Evolution of Beyoncé

From “Say My Name” to “Break My Soul,” and from Dangerously in Love to Renaissance, Beyoncé has already cemented herself as one of the best artists, performers and singers in music history

Because of her voice and unique style, Beyoncé has obtained one of the most loyal fanbases of any modern-day celebrity. They call themselves the Beyhive. Like the bee hive of a real Queen bee, they will come for you if try making the smallest infraction, regarding their Queen Bey. Here’s how they came to love her. This is the evolution of Beyoncé.

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Born in Houston

Beyoncé Giselle Knowles-Carter was born on Sept. 4, 1981, in Houston, Texas to Mathew Knowles and Tina Lawson. She has a younger sister, Solange, who was also a backup dancer for Destiny’s Child and went on to become a successful singer herself.

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Girl’s Tyme

Star Search Girls Tyme

Before Destiny’s Child, there was Girl’s Tyme, a girl group created in 1990 along with founding members Beyoncé and LaTavia Roberson. Kelly Rowland joined the group two years later in 1992, along with Támar Davis and sisters Nikki and Nina Taylor. A year later, the Davis and the Taylor sisters were cut from the group and LeToya Luckett joined the team. Up until 1998, the group changed its name multiple times to Somethin’ Fresh, Cliché, The Dolls, and Destiny before finally landing on Destiny’s Child.

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Destiny’s Child

Photo: David McNew / Staff (Getty Images)

When the group’s first album dropped in 1998, the members of the group were Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, LaTavia Roberson and LeToya Luckett. In 2000, Roberson and Luckett left the group and were replaced by Farrah Franklin and Michelle Williams. Franklin left the group after only six months. It ended up working out for the best because the trio of Beyoncé, Rowland and Williams became the most popular iteration of the group. Their last album, Destiny Fulfilled, was released in 2004.

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Austin Powers in Goldmember

In 2003, Beyoncé made her film debut in the movie Austin Powers in Goldmember, where she played the love interest. Her catchphrase was “I’m a whole lotta woman.”

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“‘03 Bonnie & Clyde”

JAY-Z - ‘03 Bonnie & Clyde ft. Beyoncé Knowles

Appearing on Jay-Z’s 2002 single “‘03 Bonnie & Clyde,” this collab was Beyoncé’s first solo appearance since Destiny’s Child broke up. It also signaled that the two were dating, which ended up being true. They married in 2008.

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Dangerously in Love

Beyoncé - Crazy In Love ft. JAY Z

Queen Bey’s first solo album was an R&B hit when it was released in 2003. It included the popular single “Crazy in Love” which featured her boyfriend Jay-Z. He was also featured on “That’s How You Like It.”

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B’Day

In 2006, her sophomore solo album B’Day was released on the same day as her 25th birthday. The album was wildly popular and included hit singles “DéJa Vu,” “Irreplaceable,” and “Ring the Alarm.”

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Dreamgirls

Her most popular acting role was arguably in the 2006 movie Dreamgirls, which was a film version of the 1981 Broadway musical of the same name. It was loosely based on The Supremes and Beyoncé played Deena Jones, who was based on Diana Ross. Her co-star, Jennifer Hudson, won an Academy Award for best-supporting actress because of her performance.

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I Am… Sasha Fierce

In 2008, Beyoncé’s third album formally introduced her alter ego, Sasha Fierce. The album includes some of Queen Bey’s most popular songs ever such as “Single Ladies,” “If I Were a Boy,” and “Halo.”

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2009 MTV Video Music Awards

At the 2009 MTV Video Music Awards Awards, everything was going smoothly until Kanye uttered the words, “Beyoncé had one of the best videos of all time!” Leaving Bey in an awkward position. I mean, he’s not wrong “Single Ladies” is one of the most iconic videos of all time. Beyoncé later let Taylor Swift finish her speech after she was cut off by West.

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Beyoncé - Love On Top (Official Video)

Beyoncé came back with a simple name for her fourth album in 2011, but like many of her other releases, it was also a hit and included popular singles “Love On Top,” “Party” and “Run the World (Girls).”

