Destiny's Child Biography / Pictures
Destiny's Child is a
Biography
Destiny's Child was formed in Houston, Texas, in 1990, when original members
Beyoncé Knowles and LaTavia Roberson were just nine years old; Knowles' father,
Matthew, set about developing an act based on their singing and rapping, under
the name Girls Tyme. Knowles's met Kelly Rowland after she moved to Texas with
her mother and brother. Kelly later moved in with the Knowles' after her mother
decided to move again. Later Tina Knowles, Beyoncé's mother, took their name
from a passage in the Book of Isaiah. They landed an appearance on Star Search
(as a trio), where they performed a rap song. In 1993, LeToya Luckett joined the
act. The quartet's lineup was finalized (for the time being), and they spent the
next few years working their way up from the Houston club scene, eventually
opening for popular R&B artists like SWV, Dru Hill, and Immature. In 1997,
Destiny's Child was offered a recording contract by Columbia Records.
In 2001, Knowles co-starred with Mekhi Phifer in MTV's remake of Bizet's Carmen,
Carmen: A Hip Hopera. In 2002, Knowles co-starred with Mike Myers in the
box-office blockbuster Austin Powers in Goldmember. She recorded a single for
its soundtrack called "Work It Out", it was a different style for Knowles and
the song flopped, which lead her to scrap most of the 45 songs recorded for her
solo debut.
Beyoncé
This Destiny's Child Biography Page is Copyright © 2004 - 2009 Chuck Ayoub
Destiny's Child's first album, Destiny's ChildThe group made their recording
debut with "Killing Time," which appeared on the soundtrack for the 1997
blockbuster, Men In Black. Destiny's Child released their self-titled debut
album to mixed reviews on February 17, 1998. The album's first single, "No, No,
No" featured two completely different versions of the same song. "No, No, No Pt.
1" and "No, No, No Pt. 2" were both released simultaneously, however, Part 2 was
considered a "remix" version of Part 1. "No, No, No Pt. 2", featuring The Fugees
member Wyclef Jean, quickly climbed to No. 1 on the Billboard R&B chart and No.
3 on the Pop chart. The single sold over 1 million copies. However, follow-up
singles "With Me Pt.1" and "Get On The Bus" failed to reproduce the success of
"No, No, No". Destiny's Child eventually went Platinum after later success.
Expectations were not high for the group's second album, as most industry
critics considered them to be another disposable R&B girl-group with one-hit
wonder status. The LP Destiny's Child eventually sold more than 3 million copies
worldwide.
Destiny's Child's second album, The Writing's on the WallDestiny's Child
re-entered the studio quickly, bringing in a new lineup of producers, including
Kevin "She'kspere" Briggs, Rodney Jerkins, Dwayne Wiggins, Chad Elliot, Daryl
Simmons, and Missy Elliott. Critics were generally positive about the album;
Music critic Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote "The Writing's on the Wall... an
assured step forward for the girl group. Not only are they maturing as
vocalists, they are fortunate to work with such skilled, talented producers...
who all give the quartet rich, varied music upon which to work their charm."
Lead single "Bills, Bills, Bills" became the group's first No. 1 Hot 100 hit
(and second R&B No. 1) in the summer of 1999, and paced by its success, the
accompanying album, The Writing's on the Wall, entered the Billboard 200 at No.6
upon its release on July 27, 1999. The second single, "Bug-a-Boo" hit the Top 40
pop charts, while its music video received heavy rotation on MTV and BET.
The 2000 quartet: (from left to right): Michelle, Beyoncé, Farrah, and Kelly.
Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin joined Destiny's Child after members
LeToya and LaTavia leftBuoyed by the group's breakout success, two of its
original members, LeToya Luckett and LaTavia Roberson, attempted to split with
manager Matthew Knowles, charging that he kept a disproportionate share of the
band's profits, attempted to exert too much control, and unfairly favored his
daughter. While they never intended to leave the group, relations naturally grew
strained, and when the video for "Say My Name" premiered in February 2000, many
fans (not to mention Roberson and Luckett) were surprised to find two new
members -- Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin -- joining Knowles and Rowland.
