16 CARRIAGES

16 CARRIAGES by Beyoncé
General information
Artist	Beyoncé
Release date	February 11, 2024
Genre	Country
Length	3:54
Songwriter(s)	Beyoncé, Atia Boggs, Dave Hamelin, Raphael Saadiq
Producer(s)	Beyoncé, Atia Boggs, Dave Hamelin
Album	Cowboy Carter
s chronology
Previous	"TEXAS HOLD ’EM"
Current	"16 CARRIAGES"
Next	"II MOST WANTED"
Music video

"16 Carriages" (stylized in uppercase) is a song by American singer-songwriter Beyoncé. It was surprise released on February 11, 2024, through Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records. It is the co-lead single alongside "Texas Hold 'Em" from her upcoming eighth studio album, currently under the tentative title Renaissance Act II.

Background and release

Verizon, an American multinational telecommunications company, released a short Super Bowl teaser involving American actor and comedian, Tony Hale, making lemonade referencing Beyoncé's sixth studio album, Lemonade (2016). Another teaser commercial was released featuring the silver horse statue, Reneigh, from the artist's seventh studio album art cover, Renaissance (2022).

Throughout the Super Bowl LVIII, a minute-long commercial was released with Tony Hale challenging the artist herself if she can break "Verizon's 5G internet service." During the commercial, Beyoncé attempts to break the internet by running a lemonade stand, releasing a jazz saxophone album, launching a Barbie doll collection, announcing her president candidacy, and flying into space for a performance. Shortly after the commercial aired, Beyoncé posted a video teaser on Instagram with an unidentified woman starting up a car and driving afar on an empty road. The same day, the artist's official website was updated to announce her eighth studio album, Act II, scheduled for release on March 29. The album's two lead singles, "16 Carriages" and "Texas Hold 'Em", were surprise released for digital download and streaming.

The track contains the lyric "It's been thirty-eight summers, and I'm not in my bed", which some critics interpreted as implying the song was written in the summer of 2020, when Beyoncé was 38. Tina Knowles, the mother of Beyoncé, posted a picture of Beyoncé the day of the song's release, partially captioned "I have loved this record for years."

Composition

The song was co-produced by Beyoncé, alongside Atia Boggs and Dave Hamelin; it was co-written by Knowles, Boggs, Hamelin, and Raphael Saadiq. Robert Randolph was credited as the player of the steel guitar.

The song is a ballad, inspired by country music, with percussion instrument and steel pulse; thematically the lyric provides reflection about "growing-up", linked to the evolving relationship between parents and their children.

Fashion

Beyoncé wore a Gladys Tamez designed hat named "Houston" for her single artwork.

Lyrics

[Chorus]
Sixteen carriages drivin' away
While I watch them ride with my dreams away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long back road, all the tears I fight
Sixteen carriages drivin' away
While I watch them ride with my dreams away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long black road, all the tears I fight

[Verse 1]
At fifteen, the innocence was gone astray
Had to leave my home at an early age
I saw Mama prayin', I saw Daddy grind
All my tender problems, had to leave behind

[Pre-Chorus]
It's been umpteen summers, and I'm not in my bed
On the back of the bus in a bunk with the band
Goin' so hard, gotta choose myself
Undеrpaid and overwhelmed
I might cook, clеan, but still won't fold
Still workin' all my life, you know
Only God knows, only God knows
Only God knows

[Chorus]
Sixteen carriages drivin' away
While I watch them ride with my fears away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long back road, all the tears I fight
Sixteen carriages drivin' away
While I watch them ride with my fears away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long back road, all the tears I fight

[Verse 2]
Sixteen dollars, workin' all day
Ain't got time to waste, I got art to make
I got love to create on this holy night
They won't dim my light, all these years I fight

[Pre-Chorus]
It's been thirty-eight summers, and I'm not in my bed
On the back of the bus in a bunk with the band
Goin' so hard, now I miss my kids
Overworked and overwhelmed
I might cook, clean, but still won't fold
Still workin' all my life, you know
Only God knows, only God knows
Only God knows

[Chorus]
Sixteen carriages driving away
While I watch them ride with my fears away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long back road, all the tears I fight
Sixteen carriages driving away
While I watch them ride with my fears away
To the summer sunset on a holy night
On a long back road, all these tears I fight

[Post-Chorus]
Oh, oh
Oh

[Bridge]
At fifteen, the innocence was gone astray
Had to take care of home at an early age
I saw Mama cryin', I saw Daddy lyin'
Had to sacrifice and leave my fears behind
For legacy, if it's the last thing I do
You'll remember me 'cause we got somethin' to prove
In your memory, on a highway to truth
Still see your faces when you close your eyes

[Outro]
Sixteen carriages drivin' away
While I watch them ride with my dreams away

Critical reception

"16 Carriages" received widespread critical acclaim from many music critics. Chris Willman of Variety stated that the song is lyrically associable with Beyoncé's "Daddy Lessons" song from her sixth studio album Lemonade (2016) for its reflective "overt growing-up narrative" and for exploring "daddy issues", even if the song is "mostly just about having become a workhorse that got rode too hard before she had a chance to be a teenager". Gail Mitchell of Billboard wrote that the song is "a vulnerable yet empowering autobiographical ballad" with "melodious vocals". Talking about the title, Mitchell suggested that the number "16" could refer to the age when Beyoncé signed with Columbia as a Destiny's Child member.

In a four out of five review, Ben Beaumont-Thomas of The Guardian described the song as a "Halo-proportioned" country song with "blues and gospel-infused", in which Beyoncé is singing about "the graft of her career since her mid-teens". The writer stressed that it could "recalls the [Blak] work song" for "claiming country as part of Black musical expression". Ben Sisario of The New York Times described the song as "an epic ballad" with the guitars swelling between the "organ-loud percussion" as the artist sings about losing innocence "at a young age." Maria Sherman of The San Diego Union-Tribune described the song as "a soulful slow-burn" in which Beyoncé sings "an ode to hard work and legacy".

In a less positive review, Chris Richards of The Washington Post, found "16 Carriage" and "Texas Hold 'Em" were released as a pair "because neither could stand on its own", found the two songs with less impact than the previous lead singles "Formation" or "Break My Soul". The writer wrote that both the songs "feel dull, dry, unimaginative, unnecessary, unconfident and uncool."

Release history

Release history for "16 Carriages"

Region	Date	Format(s)	Label(s)
Various	February 11, 2024	Digital download, streaming	Parkwood, Columbia

Videos

Beyoncé - 16 CARRIAGES (Official Visualizer)

Beyoncé - 16 CARRIAGES (Official Lyric Video)

16 CARRIAGES-2