Beyoncé Knowles

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter ( ; born September 4, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, and actress. Beyoncé's boundary-pushing artistry and vocals have made her the most influential female musician of the 21st century, according to '' NPR''. Her success has led to her becoming a cultural icon and earning her the nickname " Queen Bey".

Beyoncé performed in various singing and dancing competitions as a child. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of the R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the best-selling girl groups of all time. Their hiatus saw the release of her debut album '' Dangerously in Love'' (2003), which featured the US ''Billboard'' Hot 100 number-one singles " Crazy in Love" and " Baby Boy". Following the 2006 disbanding of Destiny's Child, Beyoncé released her second solo album, '' B'Day'', which contained singles " Irreplaceable" and " Beautiful Liar". Beyoncé also starred in multiple films such as '' Austin Powers in Goldmember'' (2002), '' The Pink Panther'' (2006), '' Dreamgirls'' (2006), '' Obsessed'' (2009), and '' The Lion King'' (2019). Her marriage to Jay-Z and her portrayal of Etta James in '' Cadillac Records'' (2008) influenced her third album, '' I Am... Sasha Fierce'' (2008), which earned a record-setting six Grammy Awards in 2010. It spawned the successful singles " If I Were a Boy", " Single Ladies", and "Halo". After professionally splitting from her manager and father Mathew Knowles in 2010, she released her musically diverse fourth album '' 4'' in 2011.

Beyoncé later achieved universal acclaim for her sonically experimental visual albums, '' Beyoncé'' (2013) and '' Lemonade'' (2016), the latter of which was the world's best-selling album of 2016 and the most acclaimed album of her career, exploring themes of infidelity, feminism, and womanism. In 2018, she released ''Everything Is Love'', a collaborative album with her husband, Jay-Z, as the Carters. As a featured artist, Beyoncé topped the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 with the remixes of "Perfect" by Ed Sheeran in 2017 and " Savage" by Megan Thee Stallion in 2020. The same year, she released the musical film '' Black Is King'' with an accompanying visual album, with praise from critics. In 2022, Beyoncé received further critical acclaim for her seventh studio album ''Renaissance'', which experimented with disco and house music and paid homage to LGBTQ+ ball culture. She obtained her first solo number-one since 2008 with the album's lead single, " Break My Soul", with ''Renaissance'' being her first solo studio album since 2016.

She is one of the world's best-selling recording artists, having sold over 200 million records worldwide. Her success during the 2000s was recognized with the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA)'s Top Certified Artist of the Decade as well as ''Billboard'' Top Female Artist of the Decade. She is the first solo artist to have their first seven studio albums debut at number one on the ''Billboard'' 200. Beyoncé's accolades include 28 Grammy Awards, 26 MTV Video Music Awards (including the Michael Jackson Video Vanguard Award in 2014), 24 NAACP Image Awards, 31 BET Awards, and 17 Soul Train Music Awards; all of which are more than any other singer. In 2014, ''Billboard'' named her the highest-earning black musician of all time, while in 2020, she was included on ''Time''s list of 100 women who defined the last century.

Life and career

1981–1996: Early life and career beginnings

Beyonce Giselle Knowles was born on September 4, 1981, in Houston, Texas, to Celestine "Tina" Knowles (''née'' Beyonce), a hairdresser and salon owner, and Mathew Knowles, a Xerox sales manager; Tina is Louisiana Creole, and Mathew is African American. Beyoncé's younger sister, Solange Knowles, is also a singer and a former backup dancer for Destiny's Child. Solange and Beyoncé are the first sisters to have both had number one albums.

