Whether she’s going by Sasha Fierce or just plain old Beyonce, Ms Knowles’ stock in trade is the same; killer tunes delivered with sass, style and a side order of bootyliciousness. A global superstar thanks to the mega-successful Destiny’s Child, Beyonce’s solo career has cemented her as one of pop’s leading lights, and with husband Jay-Z, one half of music’s most enduring power couples.
Beyonce’s first taste of the limelight came after winning a school talent show, singing John Lennon’s Imagine. A spell in school and church choirs followed, as well as a period in short-lived girl group Girl’s Tyme, but her father Matthew, seeing the raw potential in his daughter, rounded up Beyonce and her Girl’s Tyme bandmates, made them rehearse for months, and changed their name to Destiny’s Child.
The practise paid off when the group’s self-titled debut album spawned chart hit No, No, No, but the girls made the big time with their multi-platinum second album, The Writing’s On The Wall, then the equally-successful Survivor. Members came and went, but Beyonce remained the focus and lead singer of the group, and was widely expected to make her own way as a solo star after Destiny’s Child announced a hiatus in 2002.
And after her big-screen debut as Foxxy Cleopatra in the third Austin Powers film, Beyonce didn’t disappoint. Crazy In Love was the summer smash of 2003, Baby Boy a solid follow-up, and their parent album Dangerously In Love sold millions. A record-tying five Grammies sealed her triumph the following year. During this time, rumours flew that she was dating Crazy In Love co-star Jay-Z, and although keen to keep their relationship out of the public eye, the pair made it official in 2008, with a wedding in New York.
Before her rapper boyfriend put a ring on it, though, Destiny’s Child made a comeback, and Beyonce garnered further acclaim for her role in musical film
