Beyoncé Giselle Knowles (IPA pronunciation: [bi.jɔn.ˈseɪ]) (born September 4, 1981) is an American R&B singer, songwriter, record producer, actress, dancer, fashion designer, and model. Knowles rose to fame as the creative force and lead singer of R&B girl group Destiny's Child, the world's best-selling female group of all time.
After a series of commercially successful releases with the group, Knowles released her debut solo album Dangerously in Love in 2003. The album became one of the biggest commercial successes of the year, topping the album charts in the U.S. and the UK. It also spawned the number-one singles "Crazy in Love" and "Baby Boy" and earned Knowles five Grammy Awards in a single night in 2004. Knowles' sophomore album, B’Day, which was released worldwide on September 4, 2006 (her twenty-fifth birthday), continued her success. The album spawned the UK number-one singles "Déjà Vu" and "Beautiful Liar", as well as the worldwide number-one hit "Irreplaceable". The album also earned Knowles her seventh solo Grammy Award (she has won ten in total).
Knowles has contributed to the soundtracks to films in which she has starred, including Dreamgirls (2006), for which she received two Golden Globe Award nominations, one for acting and another for the soul hit "Listen".
