Ya Ya (Beyoncé song)

It is the twentieth track on her eighth studio album, Cowboy Carter (2024), released through Parkwood Entertainment and Columbia Records.

The song was widely lauded by critics as the best track on Cowboy Carter, with particular praise for its high-energy production and Beyoncé's wide-ranging vocal performance.

[9] Lyrically, the song explores Beyoncé's family's struggles in the context of American economic, racial and social inequalities, and promotes defiance, freedom and joy in the face of adversity.

[10][11] The song also evokes the Chitlin’ Circuit, which were a collection of venues that embraced and employed Black musicians during the Jim Crow era.

[24] Other publications likened Beyoncé's delivery on the track to that of Chuck Berry,[23] Betty Davis,[25] Elvis Presley,[16] James Brown, Billy Preston, Little Richard,[11] Koko Taylor, and Big Mama Thornton.

[20] Brittany Spanos of Rolling Stone described this as "fantasy-fulfillment", whereby Beyoncé transforms into the type of performers she was raised on and that she has often cited in her work.

[10][20] Billboard's Kyle Denis characterized the song as an "ode to the incomparable energy and verve of the Black South",[6] while The Independent's Helen Brown described it as "Beyoncé's claim to life in America".

[27] In an article for Elle, Keyaira Kelly wrote that the track "paints a picture of Beyoncé's ideal America" as an inclusive, joyous hoedown.