Beyoncé has had a lot of mixed reactions to her first country single, “Texas Hold ‘Em,’ but one artist who is in favor of her entrance into the genre is Kane Brown. The father of two — with one on the way — says she has every right to be part of country music, and believes she can only help move country music forward.d

“I saw a thing, and I don’t know why race always gets brought into it, but i saw a thing that was like, ‘Beyoncé’s breaking into a white genre,” Brown said on Absolute Radio Country. “And then I saw somebody else post, ‘That’s not true. You’ve got Charley Pride, Darius Rucker, Kane, Mickey Guyton.’ They just went on this huge list. And so I thought that was cool that they had our back.”

While Beyoncé’s “Texas Hold ‘Em” might not be everyone’s favorite style of music, Brown says her inclusion in country music can only help the genre.

“I feel like country music’s very overlooked,” Brown says. “So it’s cool to see Beyoncé jump into it. Maybe she gets her fans to go and look at some other artists, see where the roots came from, and they just go down a rabbit hole. That’s what I’ve always tried to do. I feel like country music is the biggest thing that’s been right now for more people, so I’m really excited for our genre.”

“Texas Hold ‘Em debuted at No. 1 on both the Billboard Hot Country chart and Hot 100. Brown has his own hit single at radio now as well. The 30-year-old is enjoying a Top 5 hit with “I Can Feel It,” part of an upcoming, still-untitled new album.

“I took all the slow songs out of my set, even though that’s like my bread and butter, the slow music, but I don’t like to play it on stage,” Brown previously told Zane Lowe on Apple Music 1. “I like to keep the show energized, keep the fans moving. I don’t want them to go get a beer. That’s what I’m going to focus on for the most part, for this new album.”

Brown already teased a personal song, about his own battle with depression, and hints there will be another unforgettable track on the project.

“I’ve got another song called ‘Be a Boy’ that I think is going to be probably Song of the Year,” Brown hinted. “It’s just so well written… it’s a definite one, so I’ll say one of the three.”

Brown will kick off his In The Air Tour on March 28 in Charlottesville, Virginia, joined by an impressive list of opening acts, including Chris Young, Tyler Hubbard, Cole Swindell, Jon Pardi and Bailey Zimmerman and more.

All of Brown’s music and upcoming shows can be found at  KaneBrownMusic.com.