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Celestine Ann "Tina" Knowles (born Celestine Ann Beyoncé; January 4, 1954) is a Louisiana Creole-American fashion designer, businesswoman and hairdresser. She is Beyoncé's mother.

Tina has been involved in Beyoncé's career since the beginning. She designed matching outfits for Destiny's Child and has been part of Beyoncé's team for styling. In 2005, Tina and Beyoncé introduced House of Deréon, a fashion line honoring Tina's mother and Beyoncé's grandmother, Agnèz Deréon. It was unofficially discontinued in 2012. In 2024, Tina and Beyoncé launched Cécred, a haircare brand. Tina serves as the brand's vice chairperson.

Early life[]

Celestine Ann Beyoncé was born in Galveston, Texas, the last of seven siblings. Her mother, Agnéz Beyincé (née Deréon), was a seamstress. Her father, Lumis Albert Beyincé, was a longshoreman. Due to a clerical error on her birth certificate, she spells her surname (Beyonce) one letter different than other members of her family. She is of Louisiana Creole heritage. Knowles was raised Catholic and attended Catholic school. Her family's roots are from Boutte, Louisiana. She is a descendant of Acadian leader Joseph Broussard and French military officer Jean-Vincent d'Abbadie de Saint-Castin. While in high school, Knowles was a part of a singing group called the Veltones, inspired by The Supremes.

Personal life[]

On January 5, 1980, she married Mathew Knowles, a Xerox salesman. The pair share two children, Beyoncé (born 1981) and Solange (born 1986). She filed for divorce from Mathew in November 2009, dropped the matter in 2010, then refiled in August 2011. She stated "discord or conflict of personalities" that prevented them from "reasonable expectation of reconciliation" as the reason for the divorce. The divorce was finalized in November 2011.

In the summer of 2013, she started dating actor Richard Lawson. Prior to dating, Knowles had been friends with Lawson for more than 30 years. They initially met through her friendship with his late sister. In a 2018 interview, Lawson stated that he had "always admired her from afar and up close too." The couple were married in Newport Beach, California on April 12, 2015. Knowles filed for divorce from Lawson in July 2023, citing irreconcilable differences.

Alongside Beyoncé and Solange, Tina often refers to Kelly Rowland as her daughter, as Rowland moved in with the Knowles family when she was 11. In addition to her grandchildren through daughters Beyoncé and Solange, she also considers herself a grandmother to Kelly's two children.

Career[]

She began her career at the age of 19 when she moved to California to work as a makeup artist for Shiseido Cosmetics. However, she returned home when her parents fell ill. Knowles then worked as a dance choreographer for University of Alabama at Birmingham and later a beautician in Birmingham, Alabama. In 1990, she opened Headliners, a 12-seat hair salon located in Houston, Texas. The salon went on to become one of the most famous hair businesses in Houston. Knowles's rise to prominence came as costume designer for Destiny's Child. In the early days of the group's career, she created outfits that the members wore on-stage and to events "out of necessity" because money was limited. She also styled the girls' hair, and they practiced their routines at her shop.

In 2004, Knowles launched the clothing line House of Deréon alongside Beyoncé, naming it after her mother Agnes Deréon. On November 22, 2010, Knowles appeared with Beyoncé on The View to promote her clothing line called "Miss Tina by Tina Knowles". In 2010, she expanded the line to Walmart after it was previously being sold on the Home Shopping Network.

As a fashion designer, Knowles has been featured in publications such as Vogue, Cosmopolitan, Harper’s Bazaar, L'Officiel, InStyle, and Sports Illustrated. She has also designed costumes for a number of films including Dreamgirls, The Pink Panther, Austin Powers in Goldmember, Obsessed, and Cadillac Records.

In October 2024, Knowles announced her upcoming memoir, Matriarch, due to be published in April 2025.

Gallery[]

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