Linda Martell Thanks Beyonce for Recognition on ‘Cowboy Carter’

A few years ago, Martell reflected on her career and role as a country music trend-setter in a Rolling Stone profile. The artist, who was born Thelma Bynem and previously sang in girl groups, recalled a 1969 meeting with Nashville label owner Shelby Singleton Jr. who asked her what she wanted out of a career. When she said she just wanted to sing, he suggested she try country. “I looked at him, like, ‘Really?’” she said. “I was a little bit shocked! I was mostly doing pop. But he said, ‘You gotta go country.’”

Color Me Country made it to Number 40 on the country chart, but Martell never recorded a follow-up album, instead singing in clubs. Eventually she settled in South Carolina and worked as a bus driver to be closer to her family. When Rolling Stone asked her if she takes pride in her status as a Black country pioneer, she responded mysteriously, “Sometimes.”