Infuriated, Roberson and Luckett took legal action in March, suing both Knowles
and their former bandmates for breach of partnership and fiduciary duties. A war
of words followed in the press; meanwhile, Destiny's Child became a pop-cultural
phenomenon. "Say My Name" became the group's biggest single to date and third
No. 1 single. The abrupt membership changes within the group seemed to only
heighten the group's visibility, finally separating them from the endless pack
of teen pop starlets.
In June 2000, the album's fourth single, "Jumpin' Jumpin'" became a Top 5 hit,
however, another departure came from the ever-evolving girl-group. Farrah
Franklin, who had replaced an original member just five months prior, left the
group for various personal reasons. This split was less controversial, while The
Writing's on the Wall would eventually be certified 8x platinum domestically and
sell over 12 million copies worldwide. In the meantime, toward the end of 2000,
Roberson and Luckett dropped the portion of their lawsuit aimed at Rowland and
Knowles in exchange for a settlement, though they continued to pursue action
against Knowles' father; as part of the agreement, both sides were prohibited
from attacking each other publicly.
Now a trio of Beyoncé Knowles, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams, Destiny's
Child were tapped to record the theme song for the film version of Charlie's
Angels; released as a single in October 2000, "Independent Women, Pt. 1" raced
up the charts and spent an astounding 11 consecutive weeks at No.1 (the longest
running of 2000 and by a female group). They quickly began work on a new album
to capitalize on their success. In the meantime, Destiny's Child won 2 Grammy
awards for "Say My Name", including Best R&B Vocal Performance by a Duo or Group
and Best R&B Song. While speaking with MTV.com, Rowland had this to say about
the upcoming album: "I know everybody can relate to this album it's very diverse
and inspiring. The year 2000 was very challenging, and I know that gave Beyoncé
a lot of inspiration to write songs for the album. We cannot wait for everybody
to hear it. It's so empowering for a lot of people who have already heard a
little bit of it."
Destiny's Child's third album, SurvivorBeyoncé had long since emerged as the
group's focal point, and on the third Destiny's Child album, she assumed more
control than ever before, taking a greater hand in co-producing and co-writing
the entire album. "We're excited about the album," Knowles told MTV News shortly
before the album's release. She adds, "...I got a chance to co-write and produce
all of the songs." "And she did an incredible job," the group's Kelly Rowland
added. "But everybody is a part of the music," Knowles said. "Everybody is
singing lead on every song, and it's so great — because now Destiny's Child is
at the point vocally and mentally that it should be at. It's just great to be a
part of this group." Survivor - whose title was reportedly inspired by a DJ's
crack about Destiny's Child members voting one another off the island, much like
the popular CBS reality series Survivor - hit stores in the spring of 2001, and
entered the Billboard 200 at number one, selling over 663,000 copies in its
first week sales (the highest ever for a girl-group.) The first two singles,
"Independent Women Part I" and "Bootylicious", were predictably huge hits, with
the latter becoming the group's fourth No.1 Hot 100 single. An über-melismatic
cover of the Bee Gees' "Emotion" was also successful, becoming a Top 10 pop hit.
Survivor sold well - certified 4x platinum domestically and going on to sell a
total over 10 million worldwide. In the UK, Destiny's Child had two consecutive
hit singles at number one which were "Independent Women Part 1" and "Survivor".
Toward the end of the year, the group released a holiday album, 8 Days of
Christmas, and announced plans for a series of side projects, including solo
albums from all three members (to be staggered over the next year and a half, so
as to avoid competition). In early 2002, a remix compilation titled This Is the
Remix was released to tide fans over.
Michelle Williams
Williams became the first member of Destiny's Child to have a solo project
released. Heart To Yours, a contemporary gospel collection, reached No. 1 on the
Top Gospel Albums chart and sold 200,000 copies in the US. Her second gospel
album, Do You Know reached the No. 2 slot on the Top Christian Album chart and
No. 3 on the Top Gospel Albums chart shortly after its release in January 2004.