Beyoncé's maternal grandparents, Lumas Beyince, and Agnez Dereon (daughter of Odilia Broussard and Eugene DeRouen), were French-speaking Louisiana Creoles, with roots in New Iberia. Beyoncé is considered a Creole, passed on to her by her grandparents. Through her mother, Beyoncé is a descendant of many French aristocrats from the southwest of France, including the family of the Viscounts ''de'' Béarn since the 9th century, and the Viscounts ''de'' Belzunce. She is also a descendant of Acadian militia officer Joseph Broussard, who was exiled to French Louisiana after the expulsion of the Acadians. Her fourth great-grandmother, Marie-Françoise Trahan, was born in 1774 in Bangor, located on Belle Île, France. Trahan was a daughter of Acadians who had taken refuge on Belle Île after the Acadian expulsion. The Estates of Brittany had divided the lands of Belle Île to distribute them among 78 other Acadian families and the already settled inhabitants. The Trahan family lived on Belle Île for over ten years before immigrating to Louisiana, where she married a Broussard descendant. Beyoncé researched her ancestry and discovered that she is descended from a slave owner who married his slave. Her mother is also of distant Jewish, Spanish, Chinese and Indonesian ancestry.

Beyoncé was raised Catholic and attended St. Mary's Montessori School in Houston, where she enrolled in dance classes. Her singing was discovered when dance instructor Darlette Johnson began humming a song and she finished it, able to hit the high-pitched notes. Beyoncé's interest in music and performing continued after winning a school talent show at age seven, singing John Lennon's " Imagine" to beat 15/16-year-olds. In the fall of 1990, Beyoncé enrolled in Parker Elementary School, a music magnet school in Houston, where she would perform with the school's choir. She also attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and later Alief Elsik High School. Beyoncé was also a member of the choir at St. John's United Methodist Church as a soloist for two years.

When Beyoncé was eight, she met LaTavia Roberson at an audition for an all-girl entertainment group. They were placed into a group called Girl's Tyme with three other girls, and rapped and danced on the talent show circuit in Houston. After seeing the group, R&B producer Arne Frager brought them to his Northern California studio and placed them in '' Star Search'', the largest talent show on national TV at the time. Girl's Tyme failed to win, and Beyoncé later said the song they performed was not good. In 1995, Beyoncé's father resigned from his job to manage the group. The move reduced Beyoncé's family's income by half, and her parents were forced to sell their house and cars and move into separated apartments. Mathew cut the original line-up to four and the group continued performing as an opening act for other established R&B girl groups. The girls auditioned before record labels and were finally signed to Elektra Records, moving to Atlanta Records briefly to work on their first recording, only to be cut by the company. This put further strain on the family, and Beyoncé's parents separated. On October 5, 1995, Dwayne Wiggins's Grass Roots Entertainment signed the group. In 1996, the girls began recording their debut album under an agreement with Sony Music, the Knowles family reunited, and shortly after, the group got a contract with Columbia Records.

1997–2002: Destiny's Child

The group changed their name to Destiny's Child in 1996, based upon a passage in the Book of Isaiah. In 1997, Destiny's Child released their major label debut song "Killing Time" on the soundtrack to the 1997 film '' Men in Black''. In November, the group released their debut single and first major hit, " No, No, No". They released their self-titled debut album in February 1998, which established the group as a viable act in the music industry, with moderate sales and winning the group three Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards for Best R&B/Soul Album of the Year, Best R&B/Soul or Rap New Artist, and Best R&B/Soul Single for "No, No, No". The group released their Multi-Platinum second album '' The Writing's on the Wall'' in 1999. The record features some of the group's most widely known songs such as " Bills, Bills, Bills", the group's first number-one single, " Jumpin' Jumpin' and " Say My Name", which became their most successful song at the time, and would remain one of their signature songs. "Say My Name" won the Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and the Best R&B Song at the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards. ''The Writing's on the Wall'' sold more than eight million copies worldwide. During this time, Beyoncé recorded a duet with Marc Nelson, an original member of Boyz II Men, on the song "After All Is Said and Done" for the soundtrack to the 1999 film, '' The Best Man''.

LeToya Luckett and Roberson became unhappy with Mathew's managing of the band and eventually were replaced by Farrah Franklin and Michelle Williams. Beyoncé experienced depression following the split with Luckett and Roberson after being publicly blamed by the media, critics, and blogs for its cause. Her long-standing boyfriend left her at this time. The depression was so severe it lasted for a couple of years, during which she occasionally kept herself in her bedroom for days and refused to eat anything. Beyoncé stated that she struggled to speak about her depression because Destiny's Child had just won their first Grammy Award, and she feared no one would take her seriously. Beyoncé would later speak of her mother as the person who helped her fight it. Franklin was then dismissed, leaving just Beyoncé, Rowland, and Williams.

