NC Native Rhiannon Giddens Shines On Beyoncé's New Single

Beyoncé broke the internet this past weekend with the release music from her upcoming Act II album… but did you know that one of those tracks features a North Carolina native?! Rhiannon Giddens, a two-time Grammy winner from Greensboro, plays the banjo in the first 15 seconds of “Texas Hold ‘Em,” one of two country tracks that Queen Bey dropped on Super Bowl Sunday (Feb. 11). As reported by WRAL, Giddens learned of her cameo on Monday morning. “Texas Hold ‘Em,” along with the power ballad “16 Carriages,” will be featured on Beyoncé’s country-inspired eighth studio album, Act II, set to be released on March 29. The Beyoncé feature is the latest in a list of accomplishments for Giddens. As the lead singer and fiddle/banjo player of the Durham-based Carolina Chocolate Drops, she won her first Grammy for Best Traditional Folk Album in 2011 for the album Genuine Negro Jig. She won her second Grammy in 2022, when her solo project, They’re Calling Me Home, won for Best Folk Album.

If you don’t know about Giddens’ remarkable talent, allow us to introduce you! Check out some amazing clips below!

1. First off… Her feature on "Texas Hold 'Em"

2. "We Could Fly" (Inspired by her children's book of the same name!)

3. "Another Wasted Life" (Dedicated to Kalief Browder)

4. Giddens' Tiny Desk Concert

5. "Wrong Kind of Right"

6. "Wayfaring Stranger"

7. The Carolina Chocolate Drops Cover Blu Cantrell's "Hit 'Em Up Style"

8. The Carolina Chocolate Drops' "Country Girl"