Williams also received rave reviews after replacing Toni Braxton in the lead
role of Aida on Broadway in November 2003. To date this album has sold just over
50,000 copies in the US.
Kelly Rowland
In October 2002, Rowland’s solo debut, Simply Deep featured the No.1 Hot 100
smash hit, "Dilemma", a Grammy-winning (Best Rap/Sung Collaboration) duet with
hip-hop superstar Nelly, the debut album did achieve moderate success. With
"Dilemma" Rowland became the first member of Destiny's Child to hit No. 1
outside of the group. Internationally, Kelly was on a roll, hitting the No. 1
slot on the U.K. and several other countries' album charts while peaking in the
U.S. at No. 3 on the Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Album chart and No. 12 on the
Billboard 200. The album has sold over 500,000 copies in the United States and 2
million worldwide. In 2003, Rowland made her feature film debut in the horror
flick "Freddy Vs. Jason".
Beyoncé Knowles
Her breakout solo success has far eclipsed the other two Destiny's Child
members. Her 2003 solo debut, Dangerously In Love, debuted at No. 1 and sold
over four million copies in the United States and eight million worldwide source
. It yielded the No. 1 hits "Crazy In Love" featuring hip hop superstar Jay-Z
(certified gold), and "Baby Boy" featuring Sean Paul. Top 5 songs "Me, Myself
and I" and "Naughty Girl", the latter also certified gold, followed.
Critically, Knowles has been well-received by many, even netting 5 Grammy awards
for Dangerously In Love, a level reached only by a select few others, including
Michael Jackson, Lauryn Hill, Alicia Keys, Santana and Norah Jones.
Knowles is dating rapper Jay-Z, although their much talked about romance remains
a mystery to most. Both Knowles and Jay-Z refuse to comment on the relationship.
In September 2003, Knowles co-starred in her second feature film, The Fighting
Temptations alongside Oscar winner Cuba Gooding Jr. In 2006 she starred
alongside Steve Martin in the movie The Pink Panther.
Destiny's Child's fourth and final studio album, Destiny FulfilledAfter three
years apart, achieving individual success in movies, on Broadway, endorsements
and with solo albums, the three women of Destiny's Child reunited with a new
album, Destiny Fulfilled. A world tour, sponsored by McDonald's, "Destiny
Fulfilled ...and Lovin' It", hit 16 countries and over 75 cities worldwide,
kicking off in Hiroshima, Japan on April 9, 2005, and ending in Vancouver,
Canada; stops included Australia, Europe, and the U.S. and Canada. "Lose My
Breath" the album's first single, produced by Rodney Jerkins, became the group's
ninth Top 10 Hot 100 hit. The album saw the trio shift to a harder, 'urban'
sound and was released in November 2004. The second single, "Soldier" featuring
rappers T.I. and Lil' Wayne quickly entered the Top 10, peaking at No.3 in
February 2005 becoming the groups tenth Top 10 hit. "Lose My Breath" was
certified 2x platinum and "Soldier" was certified platinum by the RIAA. Despite
receiving worldwide mixed reviews, Destiny Fulfilled was certified 3x Platinum
in early 2005 and has sold over 6 million copies worldwide. The album's third
and fourth singles were "Girl" and "Cater 2 U," both of which went Gold by the
RIAA respectively.
Since the albums release in November 2004 Destiny's child has earned 5 Grammy
nominations including: Best R&B Group Vocal Performance (Cater 2 U), Best R&B
Song (Cater 2 U), Best Contemporary R&B album (Destiny Fulfilled), and Best
Rap/Sung Cullaboration (Soldier Featuring T.I. and Lil' Wayne).
During this time, Destiny's Child was named the Best Selling Female Group of All
Time by the World Music Awards.
On June 13, 2005, it was announced the group will disband after their world tour
ends in the fall of 2005. It was decided that the split would occur after the
very last concert in Vancouver, Canada. The group first appeared on MTV's Total
Request Live on June 21, 2005 to officially confirm their split. Their
management decided to document their final tour for a special farewell DVD to be
released February 28, 2006. It must be noted that Beyoncé herself has been
quoted as saying that the breakup of the group is not permanent and she would
not rule out any future Destiny's Child projects.
