Born September 4, 1981 in Houston, Texas, Beyoncé Knowles has become one of the most widely recognized and highly respected women in pop culture. She established herself as a founding member and front woman of Destiny's Child and later developed into an iconic solo artist.

Destiny's Child formed in Houston, Texas in 1990, when Beyoncé was 9 years old, and went on to become the top-selling female recording group of all-time. With many of the group's hits co-written and co-produced by Beyoncé, Destiny's Child earned 147 RIAA gold, platinum and multi-platinum certifications worldwide and is tied with the Supremes as the female R&B group to have the most albums chart in the Top 5.

In 2001, she became the first African-American woman and the second woman ever to take home the ASCAP Pop Songwriter of the Year Award. Beyoncé toured America for the first time as a solo artist in 2004 in support of her #1 multi-platinum debut solo album, "Dangerously In Love," which earned her five Grammy Awards that year including Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best R&B Song for "Crazy In Love" featuring Jay-Z. With her five-in-one-year Grammy win, Beyoncé tied the record for the most Grammys to be won in a single year by a female artist. She made chart history in 2003 when she became the first artist in 20 years, and the first female recording artist ever, to simultaneously reach #1 in the US and the UK with both her album "Dangerously In Love" and single "Crazy In Love", a feat accomplished by a mere handful of artists including the Beatles, Simon & Garfunkel, Rod Stewart, and Men At Work in 1983 over the years.

On September 4, 2006 (September 5 in the U.S.), Beyoncé released her second solo album "B'DAY" to coincide with her 25th birthday. "B'DAY" closed out 2006 as one of the year's most successful albums, entering the Billboard Top 200 best-selling albums chart at #1 and achieving 2006's highest first week's sales of any female recording act, group or solo.

On February 11, 2007, "B'DAY" won the Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album, resulting in Beyoncé's 10th Grammy win overall and 7th win as a solo artist. In November of that year, the American Music Awards honored Beyoncé with the International Artist Award making her the first woman in AMA history and sixth artist overall to be recognized with the prestigious award. In December of 2007, Beyoncé was nominated for two Grammys: Record of the Year for "Irreplaceable" and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals for "Beautiful Liar," her superstar duet with Shakira. "Beautiful Liar" set the all-time record for the biggest chart jump in the history of the Billboard Hot 100 bulleting upward an unprecedented 91 slots (#94* to #3*) in a single week.

A renaissance woman for the 21st century, Beyoncé remains above all, a passionate and transcendent performer committed to the deep love of music she first discovered as a little girl growing up in Houston, Texas.