Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter, known simply as Beyoncé ( bee-YON-say; born September 4, 1981), is an American singer, songwriter, dancer, and actress. Born and raised in Houston, Texas, she performed in singing and dancing competitions as a child. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as lead singer of R&B group Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups of all time.
Knowles' debut solo album Dangerously in Love (2003), released during the group's hiatus, established the singer as a viable solo artist worldwide, earning her five Grammy Awards and Billboard number one singles "Crazy in Love" and "Baby Boy." Following the disbandment of Destiny's Child in 2005, Knowles's second solo album B'Day (2006) contained the number one singles "Irreplaceable" and "Beautiful Liar". Her performance in Dreamgirls (2006) earned her two Golden Globe nominations. Her work playing Etta James in the film Cadillac Records (2008) inspired her subsequent album I Am... Sasha Fierce (2008), which in turn spawned hits "If I Were a Boy", "Single Ladies (Put a Ring on It)", "Halo", and "Sweet Dreams". The album also helped Knowles earn six Grammys in 2010, breaking the record for most Grammy Awards won by a female artist in one night. Her fourth album 4 (2011) deviated towards traditional R&B and became her fourth consecutive number one album on the Billboard 200. In January 2012, Knowles gave birth to daughter Blue Ivy Carter, her first child with husband Jay-Z.
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