Beyonce, the #97 Artist of the Rock Era

"Beyoncé  is pure gold."

"She is one of the best singers in the world."

"Her songs just instantly make me feel better. She's amazing."

"Her voice is sublime."

"One of the best female and best overall artists of all-time.  That voice is pure magic."

"She's flawless."

"She makes songs that will live forever." (Bono)

"She's one of the best singers ever."

"Beyoncé  is such a great performer.  She's an inspiration."

"Amazing voice...Great."



Like Diana Ross before her, she left a top-flight girl group to strike it big on her own.  From her first solo album, she's been influential, with star power that goes across the globe, a strong woman with an outstanding voice who is one of the best live performers.

Beyoncé  Knowles was born in Houston, Texas and, while attending St. Mary's Montessori School, she took dance lessons.  She sang "Imagine" by John Lennon to win a school talent show at the age of seven.   

Beyoncé  performed in the school's choir at Parker Elementary School before going to the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts and later Alief Elsik High School.   Beyoncé  also was a soloist at St. John's United Methodist Church for two years.

When she was nine,  Beyoncé  and friend Kelly Rowland met LaTavia Roberson and with three other girls formed the group Girl's Tyme.  Knowles' father Mathew became manager of the group and after cutting it to four members, the group landed a recording contract and eventually changed their name to Destiny's Child.  

As lead singer of Destiny's Child, The #97 Artist of the Rock Era* received tremendous exposure and helped the group sell over 60 million records worldwide.  When Destiny's Child went on hiatus in 2002, Beyoncé recorded her debut solo album, Dangerously in Love.  "Crazy In Love" (with Jay-Z), promptly went to #1 in the U.S., the U.K., and Ireland and #2 in Canada, Australia, New Zealand and the Netherlands, was nominated for Record of the Year at the Grammy Awards and went Gold.

 

The album debuted at #1 and has now sold over 11 million albums.  "Baby Boy", another Gold record, was a Top 10 smash all over the world, including topping the U.S. chart and reaching #2 in the U.K.

  

"Me, Myself and I" peaked at #4.

 "Naughty Girl" hit #2 in Canada and #3 in the United States and also sold over one million copies.

Beyoncé won a then record-tying five Grammy Awards:  Best R&B Album, Best Contemporary R&B Album, Best R&B Song and Best Rap/Sung Collaboration (for "Crazy In Love"), Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "Dangerously In Love 2" and Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals for "The Closer I Get To You" with Luther Vandross. 

She won Billboard Music Awards for Hot 100 Female Artist, New Female Artist, Best New R&B Artist and Hot 100 Award for Most Weeks at #1 (for "Crazy In Love") and was nominated for Female Artist of the Year and Female R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.  Beyonce was also nominated for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist, Favorite Soul/R&B Album and Fan's Choice Award at the American Music awards.  

 

Beyonce and Jay-Z released "03 Bonnie & Clyde" in 2002, a #1 hit in Switzerland, #2 in the U.K. and Australia, and #4 in the U.S. and New Zealand and a Gold record.

Beyoncé also starred in the movie Austin Powers in Goldmember, which grossed $73 million.  In 2003, Beyoncé starred in the movie The Fighting Temptations.

Beyoncé toured to support the album and sang the U.S. national anthem at the Super Bowl in 2004 and earned another American Music Award nomination for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist.

 

Beyoncé teamed up with Destiny's Child for their final studio album Destiny Fulfilled.  After the group broke up in 2005, Beyoncé released the album B'Day, which also debuted at #1.  "Deja Vu" went to #1 in the U.K. and #4 in the United States.

Beyonce scored an American Music Award nomination for Artist of the Year.  "Irreplaceable" was one of the biggest hits of the year, topping charts in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand and Australia and selling four million copies.

Beyonce released the compilation #1's in 2005, featuring "Check On It", a #1 hit in the U.S. and New Zealand and a Top 10 hit virtually everywhere in the world.  

