An image from Beyoncé’s Cowboy Carter album.
She wouldn’t know a hoof pick from a bot egg knife, and it’s doubtful she spends time practising the sitting trot – but clearly Beyoncé is enamoured with horses.
‘BEYONCE BOWL’: TV special of Beyoncé’s NFL halftime show in Houston, Texas – Christmas 2024
Directed by Alex Rudzinski
Beyoncé on a denim horse.
Over the years for fashion shoots, record promotions and live shows Beyoncé has posed with an equine hologram, a disco-ball horse made from silver mirrors, another one made from denim and a bunch of real ones in varying colours. (When the real ones are moving, she is usually led at the walk).
TRIVIA: The Lipizzaner used on the Cowboy Carter album was Chardonneigh. The disco ball horse was named Reneigh).
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, who hails from Houston, began collaborating with horses at the beginning of her solo career in 2007. Before performing at her hometown’s mammoth Livestock Show and Rodeo, she had entered the arena astride a palomino.
Beyoncé astride a horse at her hometown’s Livestock Show and Rodeo in 2007, at the beginning of her solo career.
When she entered the NRG Stadium 17 years later for the NFL halftime Christmas Gameday show in Houston, she was on a shiny white horse that matched her elaborate outfit, which included over-the-knee boots, chaps, suspenders and cowboy hat. The pre-ripped chaps were covered in diamantes and wouldn’t have lasted five minutes when cutting out a beast.
Beyoncé’s team of singers and dancers also wore white cowboy hats and for about 15 minutes performed with precision and energy presenting tracks from her new Cowboy Carter album.
TRIVIA: Cowboy Hat rules: *Always place the hat crown side up *It’s bad luck to place your hat on the bed *Never leave your hat in the rodeo arena *No hats at the dinner table *When meeting a female the man should tip his hat *Remove the hat during prayers and the national anthem *Don’t touch a hat which doesn’t belong to you.
This global event never would have happened without show jumper/stunt rider Nathan and the gelding ‘Marshmallow’.
Nathan Allan Williams-Bonner’s job was to lead the part-Andalusian down a chute inside the stadium towards the field while fireworks erupted and Beyoncé sang from the saddle, timing the horse’s footfalls to the beat of the music.
Both were nervous.
Beyoncé and part-Andalusian Marshmallow, led by Nathan Allan Williams-Bonner.
“I tried to keep Marshmallow as relaxed as possible and Beyoncé remained calm although tense,” recalled Williams-Bonner, who walked them into the stadium wearing a white jacket, bandana and hat. The star then hopped from the gelding and joined the other performers. (In America alone more than 27 million people watched the show).
TRIVIA: Beyoncé and her husband Jay-Z, formerly Shawn Corey Carter, once spent $600,000 on a gold-dipped rocking horse for their daughter, Blue Ivy.
The 30-year-old Black horseman works most of the time at a Warmblood stud in Temecula, California, where he also gives lessons, trains clients’ horses and show jumps. He had begun occasional film work at the beginning of 2024 at the suggestion of rider Scarlet Walker who, with her mother, runs Horses for Productions in Malibu. They had supplied Marshmallow.
During rehearsals Williams-Bonner spent some moments with the “super nice” star but mainly he was exercising all the horses and familiarising them with the surroundings. As well as the lead horse there were several others used at the beginning of the film.
TRIVIA: Through initiatives by her BeyGOOD philanthropic foundation Beyoncé is providing support to Black equestrian programs across the US.
Beyoncé performing at the 2024 half time show.
What could have been a major production hitch was the stadium’s slippery floor which could affect the horses’ footing. Seven sets of hoof boots were urgently needed. Scarlet Walker made an urgent call to a Canadian Cavallo outlet in Roberts Creek, British Columbia. Despite it being Christmas time, the mail arrived promptly and all the boots were the right size.
“We ended up using front ones for the main horses as we had to stand around for 10 hours,” explains Scarlet. “The ground was extremely dangerous and I’m happy to report not one single horse slipped.” She had used them before at the 2023 Oscars on a donkey representing ‘Jenny’ from ‘The Banshees of Inisherin’ (you can read more about this film in the July 2023 issue of Equestrian Life).
One of the images for the Cowboy Carter album is of the 43-year-old billionaire diva stuck to the side of a grey waving a flag. It is shot by Blair Caldwell, an LA-based photographer originally from Texas. This picture has clearly been photo shopped or mucked about in such a way that the horse appears to be “trantering”. It is apparent Caldwell has never studied horses in motion.
Beyonce Bowl can be viewed on Netflix or YouTube.
Next time in Horses & Movies, ‘Gladiator 11’ (2024) directed by Ridley Scott and starring Paul Mescal and Denzel Washington. EQ
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