‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’ by Beyoncé - Lyrics & Meaning

After Beyoncé's blockbuster Verizon commercial during the 2024 Super Bowl, during which she did her best to break the internet, the global megastar followed these fictional attempts with a much more momentous announcement.

On February 11, Beyoncé - undoubtedly one of the biggest artists in the world - officially confirmed she'd be releasing her debut country album, Renaissance Act II, on March 29.

Fans had been suspecting Beyoncé might be preparing a foray into Music City when she decided to wear a cowboy hat to the 2024 Grammys, with the ‘Halo’ hitmaker previously dabbling in the genre with her Lemonade stand-out, ‘Daddy Lessons’. Beyoncé famously performed the track alongside The Chicks at the 2016 CMA Awards.

Nonetheless, the unveiling of Renaissance Act II still came as a shock, especially following the electro, dance-leaning first instalment of Renaissance in 2022. Beyoncé accompanied the surprise news with the release of two new singles, ‘16 CARRIAGES’ and ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’, with the latter being sent to Country Radio on February 20.

Prior to being shipped to the airwaves, ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’ caused a stir when certain Country Radio stations refused to play it, seemingly deeming it not to be ‘country’ enough.

In light of the widespread excitement surrounding Post Malone's pivot towards country music, the contrast with the reaction to Beyoncé's country releases has been cited by many as evidence of Country Radio's rigid ideals about who belongs in the genre.

The issue of whether ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’ is ‘country’ enough has sparked a variety of contentious debates concerning what it even means to be ‘country’ in the first place.

Sonically, ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’ feels country, opening with a jaunty, uptempo banjo, before Beyoncé's enchanting vocals emerge in tandem with the rhythmic, galvanising beat.

The addition of ‘Ho’ and ‘Hey’ chants throughout the first hook helps give the song the feeling of a rowdy, bar-room dance, which ties in with the choreography Beyoncé details in the pre-chorus. Compared to the plucky banjo of the intro, the composition feels notably subdued and subtler during the rest of ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’, with Beyoncé's layered vocals in the hook giving it a laid-back ambience.

On the lyrics ‘too’ and ‘you’, Beyoncé adds a playful, euphoric‘ ‘Woo!’, which accentuates the loose, rustic atmosphere she crafts, transporting listeners to a Texas honky-tonk. Contrastingly, the outro consists of a sleeker, R&B-inspired instrumental.

“This ain't Texas (Woo), ain't no hold 'em (Hey)
So lay your cards down, down, down, down
So park your Lexus (Woo) and throw your keys up (Hey)
Stick around, 'round, 'round, 'round, 'round (Stick around)
And I'll be damned if I can't slow dance with you
Come pour some sugar on me, honey too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo, ha, woo)”

The titular lyric pivots around the variation of Poker, ‘Texas Hold ‘Em’, with Beyoncé using the game as a metaphor for how her partner is refusing to put his cards on the table.

Beyoncé pleads with him to be straight with her and drop his Poker face, as she encourages her lover to step out of his comfort zone and onto the dance-floor with her.

There's a clever transition from the protagonist calling for her man to pour some ‘sugar’ on her, as she asks him to kiss her, into the similarly sweet nickname, ‘honey’.

Beyoncé describes the dance they're taking part in as a traditional country ‘hoedown’, and given her home-state and the title of the song, it's likely this is the famous Texas Two-Step.

“There's a tornado (There's a tornado) in my city (In my city)
In the basement (In the basement), that shit ain't pretty (Shit ain't pretty)
Rugged whiskey (Rugged whiskey) 'cause we survivin' ('Cause we survivin')
Off red cup kisses, sweet redemption, passin' time, yeah”

Texas has more tornadoes passing through it than any other US state, and here, Beyoncé regales the listener with a tale of how a twister has forced her and her partner underground.

She subsequently paints a visceral picture of a crude, sparse setting, as they resolve to get through the violent weather with the help of country music's No. 1 - or perhaps more accurately, No. 7 - painkiller: some good old Jack Daniels whiskey.

Beyoncé throws in another country trope by referencing the red solo cups that regularly pop up in Friday night anthems by the likes of Luke Combs, Morgan Wallen and more.

“Ooh, one step to the right
We headin' to the dive bar we always thought was nice
Ooh, run me to the left
Then spin me in the middle, boy, I can't read your mind”

Here, Beyoncé details some of the moves as she guides her hesitant partner through the dance in their local dive, putting him at ease. She again underlines her hopes that he'll open up to her more, as she frustratedly highlights how she can't read his mind.