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Pregnancy

beyonce love on top mtv vma 2011

The Houston singer performed “Love on Top ‘’ at the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards and to close out the show Beyoncé revealed her baby bump, which ended up being her first daughter Blu Ivy Carter.

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Super Bowl XLVII halftime show

Like almost every famous pop star of a generation, Beyoncé performed at the halftime show of Super Bowl XLVII where she also made a surprise appearance with Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams to reunite Destiny’s Child. Her performance was so amazing that the lights went out during the game.

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Beyoncé

Beyoncé - Drunk in Love (Explicit) ft. JAY Z

Don’t forget who started the trend. On December 12, 2013, Beyoncé dropped her self-titled surprise album. That’s right, no promo, no announcement, just an album full of songs. Every song on the album had a music video. Many of the songs went on to be hits, noticeably “Drunk in Love,” “Flawless,” “7/11” and “Partition.”

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Jay-Z Vs. Solange

In a video released by TMZ, you can see Solange, Beyoncé’s sister, just wailing on Jay-Z in an elevator while Bey stands in the corner. The incident occurred right after the Met Gala in 2014 and was also the inspiration for Jay-Z’s 2017 album 4:44, which was the address where the incident occurred.

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Super Bowl 50

Beyoncé was not the headliner for the show, that would be Coldplay. But she stole the show along with Bruno Mars with her Black Panther-inspired dancers. Weirdly, her performance caused some controversy because people weren’t happy with her “Black power” inspired routine. But everyone who appreciates good live performances loved it.

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Lemonade

Beyoncé - Formation (Official Video)

At that Super Bowl halftime show, Beyoncé debuted the song “Formation,” which was the lead single for her 2016 album Lemonade. Along with the album, she released a one-hour film that aired on HBO which corresponded with the music. The album ended up being one of the best of the decade and one of Bey’s best albums to date.

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Twins

Beyoncé announced her second pregnancy on Feb. 1, 2017 on Instagram with an iconic post. It sent fans on social media into a frenzy not only because the pictures were amazing, but because she revealed she was having twins, Rumi and Sir.

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EVERYTHING IS LOVE

THE CARTERS - APESHIT (Official Video)

In collaboration with her husband, Jay-Z, they released the album EVERYTHING IS LOVE under the name, THE CARTERS. The project included many good songs but the track, “APESHIT” was a smash hit.

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Homecoming

Everybody remembers where when Beyoncé performed at Coachella in 2018. It was an incredible performance that was watched by millions across the world. She later released Homecoming, a documentary on Netflix that detailed her preparation for the show and the behind-the-scenes of the performance. She used bands and dancers that attended HBCUs.

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The Lion King

In 2019, Beyoncé voiced the character of Nahla in the remake of The Lion King. She also made an accompanying album along with the movie, The Lion King: The Gift, which featured many prominent singers and artists from Africa.

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Renaissance

Now we’re here. Beyoncé recently released her exceptional dance album, Renaissance which has been taking over social media ever since it was released. Reviews of the album have been sensational and it is set to be one of three “acts” that Queen Bey is set to release.

Evolution of Beyoncé

We take an abbreviated look at Queen Bey’s music career up to this point.

Born in Houston

Born in Houston

Girl’s Tyme

Girl’s Tyme

Destiny’s Child

Destiny’s Child

Austin Powers in Goldmember

Austin Powers in Goldmember

“‘03 Bonnie & Clyde”

“‘03 Bonnie & Clyde”

Dangerously in Love

Dangerously in Love

B’Day

B’Day

Dreamgirls

Dreamgirls

I Am… Sasha Fierce

I Am… Sasha Fierce

2009 MTV Video Music Awards

2009 MTV Video Music Awards

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4

Pregnancy

Pregnancy

Super Bowl XLVII halftime show

Super Bowl XLVII halftime show

Beyoncé

Beyoncé

Jay-Z Vs. Solange

Jay-Z Vs. Solange

Super Bowl 50

Super Bowl 50

Lemonade

Lemonade

Twins

Twins

EVERYTHING IS LOVE

EVERYTHING IS LOVE

Homecoming

Homecoming

The Lion King

The Lion King

Renaissance

Renaissance