The remaining band members recorded " Independent Women Part I", which appeared on the soundtrack to the 2000 film ''Charlie's Angels''. It became their best-charting single, topping the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart for eleven consecutive weeks. In early 2001, while Destiny's Child was completing their third album, Beyoncé landed a major role in the MTV made-for-television film, '' Carmen: A Hip Hopera'', starring alongside American actor Mekhi Phifer. Set in Philadelphia, the film is a modern interpretation of the 19th-century opera ''Carmen'' by French composer Georges Bizet. When the third album ''Survivor'' was released in May 2001, Luckett and Roberson filed a lawsuit claiming that the songs were aimed at them. The album debuted at number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200, with first-week sales of 663,000 copies sold. The album spawned other number-one hits, " Bootylicious" and the title track, "Survivor", the latter of which earned the group a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. After releasing their holiday album '' 8 Days of Christmas'' in October 2001, the group announced a hiatus to further pursue solo careers.

In July 2002, Beyoncé made her theatrical film debut, playing Foxxy Cleopatra alongside Mike Myers in the comedy film '' Austin Powers in Goldmember'', which spent its first weekend atop the U.S. box office and grossed $73 million. Beyoncé released " Work It Out" as the lead single from its soundtrack album which entered the top ten in the UK, Norway, and Belgium. In 2003, Beyoncé starred opposite Cuba Gooding, Jr., in the musical comedy '' The Fighting Temptations'' as Lilly, a single mother with whom Gooding's character falls in love. The film received mixed reviews from critics but grossed $30 million in the U.S. Beyoncé released " Fighting Temptation" as the lead single from the film's soundtrack album, with Missy Elliott, MC Lyte, and Free which was also used to promote the film. Another of Beyoncé's contributions to the soundtrack, "Summertime", fared better on the U.S. charts.

2003–2005: ''Dangerously in Love'' and ''Destiny Fulfilled''

Beyoncé's first solo recording was a feature on Jay-Z's song '03 Bonnie & Clyde" that was released in October 2002, peaking at number four on the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. On June 14, 2003, Beyoncé premiered songs from her first solo album '' Dangerously in Love'' during her first solo concert and the pay-per-view television special, "Ford Presents Beyoncé Knowles, Friends & Family, Live From Ford's 100th Anniversary Celebration in Dearborn, Michigan". The album was released on June 24, 2003, after Michelle Williams and Kelly Rowland had released their solo efforts. The album sold 317,000 copies in its first week, debuted atop the ''Billboard'' 200, and has since sold 11 million copies worldwide. The album's lead single, "Crazy in Love", featuring Jay-Z, became Beyoncé's first number-one single as a solo artist in the US. The single " Baby Boy" also reached number one, and singles, " Me, Myself and I" and " Naughty Girl", both reached the top-five. The album earned Beyoncé a then record-tying five awards at the 46th Annual Grammy Awards; Best Contemporary R&B Album, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "Dangerously in Love 2", Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration for "Crazy in Love", and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for " The Closer I Get to You" with Luther Vandross. During the ceremony, she performed with Prince.

In November 2003, she embarked on the Dangerously in Love Tour in Europe and later toured alongside Missy Elliott and Alicia Keys for the Verizon Ladies First Tour in North America. On February 1, 2004, Beyoncé performed the American national anthem at Super Bowl XXXVIII, at the Reliant Stadium in Houston, Texas. After the release of ''Dangerously in Love'', Beyoncé had planned to produce a follow-up album using several of the left-over tracks. However, this was put on hold so she could concentrate on recording '' Destiny Fulfilled'', the final studio album by Destiny's Child. Released on November 15, 2004, in the US and peaking at number two on the ''Billboard'' 200, ''Destiny Fulfilled'' included the singles " Lose My Breath" and "Soldier", which reached the top five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. Destiny's Child embarked on a worldwide concert tour, Destiny Fulfilled... and Lovin' It sponsored by McDonald's Corporation, and performed hits such as " No, No, No", "Survivor", " Say My Name", " Independent Women" and " Lose My Breath". In addition to renditions of the group's recorded material, they also performed songs from each singer's solo careers, most notably numbers from ''Dangerously in Love''. and during the last stop of their European tour, in Barcelona on June 11, 2005, Rowland announced that Destiny's Child would disband following the North American leg of the tour. The group released their first compilation album '' Number 1's'' on October 25, 2005, in the US and accepted a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in March 2006. The group has sold 60 million records worldwide.

