Beyoncé kicked off her Cowboy Carter Tour in characteristically stylish, choreography-dense fashion at SoFi Stadium in Inglewood, California, last night. Dressed in a white, fringed leather ensemble with a cowboy hat, she launched into a set including numerous live debuts for Cowboy Carter tracks, cameos from Blue Ivy and Rumi Carter, and a cover of “Before I Let Go” by the Maze and the late Frankie Beverly. Check out the full setlist below.
Before Beyoncé took the star-shaped stage with a troupe of red-robed dancers, an electronic screen lit up with an American flag beside a speaker tower emblazoned with the letters “KNTRY,” Cowboy Carter’s fictional radio station. Merch designs included a depiction of Beyoncé riding a mechanical horse above the slogan, “Never ask permission for something that already belongs to you.”
After opening with “Ameriican Requiem” and “Blackbiird”—paying homage to the Black women pioneers of rock, folk, and country—she pivoted into a twisted rendition of “The Star-Spangled Banner” modeled after Jimi Hendrix’s Woodstock classic. During “Freedom,” video showed Beyoncé in dreads smoking a cigar, with a sash reading “the reclamation of America.” Blue Ivy stepped up for the “Formation” choreography and stuck around to perform with her mom on numerous songs, including a performance of “America Has a Problem” featuring a press conference backdrop. Rumi later joined for “Protector,” apparently going off-brief to wave excitedly during the dance routine, prompting Beyoncé to break character and laugh while giving her a hug.
Despite plenty of Renaissance cuts and a handful of staples from her catalog—as well as a playful riff on the viral “she ain’t no diva” TikTok—Cowboy Carter dominated the show, in the composition of both the setlist and the themes. A mechanical bull spotted backstage transpired to slot into a wider narrative presenting Bey as a Wild West outlaw overcoming alienation and outsiderdom to assert her claim on the territory. The third act climaxed with video of a shootout in which she took up arms against an older, white cowboy whose bullets pinged right off her body. Beyoncé sang final encore closer “Amen” in front of a Statue of Liberty with braided hair.
Beyoncé released Cowboy Carter, the follow-up to 2022’s Renaissance, last March as the second part of a planned trilogy. The album went on to become the pop icon’s eighth No. 1 and made her the first Black woman ever to debut at No. 1 on the Top Country Albums chart. It also earned her three trophies at the 2025 Grammy Awards, where she claimed her first victory for Album of the Year as well as for Best Country Album and Best Country Duo/Group Performance. Last December, Beyoncé performed in her Houston hometown for the halftime show during one of the NFL’s first Christmas games to stream live on Netflix.
The Cowboy Carter Tour is Beyoncé’s seventh headline tour, following 2023’s massive Renaissance World Tour. The latter, which spanned 56 dates across the globe and featured guest appearances from Kendrick Lamar and Megan Thee Stallion, was captured in the box office–topping documentary concert film Renaissance: A Film by Beyoncé.
The Cowboy Carter Tour continues on Thursday with a second night in Inglewood; the rest of the itinerary will take her to New Jersey, Chicago, Houston, Atlanta, and Washington, D.C., before European stops including London and Paris.
Beyoncé:
Ameriican RequiemBlackbirdThe Star-spangled BannerFreedomYa Ya / Why Don’t You Love MeAmerica Has a ProblemSpaghettiiFormationMy HouseDivaAlliigator TearsJust for FunProtectorFlamencoDesert EagleRiiverdanceII Hands II HeavenSweet ★ Honey ★ Buckiin’ / Pure/Honey / Summer RenaissanceJoleneDaddy LessonsBodyguardII Most WantedCuff ItTyrantThiqueLevii’s JeansDaughterI’m That GirlCozyAlien SuperstarTexas Hold ‘EmCrazy in LoveHeatedBefore I Let Go16 CarriagesAmen
