• Who Is Beyoncé Knowles?

Beyoncé Knowles first captured the public's eye as the lead vocalist of the R&B group Destiny's Child. She later established a solo career with her debut album Dangerously in Love, becoming one of music's top-selling artists with sold-out tours and a slew of awards. Knowles has also starred in several films, including Dream Girls. She married hip-hop recording artist Jay-Z in 2008 and the couple has three children.

 

• Early Life

Singer and actress Beyoncé Giselle Knowles was born on September 4, 1981, in Houston, Texas. She started singing at an early age, competing in local talent shows, and winning many of these events by impressing audiences with her singing and dancing abilities.

 

• Destiny's Child

Teaming up with her cousin Kelly Rowland and two classmates, Knowles formed an all-female singing group. Her father, Matthew Knowles, served as the band's manager. The group went through some name and line-up changes before landing a record deal in 1997 with Columbia Records. Destiny's Child soon became one of the most popular R&B acts, with the release of their first, self-titled album. Gaining momentum, the group scored its first No. 1 single on the pop charts with "Bills, Bills, Bills," off their second album. The recording also featured another smash hit, "Say My Name."

 

While enjoying her group's success, Knowles began exploring other projects. She made her acting debut in 2001 with a starring role in Carmen: A Hip Hopera. She then co-starred with Mike Myers in the Austin Powers spy parody Goldmember the following year.

 

• Solo Career

On the musical front, Knowles took center stage as a solo artist, releasing her first album, Dangerously in Love, in 2003. The recording became a huge success for her both commercially and critically. It sold millions of copies and won five Grammy Awards. On the album, Knowles worked with a number of different artists, including Missy Elliott, Sean Paul, and Jay-Z. She was rumored to be dating Jay-Z around this time, but the couple did not publicly acknowledge their relationship.

 

Destiny's Child released their last studio album, Destiny Fulfilled, in 2004, and officially broke up the following year.

 

On her own, Knowles continued to enjoy great success. Her second studio album, 2006's B'Day featured such hits as "Irreplaceable" and "Deja Vu." On the big screen, she starred opposite Jennifer Hudson, Jaime Foxx, and Eddie Murphy in Dreamgirls. The film was adapted from the hit Broadway musical of the same name.

 

• Awards, Accolades, and Surprise Album

At the 2010 Grammy Awards, Knowles walked away with six honors — the most wins in a single night by a female artist. Her record was matched two years later by pop/soul artist Adele. In 2010, she also tied the record for most No. 1 hits on Billboard’s Pop Songs chart, which is based on radio airplay. In 2011, she made the Forbes Top 10 list of entertainment's highest-earning women. By 2013, Knowles had won 16 Grammys.

 

Knowles broke records once again on December 13, 2013, with her fifth studio album, self-titled Knowles. The album surprised fans and critics alike, as no promotion for the album had been announced prior to its release. The record, which Knowles called a "visual album," was released exclusively on iTunes, with physical discs available for purchase after December 18. The record-breaking album sold more than 800,000 copies throughout the weekend it was released alone.

 

The collection — which was the fastest-selling album ever distributed by iTunes—also marked Knowles' fifth studio album to debut at No. 1, making her the first woman to reach No. 1 on the Billboard 200 with her first five albums. She released the Platinum Edition of the album in 2014, and the following year won three additional Grammys, including a Best R&B Performance award for "Drunk in Love."

 

• Second Super Bowl and 'Lemonade'

In February 2016, Knowles returned to the Super Bowl stage, once again earning raves for her performance. This time around she appeared with Bruno Mars and Chris Martin of the band Coldplay, highlighting her new single "Formation" and subsequently announcing a world tour. The tune, its video, and accompanying halftime show also garnered a wave of attention for politicized lyrics and imagery touching on everything from Black power to Hurricane Katrina.

 

Just two months later, the hour-long Knowles conceptual film, Lemonade, which presented tracks from the album of the same name released immediately afterward. The cable special showcased the singer reeling from the romantic and sexual betrayal of her partner while acknowledging the strength found in communities of African American women. Tennis star Serena Williams and young actress Quvenzhané Wallis also made appearances in the New Orleans-based project, which was helmed by a variety of directors and featured poetry from Warsan Shire.

 

Lemonade the album was only initially available via Tidal, the online streaming service backed by Knowles' spouse, Jay-Z, and then eventually became available on iTunes and Amazon with its accompanying film. Musical contributors to the project, which quickly garnered acclaim, included Jack White, The Weeknd, James Blake, and Kendrick Lamar. Lemonade debuted at No. 1, making Beyoncé the only artist in history to have all of her first six studio albums reach the top of Billboard's album charts.

 

In February 2017, a pregnant Knowles delivered a surprise performance at the Grammys, singing songs from Lemonade amid a swirling spectacle of lights, holograms, and backup dancers. Although she lost the coveted Album of the Year Grammy to Adele, she did take home two awards, for Best Urban Contemporary Album and Best Music Video.

 

• 'Homecoming,' 'The Lion King' and 'Black is King'

On April 17, 2019, Knowles released a documentary about her Coachella performance, Homecoming, and a surprise companion album which included 40 live tracks.

 

July brought the premiere of The Lion King, which featured Knowles as Nala, the childhood friend turned love interest of the titular character, played by Donald Glover. The singer also curated and produced a companion album for the production, titled The Lion King: The Gift, and released the single "Spirit" around the time of the film's release.

 

In April 2020, Knowles surfaced on a remix of rapper Megan Thee Stallion's "Savage," with proceeds going to coronavirus relief efforts in their shared hometown of Houston.

 

In July 2020, Knowles directed, wrote and executive produced the visual album Black is King, which "reimagines the lessons of The Lion King for today's young king and queens in search of their own crowns."

 

Source: Biography