She took me and my sister, Solange, to our dance classes and recitals, cooked us delicious meals, and brought us to church. My mama worked until she had calluses on her fingers and swollen feet, then she would find time to redecorate houses for her friends and make every one’s prom and wedding dresses. She would tell the women to remember their worth and that they couldn’t work all those hours and not treat themselves every now and then.
#Ally love beyonce single ladies free#
At her salon she worked 13-hour days, managed her staff, styled hair, and gave out free advice to her clients. She shaped my thinking not so much by what she said, but what she did. Tina Knowles was my first example of what a powerful woman is. (I still love a good roller-coaster ride.) And when I wasn’t cleaning up the salon, I was watching my mother become my greatest role model. I helped sweep hair off the floor for tips to pay for my season pass to Six Flags. From 6 to 9 years old, I would sing and put on little shows by myself for the women who wanted a hot press and curl and some good conversation. I also spent some amazing days at Headliners, the hair salon owned and operated by my mother, Tina Knowles. We’d eat fried Snickers, funnel cakes and fried turkey legs the smell was the best mixture of spicy and sweet. It was like the biggest family picnic there was laughter and music everywhere and everyone dressed in their Texas finest. I especially enjoyed watching Frankie Beverly and Maze perform at the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo. My mama begged me to take them off! Memories like these I’ll cherish forever. I had a pair of pink cowboy boots that you’d think were glued to my feet. The collaboration is always smooth and the concept of the rodeo took me back to my days growing up in Houston, Texas. Whenever I work with ESSENCE, it feels like home. She also took on the opportunity to write her first cover story, because, she says, “after doing so many interviews in my career…with no one asking me questions, what would I say?” Here Beyoncé shares her journey with ESSENCE readers exclusively. She spent nine months traveling the world and sorting out her work–play balance. She recently announced that after 15 years of having her career managed by her father, she’s taking the reins herself. Now with a new life filled with its own thunder and applause, and on the eve of her fourth solo studio album, 4, Beyoncé is stepping up to a new kind of power. Yet to really understand Beyoncé, you have to tap into one of her fondest memories - how every year Mama and Papa Knowles would treat their girls to the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo, a spectacle brimming with pageantry and flair. For years the only offstage glimpses we’ve had of BEYONCÉ (who has won 16 Grammy Awards and held six leading film roles) have been paparazzi snapshots of her fabulous life: the yachts, the shopping, the court side seats hugged up with her husband, Jay-Z.