

However, he believes making an album of any genre doesn’t mean it’s worthy of praise. He explained that “just because she made one” doesn’t mean it should’ve been nominated.

“I don’t need [a nomination], just ’cause I make one,” he added.

As Bryan continued, he seemingly hinted that Beyoncé’s venture into the country music genre wasn’t authentic.

He mentioned that “everybody loved” Beyoncé’s plan to release a country project. However, he felt the now-35-time Grammy winner should’ve tried to immerse herself in their world before giving “Cowboy Carter” to the others.

“… if you’re gonna make country albums, come into our world and be country with us a little bit,” he said.

Beyoncé, born and raised in Houston, Texas, commented on not feeling welcomed in country music long before Bryan spoke about her album.

When she promoted the project on her social media account in March 2024, she mentioned that the music was “born out of an experience” she had years ago where it was “very clear that I wasn’t [welcome],” referencing her 2016 performance of “Daddy Lessons” with The Chicks at the CMAs that caused much backlash.

According to Beyoncé, the “criticisms” she’s faced since releasing country music pushed her to “propel past the limitations that were put on me.”

Beyoncé’s “Album of the Year” win for her country project, “Cowboy Carter,” was also a big deal because it was the singer’s fifth time being nominated for the prestigious title.

She garnered nominations in 2008, 2013, 2016, and 2022; however, she lost to Taylor Swift, Beck, Adele, and Harry Styles, respectively.

Her win this year was clearly special to her, as she mentioned being “very honored” in her acceptance speech before getting emotional in an interview backstage.

Beyoncé’s former bandmate, Michelle Williams, also expressed her excitement over her friend’s monumental win after many years of trying. During her chat with Robin Roberts on “Good Morning America,” Williams shared how “thrilled” and “excited” she was to see her friend “finally” earn that coveted trophy.

It wouldn’t be a Beyoncé album without a massive tour. On February 2, the mother of three announced the highly-anticipated “Cowboy Carter Tour,” which, according to a poster shared on Instagram, will include stops in nine cities. The singer released dates and ticket presale information on February 3, prompting fans to unleash their excitement about the news online.

“Beyoncé is going back on tour,” one user wrote. “We are so back.”