2006–2007: ''B'Day'' and ''Dreamgirls''

Beyoncé's second solo album '' B'Day'' was released on September 4, 2006, in the US, to coincide with her twenty-fifth birthday. It sold 541,000 copies in its first week and debuted atop the ''Billboard'' 200, becoming Beyoncé's second consecutive number-one album in the United States. The album's lead single " Déjà Vu", featuring Jay-Z, reached the top five on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. The second international single " Irreplaceable" was a commercial success worldwide, reaching number one in Australia, Hungary, Ireland, New Zealand and the United States. ''B'Day'' also produced three other singles; " Ring the Alarm", " Get Me Bodied", and " Green Light" (released in the United Kingdom only).

At the 49th Annual Grammy Awards (2007), ''B'Day'' was nominated for five Grammy Awards, including Best Contemporary R&B Album, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for " Ring the Alarm" and Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration"for "Déjà Vu"; the Freemasons club mix of "Déjà Vu" without the rap was put forward in the Best Remixed Recording, Non-Classical category. ''B'Day'' won the award for Best Contemporary R&B Album. The following year, ''B'Day'' received two nominations – for Record of the Year for " Irreplaceable" and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for " Beautiful Liar" (with Shakira), also receiving a nomination for Best Compilation Soundtrack Album for Motion Pictures, Television or Other Visual Media for her appearance on '' Dreamgirls: Music from the Motion Picture'' (2006).

Her first acting role of 2006 was in the comedy film '' The Pink Panther'' starring opposite Steve Martin, grossing $158.8 million at the box office worldwide. Her second film '' Dreamgirls'', the film version of the 1981 Broadway musical loosely based on The Supremes, received acclaim from critics and grossed $154 million internationally. In it, she starred opposite Jennifer Hudson, Jamie Foxx, and Eddie Murphy playing a pop singer based on Diana Ross. To promote the film, Beyoncé released " Listen" as the lead single from the soundtrack album. In April 2007, Beyoncé embarked on The Beyoncé Experience, her first worldwide concert tour, visiting 97 venues and grossed over $24 million. Beyoncé conducted pre-concert food donation drives during six major stops in conjunction with her pastor at St. John's and America's Second Harvest. At the same time, ''B'Day'' was re-released with five additional songs, including her duet with Shakira " Beautiful Liar".

2008–2010: ''I Am... Sasha Fierce''

''I Am... Sasha Fierce'' was released on November 18, 2008, in the United States. The album formally introduces Beyoncé's alter ego Sasha Fierce, conceived during the making of her 2003 single "Crazy in Love". It was met with generally mediocre reviews from critics, but sold 482,000 copies in its first week, debuting atop the ''Billboard'' 200, and giving Beyoncé her third consecutive number-one album in the US. The album featured the number-one song " Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)" and the top-five songs " If I Were a Boy" and "Halo". Achieving the accomplishment of becoming her longest-running Hot 100 single in her career, "Halos success in the U.S. helped Beyoncé attain more top-ten singles on the list than any other woman during the 2000s. It also included the successful "Sweet Dreams", and singles " Diva", "Ego", " Broken-Hearted Girl" and " Video Phone". The music video for "Single Ladies" has been parodied and imitated around the world, spawning the "first major dance craze" of the Internet age according to the ''Toronto Star''. The video has won several awards, including Best Video at the 2009 MTV Europe Music Awards, the 2009 Scottish MOBO Awards, and the 2009 BET Awards. At the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards, the video was nominated for nine awards, ultimately winning three including Video of the Year. Its failure to win the Best Female Video category, which went to American singer-songwriter Taylor Swift's " You Belong with Me", led to Kanye West interrupting the ceremony and Beyoncé improvising a re-presentation of Swift's award during her own acceptance speech. In March 2009, Beyoncé embarked on the I Am... World Tour, her second headlining worldwide concert tour, consisting of 108 shows, grossing $119.5 million.