The group released their greatest hits album, # 1's on October 25, 2005, which
includes three new songs. One of the new songs is titled Stand Up For Love.
Lyrically the song is the anthem for World Children's Day, but relates to
troubled times such as third world poverty, Hurricanes Katrina and Rita, and the
late 2004 tsunami. "Stand Up For Love" was Destiny's Child's last single. Number
1's charted at #6 on the official UK album top 40 with first week sales over
30,000 and #1 on US Billboard 200 Album chart with sales of 113,000.
Mattel released Destiny's Child Barbie Collector Dolls in August 2005. With
Destiny’s Child’s recent breakup announcement, this trio of dolls is expected to
become a major collector's item. In November 2005, Destiny's Child helped
Wal-Mart kick off an intensive holiday campaign with television ads with the
group celebrating the holidays with family and friends. Destiny's Child's last
performance together on television was supposed to be their performance on Jimmy
Kimmel Live, but the group is now set to perform at the 2006 NBA All-Star Game
in Houston. Beyoncé told MTV News, "Every time we go on someone's television
show, they want to be the person to say it's the last show. But we've said a
million times, 'It's not the last show!' Because we're gonna sing together
again, again and again. We love each other and we're friends. It's the last
album, but it's not the last show."
Beyoncé has several individual projects
lined up, including her role in the movie Dreamgirls, as well as music for the
soundtrack of that movie. In the meantime she released a solo #1 single, "Check
On It" as the theme song for the 2006 #1 Pink Panther movie. Pink Panther was
released February 10, 2006, whilst Dreamgirls is due for release December 22
2006. Beyoncé also launched her own clothing line, House of Dereon, with her
mother, Tina Knowles, in November 2005. Destiny's Child modelled some of the
clothing during their 2005 world tour and during the Fashion Rocks concert,
which took place September 9. Beyoncé will begin recording her second solo album
sometime in May 2006 after she finishes shooting Dreamgirls and it is expected
to be released in September 2006, before the album's release she will be
featured on a duet with Pharrell Williams on his debut solo album due for
release in February 2006. Beyoncé won a Grammy Award for Best R&B Group or Duo
Performance with Vocals, with Stevie Wonder for So Amazing.
Kelly
Kelly has some individual TV and music projects lined up. She is to appear in
three upcoming episodes of UPN sitcom Girlfriends in February 2006. Rowland has
a three-episode role in another US sitcom Girlfriends, where she plays the
character of Tammy Hamilton, an ambitious 21 year old who convinces real estate
queen Toni Childs (played by actress Jill Marie Jones) to take her own as an
intern. She is featured on the upcoming new album Illumination by soul greats
Earth, Wind & Fire. Kelly's singing can be heard on their song "This Is How I
Feel" also featuring singer Sleepy Brown. She is also a featured artist on a
song called "Here We Go", which impacted radio in September 2005 eventually
peaking at #8 and #17 on Billboard's R&B and Pop charts respectively.This is the
second single from rapper Trina's new album Glamorest Life, which released in
October 2005. Kelly has already began working on her second album, which is
expected to be released in April 2006. However, lastest reports state that
Rowland's second album will be self-titled due for release on June 13, 2006.
Michelle
Michelle is a spokeperson for The Gap, and she sings her cover of soul legend Al
Green's "Let's Stay Together" in their commercial for Fall 2005. Her cover
version of this song is also featured on the soundtrack to film Roll Bounce. She
is to begin recording the album in January 2006 and is expected to release her
third solo album in mid-2006. Unlike her first two albums, her third may veer
away from Gospel to mainstream R&B. She is to appear in three upcoming episodes
of UPN sitcom Half and Half in February 2006. In August, band-mate Kelly stated
she was aware that Michelle was definitely in talks with Broadway again, so
there may be more to come on the big stage from Michelle.