“And I'll be damned if I cannot dance with you
Come and pour some liquor on me, honey too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo)”

We get a variation of the earlier verse, with Beyoncé switching out ‘sugar’ for ‘liquor’, symbolising how the romantic encounter has now progressed from the endearing innocence of the initial meeting in the bar, to the sultry, sensual feel of nightfall.

“There's a heatwave (There's a heatwave) coming at us (Coming at us)
Too hot to think straight (Too hot to think straight), too cold to panic (Too cold to panic)
All of the problems just feel dramatic (Just feel dramatic)
And now we're runnin' to the first spot that we find, yeah”

Beyoncé continues the striking pathetic fallacy, with the weather aligning with the evolving moods of the song. We move from the tempestuousness of the tornado, to the steamy, seductive ‘heatwave’, as Beyoncé portrays the electricity fizzling between her and her lover. She juxtaposes this emotional humidity with the idea that they're too cool to panic or fret about where their relationship is heading.

“Take it to the floor now, ooh
Hoops, spurs, boots
To the floor now, ooh
Tuck, back, oops (Ooh, ooh, ooh)
Shoot
Come take it to the floor now, ooh
And I'll be damned if I cannot dance with you
Baby, pour that sugar and liquor on me too
Furs, spurs, boots
Solargenic, photogenic, shoot”

For the breakdown at the end of the track, Beyoncé rattles through a plethora of traditional Texas attire, such as boots and spurs, as she extends the choreography from before.

The Houston singer-songwriter brings in more weather-based imagery here, describing their love as ‘solargenic’, drawing energy from the sun, in addition to being ‘photogenic’. Beyoncé concludes with ‘shoot’, asking those around them to snap a photo of the duo.

In her trademark enigmatic fashion, Beyoncé has remained tight-lipped as to the inspiration behind ‘TEXAS HOLD ‘EM’, and indeed Renaissance Act II as a whole.

At the end of her 2024 Super Bowl Verizon commercial, she teased, “Okay, they ready. Drop the music”, but beyond this, she hasn't offered much in the way of hints about the project.

“This ain't Texas (Woo), ain't no hold 'em (Hey)
So lay your cards down, down, down, down
So park your Lexus (Woo) and throw your keys up (Hey)
Stick around, 'round, 'round, 'round, 'round (Stick around)
And I'll be damned if I can't slow dance with you
Come pour some sugar on me, honey too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo, ha, woo)

There's a tornado (There's a tornado) in my city (In my city)
In the basement (In the basement), that shit ain't pretty (Shit ain't pretty)
Rugged whiskey (Rugged whiskey) 'cause we survivin' ('Cause we survivin')
Off red cup kisses, sweet redemption, passin' time, yeah

Ooh, one step to the right
We headin' to the dive bar we always thought was nice
Ooh, run me to the left
Then spin me in the middle, boy, I can't read your mind

This ain't Texas (Woo), ain't no hold 'em (Hey)
So lay your cards down, down, down, down
So park your Lexus (Woo) and throw your keys up (Hey)
Stick around, 'round, 'round, 'round, 'round (Stick around)
And I'll be damned if I can't slow dance with you
Come and pour some sugar on me, honey too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo)

And I'll be damned if I cannot dance with you
Come and pour some liquor on me, honey too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo)

Woo-hoo
Woo-hoo
Woo-hoo

There's a heatwave (There's a heatwave) coming at us (Coming at us)
Too hot to think straight (Too hot to think straight), too cold to panic (Too cold to panic)
All of the problems just feel dramatic (Just feel dramatic)
And now we're runnin' to the first spot that we find, yeah

Ooh, one step to the right
We headin' to the dive bar we always thought was nice
Ooh, you run to the left
Just with me in the middle boy, I can't read your mind

This ain't Texas (Woo), ain't no hold 'em (Hey)
So lay your cards down, down, down, down (Oh)
So park your Lexus (Hey) and throw your keys up (Hey)
Stick around,' round, 'round, 'round, 'round (Stick around)
And I'll be damned if I cannot slow dance with you
Come pour some sugar on me, honey, too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a bitch, come take it to the floor now (Woo)

And I'll be damned if I cannot dance with you
Come pour some liquor on me honey, too
It's a real life boogie and a real life hoedown
Don't be a - come take it to the floor now, ooh

Take it to the floor now, ooh
Hoops, spurs, boots
To the floor now, ooh
Tuck, back, oops (Ooh, ooh, ooh)
Shoot
Come take it to the floor now, ooh
And I'll be damned if I cannot dance with you
Baby, pour that sugar and liquor on me too
Furs, spurs, boots
Solargenic, photogenic, shoot”

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