After Hurricane Katrina ravaged the South in 2005, Beyonce founded the Survivor Foundation with Kelly Rowland of Destiny's Child to provide transitional housing for victims in Houston, Texas.  Beyoncé contributed $250,000 to the foundation, which also provided relief after Hurricane Ike three years later.

Beyoncé starred in the remake of The Pink Panther in 2006 with Steve Martin.  Her next movie, Dreamgirls, grossed over $154 million around the world.

 

In 2007, Beyonce won International Artist Award at the American Music Awards and was nominated for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist, Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist, and the Dreamgirls was nominated for Favorite Soundtrack.  She was nominated for four Billboard Music Awards including Artist of the Year, Female Artist of the Year and Female R&B/Hip-Hop Artist of the Year.  "Beautiful Liar", with Shakira, gave Beyonce another hit from B'Day, a #1 smash in every major country in the world except the U.S., Canada, and Australia, where it went Top Five and sold over two million copies.

Beyoncé's 2007 tour in which she visited 97 cities grossed over $24 million.  She conducted pre-concert food donation drives in association with St. John's Church and America's Second Harvest.

Beyonce received the Legend Award at the World Music Awards.

 

In 2008, Beyoncé married Jay-Z.  Later in the year, she released the album I Am...Sasha Fierce.  Beyoncé described Sasha Fierce as her alter ego, and the album also debuted at #1.  The lead single, "If I Were A Boy", reached #1 in the U.K. and the Netherlands, #2 in New Zealand and Ireland, #3 in the U.S., Australia, Germany, and Switzerland, #4 in Canada and #5 in France and sold four million.

 

The single "Single Ladies (Put A Ring On It)" soared to #1 in the United States, was a Top 10 hit virtually everywhere, and has sold over eight million units.

"Halo" was a Top 10 hit in every major country, reaching #2 in New Zealand, #4 in the U.K. and #5 in the U.S. and selling over four million copies.

"Single Ladies" was nominated for nine awards including Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards.  "Sweet Dreams" topped the New Zealand chart, reached #2 in Australia, #5 in the U.K. and #10 in the United States and went Platinum.

Beyonce went on another worldwide tour which grossed $119.5 million.  She also played the role of Etta James in the musical Cadillac Records.  In January of 2009, Beyonce sang James' famous "At Last" at an inaugural ball for U.S. President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle.

Beyonce also starred in the movie Obsessed.  To maintain her inspiration, she took a nine-month break from music and also fired her father as business manager.  Beyonce vacationed in Europe and also visited the Egyptian pyramids and the Great Wall of China.

 

Beyonce collaborated with Lady Gaga for the smash "Telephone", #3 in the U.S. and Top Five everywhere in the world, including #1 in both the U.K. and Ireland.  It has now sold over 12 million copies.  

Beyonce received 10 Grammy nominations to tie her with Lauryn Hill for the most nominations in a year, including three big ones--Album of the Year, Record of the Year for "Halo" and Song of the Year for "Single Ladies".  She was also nominated for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for "Telephone".  Beyonce won the American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist and was nominated for Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Album. 

At the end of the decade, Billboard named Beyoncé  as the Top Female Artist of the 2000's and #15 in their list of the Top 50 R&B/Hip-Hop Artists of the Past 25 Years.  Beyonce received the Millennium Award at the Billboard Music Awards.

In 2011, Beyoncé released the album 4, which debuted at #1 on the Album chart.

She captured the American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Artist while being nominated for Favorite Soul/R&B Album and was nominated for Top R&B Artist, the FAN Award for Favorite Artist and the FAN Award for Most Influential Style at the Billboard Music Awards.

In 2012, Beyoncé  gave birth to Blue Ivy.  In 2013, Beyoncé sang the U.S. national anthem at President Obama's second inauguration.  The next month, she performed at halftime of the Super Bowl in New Orleans, Louisiana.

