Anybody who is anybody has heard of Beyoncé Knowles, the world-renowned singer, actress, and dancer who has been popular with her fans for several decades now. However, while currently living in the realms of superstardom, Beyoncé’s life started out just like anybody else, especially with her school life.
Beyoncé attended two high schools since her parents divorced while she was in school. She first attended the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and later attended and then graduated from the Alief Elsik High School.
To find out everything you need to know when it comes to Beyoncé and her school life, how she got her big break in the music career, and where her journey all began, read on!
Beyoncé – The Early Years
Beyoncé Giselle Knowles was born on September 4th, 1981, in Houston, Texas. Her parents were Celestine ‘Tina’ Knowles and Matthew Knowles, who were a hairdresser and Xerox manager, respectively.
Beyoncé started her schooling and younger life, just like any other girl. She joined academia attending the St. Mary Montessori School in Houston, and it was here she started her first-ever dance classes, specializing in ballet and jazz.
It was also in these classes where Beyoncé’s dance instructor, Darlette Johnson, was humming a tune, and Beyoncé finished the tune by singing it near-perfectly.
Impressed with Beyoncé’s obvious singing talent and capability to hit the high notes, Beyoncé began her journey into the music industry. She attended singing and dancing lessons and won her school talent show at the age of seven, singing John Lennon’s Imagine. She even beat the 15/16-year-olds in the competition!
Here’s a clip of Beyoncé, at the age of seven years old, singing Home, after winning the junior section of The People’s workshop competition!
In 1990, Beyoncé joined the Parker Elementary School, which is known for being a popular music magnet school in Houston, and joined the school choir, as well as the St. Johns Methodist choir, where she was a soloist for two years.
Fast forward several years, and Beyoncé joined the High School for the Performing and Visual Arts, and finally Alief Elsik High School.
Beyoncé then graduated but was already a part of the hit girl’s group, Destiny’s Child, and so did not go on to attend college or university, but we’ll explore this in the next section!
From School to Super-Stardom
A year after winning her school talent show at the age of seven, Beyoncé, along with her school friend Kelly Rowland, whom you may know to be another successful chart singer and dancer, went to audition for an all-girl entertainment group.
The group was called ‘Girl’s Tyme,’ and after doing a performance tour around Houston, the group appeared on the Star Search TV show, a show much like X-Factor nowadays. It was the largest TV talent show at the time.
While the group lost the show, Beyonce was still determined to make her career work. Beyoncé’s father Matthew quit his job to manage the music group, forcing her parents to live in separate apartments, a big reason being they simply couldn’t afford to live together.
Girl’s Tyme opened for established RnB artists and their performances and was eventually signed to a short contract with Elektra Records, and later Atlanta Records, but they were cut out. This added financial strain to Beyonce’s parents and their relationship, eventually leading to them divorcing.
Not an easy time for anybody involved.
From here, however, on October 5th, 1995, Grass Roots Entertainment signer, Dwayne Wiggins, signed the group with an agreement under Sony Music. The family reunited, and then the group moved with Columbia Records, and it was here where Beyoncé’s music career began to snowball.
The Rest is History
Under their Columbia Records contract, Beyoncé soared. In 1996, Girl’s Tyme changed their name to Destiny’s Child and released their first major-label album, “Killing Time’ in 1997, which was used on the blockbuster movie ‘Men in Black’’s score.
The group topped charts around the world until 2002, when Beyoncé then released her first solo hit music, featuring on a track with her later husband Jay Z. and her own hits Crazy in Love and Baby Boy. The rest is history as Beyoncé has dominated the music industry with number one chart hits and albums, several blockbuster movie appearances, and multiple awards along the way.
Beyoncé’s story is a true tale of grit and determination. Not once did Beyoncé give up, even with multiple events holding her back and times where other people would have easily thrown in the rag. Instead, Beyoncé remains an inspiration to us all and reminds us that good things can happen if we keep giving our all.