In the Cowboy Carter Chronicles, Digital Producer Jyesha Johnson write a weekly series, delving into the significant Black history and cultural contributions highlighted in the course on the American West.
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Before this class even started, Dr. Alicia Odewale told me something that stuck: Cowboy Carter isn’t just an album—it’s a vehicle. It’s a way to transport us through Black history, especially in the American West. This week, we explored that through the song “JUST FOR FUN,” and let me tell you, the connections run deep.
LAST WEEK: A snowy pause in our journey
At first, listen, the song feels lighthearted—like something you can hum casually. But underneath the surface, it carries the weight of a people searching for freedom, speaking it into existence—even when it wasn’t guaranteed.
Dr. Odewale put it best: “‘JUST FOR FUN’ sounds like a ballad you’d sing around a campfire when faced with uncertainty, but still holding onto faith. And historically? That’s exactly where Black Americans found themselves in the 1800s.
The Myth About Black Towns
One of the biggest misconceptions about Black history is that all-Black towns only popped up after the Civil War. That’s false.
Yes, many Black settlements flourished post-emancipation, but free Black communities existed before the war, too. The need for safety and self-sufficiency didn’t start in 1865. Black people had been building their own towns, churches, and businesses long before the war ended.
Black towns established before the Civil War:
- Fort Mose - Founded in 1738 in Florida, it was the first legally sanctioned free Black town in what would later become the United States.
- Brooklyn (now part of New York City) - Established in 1646, it became a refuge for free Black people before the Civil War.
- Marshalltown - Founded in 1835 in Iowa, this was a settlement for Black people who had escaped slavery.
- Freetown/East Hampton - Established around 1652 in Massachusetts, this was a free Black settlement.
- Pocahontas Island - A historic Black community founded in the early 1800s in Virginia.
- Seneca Village - Established in 1825 in what is now Central Park in New York City, it was home to free Black people.
So when Beyoncé sings:
“And I just, I need to get through this / Or just get used to it”
…it mirrors the resilience of Black communities who knew they couldn’t wait for freedom to be handed to them. They had to create their own spaces, their own futures—sometimes in the shadows, sometimes in plain sight.
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Speaking freedom into existence
Imagine being a Black person in 1861, on the eve of the Civil War. There’s no certainty, no promise of freedom, just whispers of possibility. That’s the space “JUST FOR FUN” lives in—a moment right before a major shift, where faith is the only thing you can hold onto.
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This is where the Underground Railroad, land runs, and migration paths come into play. Black people weren’t just waiting around for things to change. They were actively finding ways out, ways forward.
The South wasn’t a place many Black people wanted to be—it was where they were forced to be. But the fight for freedom created pathways beyond it:
- The Underground Railroad helped enslaved people escape to free states and Canada.
- Land Runs in the West gave Black settlers opportunities to own property and build towns. A lot of times it would begin with just the planting of a tree to claim their territory.
- The Pony Express (1860-1861) A mail service that used relays of horse-mounted riders
- The Great Migration (decades later) saw millions of Black Americans leave the South for better opportunities in the North and West. For instance, I’m from Mississippi but I have family in Illinois, California, and Colorado.
Think about the line:
“I’m goin' down south just for fun, I am the man, I know it”
At first, it sounds like someone taking a carefree trip. But historically, “going down South” wasn’t a lighthearted decision for Black people. It was a risk — a challenge; a confrontation with a past they were trying to escape.
If we’re talking about uncertainty, nothing felt more unpredictable than the start of the Civil War. The first states to secede set the stage for the bloodiest conflict in American history.
- South Carolina - December 20, 1860
- Mississippi - January 9, 1861
- Florida - January 10, 1861
- Alabama - January 11, 1861
- Georgia - January 19, 1861
- Louisiana - January 26, 1861
- Texas - February 1, 1861
- Virginia - April 17, 1861
- Arkansas - May 6, 1861
- North Carolina - May 20, 1861
- Tennessee - June 8, 1861
As these states broke away to protect slavery, Black Americans faced a crossroads—stay and endure or leave and build something new?
Belief beyond the moment
One of the most striking lines in “JUST FOR FUN” is:
“But time heals everything / I don’t need anything / Hallelujah, I pray to her”
This reflects what kept Black Americans moving forward: belief. Whether it was faith in God, in the land, in each other, or the promise of something better, they had to believe in something beyond their present reality.
And that’s what “JUST FOR FUN” captures. On the surface, it’s a song about movement. But at its core, it’s about the journey—the uncertainty, the struggle, and the faith that keeps you going.
Black history isn’t just about oppression. It’s about how Black people responded to it. How they built. How they dreamed. How they found joy, even in the midst of uncertainty.
And that’s why this song, this history, and this journey matter.
Catch up on Cowboy Carter Chronicles:
- WEEK 2: A snowy pause in our journey