Beyoncé won a Grammy Award for Best Traditional R&B Performance for "Love On Top".  The HBO documentary Life Is But a Dream aired in 2013.

Beyoncé's tour featured 132 dates and was the most successful tour of her career.  She voiced the character of Queen Tara in the animated movie Epic.

 

In 2013, Beyoncé  released her self-titled album, which also debuted at #1, making her the first female in history to debut at #1 with each of her first five studio albums.  "Drunk In Love" (with Jay-Z) rocketed to #2 in the U.S. and #9 in the U.K. and has sold over six million copies.

The album has been certified Platinum and earned Beyonce eight Billboard Music Award nominations, including Top Female Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Billboard 200 Album, Top Touring Artist, Top R&B Artist and Top R&B Album.  Beyoncé  and Jay-Z went on their first co-headlining tour together.  In 2013 and again in 2014, Beyoncé  made the Time 100 list.

In 2014, Beyoncé received the Video Vanguard Award at the MTV Video Music Awards.  Forbes magazine announced that Beyoncé  was the top-earning female performer for the second year in a row, with earnings topping $115 million.

Beyoncé  was nominated for six Grammy Awards (including Album of the Year), taking home trophies for Best R&B Song and Best R&B Performance for "Drunk In Love" and Best Surround Sound Album.  She scored American Music Awards for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Album and was nominated for Artist of the Year.

In 2016, Beyonce released the single "Formation", and performed the song at halftime of the Super Bowl. "Formation" landed at #10 and sold over two million copies.  The album Lemonade made Beyoncé the first act in history to debut at #1 with each of her first six solo studio albums.

Lemonade has sold over three million copies in the U.S. and four million worldwide and was nominated for nine Grammy Awards, including Album of the Year and Record and Song of the Year for "Formation", and won Best Urban Contemporary Album and Best Music Video (for "Formation").  Beyonce won Billboard Music Awards for Top Female Artist, Top Touring Artist, Top R&B Artist, Top R&B Album, and Top R&B Tour and was nominated for Top Artist, Top Billboard 200 Artist, Top Billboard 200 Album, and Top Female R&B Artist. 

Beyonce also scored 11 nominations at the MTV Video Music Awards, with eight wins include Video of the Year for "Formation".  The eight awards gave Beyonce the most in history with 24, topping Madonna's 20.  She then went on tour in North American and Europe, with her shows winning Tour of the Year at the American Music Awards.  Beyonce also received AMA nominations for Favorite Soul R&B/Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Album.

Beyonce and rising star Ed Sheeran collaborated for the song "Perfect Duet" in 2017, which went to #1 and helped Beyonce win the American Music Award for Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist.

 

 She also teamed up with J. Balvin and Willy William for "Mi Gente", which jumped to #1 in the Netherlands, #2 in Canada, and #3 in the U.S.

In 2018, Beyonce headlined the Coachella Music Festival, with her performance on April 14 attended by 125,000.  Beyonce and Jay-Z went on a world tour later in the year to promote their album Everything Is Love, which debuted at #2.  The pair were nominated for Tour of the Year at the American Music Awards and won Top R&B Tour and were nominated for Top Touring Artist at the Billboard Music Awards.

The documentary Homecoming, which featured Beyonce's performances at Coachella, was released by Netflix in 2019, with Homecoming:  The Live Album released at the same time.

Beyonce lent her voice to the remake of The Lion King in 2019 and recorded a cover of Elton John's classic "Can You Feel The Love Tonight" for the movie.  She once again won Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist at the AMA's.

 

In 2020, Beyonce joined Megan Thee Stallion for the #1 hit "Savage Remix", nominated for Collaboration of the Year at the American Music Awards.

Beyoncé has won 20 Grammy Awards, including her work with Destiny's Child, and is the most-nominated female performer in history with 52 nominations.  She has sold over 16 million albums in the U.S. alone and over 36 worldwide and scored 19 career hits, with 7 going to #1.