Beyoncé further expanded her acting career, starring as blues singer Etta James in the 2008 musical biopic '' Cadillac Records''. Her performance in the film received praise from critics, and she garnered several nominations for her portrayal of James, including a Satellite Award nomination for Best Supporting Actress, and a NAACP Image Award nomination for Outstanding Supporting Actress. Beyoncé donated her entire salary from the film to Phoenix House, an organization of rehabilitation centers for heroin addicts around the country. On January 20, 2009, Beyoncé performed James' " At Last" at First Couple Barack and Michelle Obama's first inaugural ball. Beyoncé starred opposite Ali Larter and Idris Elba in the thriller, '' Obsessed''. She played Sharon Charles, a mother and wife whose family is threatened by her husband's stalker. Although the film received negative reviews from critics, the movie did well at the U.S. box office, grossing $68 million – $60 million more than ''Cadillac Records'' – on a budget of $20 million. The fight scene finale between Sharon and the character played by Ali Larter also won the 2010 MTV Movie Award for Best Fight.

At the 52nd Annual Grammy Awards, Beyoncé received ten nominations, including Album of the Year for ''I Am... Sasha Fierce'', Record of the Year for "Halo", and Song of the Year for "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", among others. She tied with Lauryn Hill for most Grammy nominations in a single year by a female artist. Beyoncé went on to win six of those nominations, breaking a record she previously tied in 2004 for the most Grammy awards won in a single night by a female artist with six. In 2010, Beyoncé was featured on Lady Gaga's single "Telephone" and appeared in its music video. The song topped the U.S. Pop Songs chart, becoming the sixth number-one for both Beyoncé and Gaga, tying them with Mariah Carey for most number-ones since the Nielsen Top 40 airplay chart launched in 1992. "Telephone" received a Grammy Award nomination for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.

Beyoncé announced a hiatus from her music career in January 2010, heeding her mother's advice, "to live life, to be inspired by things again". During the break she and her father parted ways as business partners. Beyoncé's musical break lasted nine months and saw her visit multiple European cities, the Great Wall of China, the Egyptian pyramids, Australia, English music festivals and various museums and ballet performances.

2011–2013: ''4'' and Super Bowl XLVII halftime show

On June 26, 2011, she became the first solo female artist to headline the main Pyramid stage at the 2011 Glastonbury Festival in over twenty years. Her fourth studio album '' 4'' was released two days later in the US. ''4'' sold 310,000 copies in its first week and debuted atop the ''Billboard'' 200 chart, giving Beyoncé her fourth consecutive number-one album in the US. The album was preceded by two of its singles " Run the World (Girls)" and "Best Thing I Never Had". The fourth single " Love on Top" spent seven consecutive weeks at number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart, while peaking at number 20 on the ''Billboard'' Hot 100, the highest peak from the album. ''4'' also produced four other singles; " Party", " Countdown", " I Care" and " End of Time". "Eat, Play, Love", a cover story written by Beyoncé for '' Essence'' that detailed her 2010 career break, won her a writing award from the New York Association of Black Journalists. In late 2011, she took the stage at New York's Roseland Ballroom for four nights of special performances: the 4 Intimate Nights with Beyoncé concerts saw the performance of her ''4'' album to a standing room only. On August 1, 2011, the album was certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), having shipped 1 million copies to retail stores. By December 2015, it reached sales of 1.5 million copies in the US. The album reached one billion Spotify streams on February 5, 2018, making Beyoncé the first female artist to have three of their albums surpass one billion streams on the platform.

In June 2012, she performed for four nights at Revel Atlantic City's Ovation Hall to celebrate the resort's opening, her first performances since giving birth to her daughter.

In January 2013, Destiny's Child released '' Love Songs'', a compilation album of the romance-themed songs from their previous albums and a newly recorded track, "Nuclear". Beyoncé performed the American national anthem singing along with a pre-recorded track at President Obama's second inauguration in Washington, D.C. The following month, Beyoncé performed at the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show, held at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome in New Orleans