Key Takeaways:
- Queen Esther Marrow’s 1971 gospel track “Walk Tall” plays during a visual interlude in Beyoncé’s “The Cowboy Carter Tour.”
- The veteran singer was invited to Atlanta by Beyoncé after her emotional reaction to her song’s cameo went viral.
- Tina Knowles helped coordinate the surprise and captured Marrow’s joy during the performance.
Soul and gospel singer Queen Esther Marrow will forever cherish her memories of being a part of “The Cowboy Carter Tour.” Beyoncé flew the 84-year-old to Atlanta to attend the concert during its four-day stop in Georgia’s capital. The elder songstress’ record “Walk Tall” is featured in the visual interlude leading up to the superstar’s performance of “Texas Hold ‘Em.”
Hundreds of thousands of fans learned that the voice singing, “Walk tall, when you move out/ Walk tall, and there's no doubt/ That no one can make you small/ Not when you're walking tall,” was Esther in the background of a clip where Beyoncé appeared as a 400-foot-tall woman in the desert in a viral post.
A recording of the elder artist as she watched the visual for the first time went viral on Instagram and TikTok. In it, Esther exclaimed, “That’s me! What? Oh my God!” as she witnessed the snippet from a laptop. She wrote that she was “deeply honored to know that my voice — and my words — still find new life and meaning today.”
She also made sure to give the global icon a special shoutout. "Thank you to every listener, young and old, who keeps the legacy alive for all of us of a certain generation. And thank you to Beyoncé for letting my voice and my words echo in your powerful show. May we never forget the power of our music to heal, uplift, and unite," wrote the seasoned entertainer.
Social media users circulated the joyous moment so much that it eventually made its way to the 35-time Grammy Award winner and her mother, Ms. Tina Knowles. The author of “Matriarch” helped facilitate plans to get Esther and her manager to Atlanta. She captured the proud artist as she watched Bey glide above concertgoers on a golden horse at Mercedes-Benz Stadium.
“Every time that song comes on, I loved it but had no idea who [sings] the song!” Ms. Tina wrote in her post. Moreover, she noted, “She was so lovely. She was so excited. And I am so happy that she got to come and witness the concert. She danced the whole time and had a ball."
Beyoncé’s genre-breaking “Cowboy Carter Tour” will undoubtedly be remembered for its impact on live entertainment, but more importantly, for the way it made her fans feel seen and celebrated. The golden era of her three-part act ends with two shows in Vegas toward the end of July.