Beyoncé Giselle Knowles
Early life and career beginnings
Knowles was born in Houston, Texas, the daughter of Mathew Knowles, a professional record manager, and Tina Knowles (née Beyincé), a costume designer and hair stylist. Knowles' father is African American. Her mother, aLouisiana Creole, has African, French, Native American, and Irish ancestry; she is a descendant of Acadian leaderJoseph Broussard. Knowles was baptized after her mother's maiden name, as a tribute to her mother.She is the elder sister of Solange Knowles, a singer, songwriter and actress.
Knowles was educated at St. Mary's Elementary School in Texas, where she enrolled in dance classes, including ballet and jazz. Her talent in singing was discovered when her dance instructor began humming a song and she finished it, hitting the high-pitched notes. Knowles' interest in music and performing began after participating in a school talent show. She sang John Lennon's "Imagine" and won the competition. At age seven, Knowles started gaining attention from the press, having been mentioned in the Houston Chronicle as a nominee for the local performing arts award The Sammy. In the fall of 1990, Knowles enrolled in Parker Elementary School, a music magnet school in Houston, where she would perform on-stage with the school's choir. She also attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts in Houston and later went to Alief Elsik High School, located in the Houston suburban munincipality, Alief. Knowles was a member of the choir at St. John's United Methodist Church for two years, performing as a soloist.
At the age of eight, Knowles met LaTavia Roberson while in an audition for an all-girl entertainment group.They, along with Knowles' childhood friend Kelly Rowland, were placed into a group that performed rapping and dancing. Originally named Girl's Tyme, they were eventually cut down to six members West coast R&B producer Arne Frager flew into Houston to see them. He eventually brought them to his studio, The Plant Recording Studios, in Northern California, with Knowles' vocals being featured. As part of efforts to sign Girl's Tyme to a major label record deal, Frager's strategy was to début them inStar Search, the biggest talent show on national TV at the time. Girl's Tyme participated in the competition but lost it because the song they performed was not good, Knowles herself admitted. Knowles had her first "professional setback" after that defeat but regained confidence after learning that pop stars Britney Spears and Justin Timberlake had also the same experience.
To manage the group, Knowles' father (who was at that time a medical-equipment salesman) resigned in 1995 from his job. He dedicated his time and established a "boot camp" for their training. The move reduced Knowles' family's income by half and her parents were forced to move into separated apartments. Not long after the inclusion of Rowland, Mathew cut the original lineup to four, with LeToya Luckett joining in 1993. Rehearsing in Tina's Headliners Salon and their backyards, the group continued performing as an opening act for other established R&B girl groups of the time; Tina contributed to the cause by designing their costumes, which she continued to do throughout the Destiny's Child era. With the continued support of Mathew, they auditioned before record labels and were finally signed to Elektra Records. They moved to Atlanta to work on their first recording, only to be cut by the record company in 1995. They returned home to start over again. This eventually put a strain on the family, and Beyoncé's parents separated briefly when she was 14. In 1996, the family reunited, and shortly after, the girls got a contract with Columbia Records.
Award
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter (née Beyoncé Giselle Knowles; September 4, 1981), known mononymously as Beyoncé is an American singer, songwriter, record producer and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she enrolled in various performing arts schools and was first exposed to singing and dancing competitions as a child. Knowles rose to fame in the late 1990s as the lead singer of the R&B girl group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time.
During the hiatus of Destiny's Child, Knowles released her debut solo album, Dangerously in Love, in 2003, which spawned two number-one singles on the Billboard Hot 100—"Crazy in Love" and "Baby Boy"—and became one of the most successful albums of that year, earning her a then record-tying five Grammy Awards. Following the disbandment of Destiny's Child in 2005, Knowles released her second solo album, B'Day, in 2006, which spawned the top 10 singles "Déjà Vu", "Irreplaceable" and "Beautiful Liar". Her third solo album I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008), spawned the hit singles "If I Were a Boy", "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", "Halo" and "Sweet Dreams". The album helped Knowles earn six Grammys in 2010, breaking the record for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one night. Knowles' fourth solo album, (2011), became her fourth consecutive number one album on the Billboard 200 as a solo artist. This made her the third artist in history to have her first four studio albums debut atop the chart.
Apart from her work in music, Knowles has also ventured into acting and designing clothes and perfumes. She made her acting debut in the musical film Carmen: A Hip Hopera (2001), prior to appearing in major films, including Austin Powers in Goldmember (2002), Dreamgirls (2006), which earned her two Golden Globenominations, Cadillac Records (2008) and Obsessed (2009). In 2005, Knowles and her mother introduced their family's fashion line, House of Deréon, and in 2010, she released her first perfume, Heat. She has endorsed brands including, L'Oréal, Pepsi, Tommy Hilfiger, Nintendo and Vizio. In 2010, Knowles was ranked first onForbes list of the "100 Most Powerful and Influential Musicians in the World", and second on its list of the "100 Most Powerful and Influential Celebrities in the World". In 2012, she was named "World's Most Beautiful Woman" by People magazine.
Knowles' work has earned her numerous awards and accolades, including 16 Grammy Awards, 11 MTV Video Music Awards, four American Music Awards, a Billboard Millennium Award, and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame with Destiny's Child. In 2009, Billboard named her the Top Radio Songs Artist of the 2000s decade, and ranked her as the 4th overall Artist of the Decade (and as the First Female Artist of that period). The Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), also recognized Knowles as the Top Certified Artist of the 2000s.[8][9] In the US, Knowles has sold over 11.2 million albums as of May 2010, and more than 30.4 million digital singles as of January 2012. She has sold 75 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. Knowles appeared on VH1's 2010 list of the "100 Greatest Artists of All Time", and ranked third on their "100 Greatest Women in Music" list in 2012. In April 2008, Knowles married American rapper Jay-Z, and gave birth to their first child, Blue Ivy Carter, in January 2012.
