Who is Beyonce’s alter ego? How many albums has she sold? If you think you know Beyonce, think again because we’ve rounded-up the ultimate collection of Beyonce facts.

1. Beyonce Wrote ‘Crazy In Love’ In Two Hours… With A Hangover!
Back in 2002, US record producer Rich Harrison was struggling to convince colleagues that the first draft of ‘Crazy In Love’ was a winner, none of them “digging” the beat. Harrison remained convinced he was onto something special but decided to keep it in his bottom drawer until the right artist came along. Enter Beyonce, who also initially had doubts about the track, which she deemed “too retro”. After some convincing, Beyonce gave Harrison two hours to complete the track and its lyrics –

2. Beyoncé suffered from depression in the Destiny’s Child era.
When Luckett and Roberson left Destiny’s child, Beyoncé was publicly blamed by the media, critics, and blogs for its cause. She’s since spoken about suffering from depression at the time, when she would lock herself in her room for days.

3. Matthew Knowles took a 50% pay cut when he left his job to manage Beyoncé.
In 1995 Beyoncé’s father resigned from his job to manage the group. The move reduced Beyoncé’s family’s income by half, and her parents were forced to move into separated apartments.

4. The name Destiny’s Child is derived from a passage in the Book of Isaiah.
The Knowles are passionately Christian and Beyoncé’s mother suggested the name when ‘Destiny’ had been taken.

5. Beyonce is the first female artist to have her first six studio albums debut at number one.

6. Bey’s 2007 tour ‘The Beyonce Experience’ grossed over $24 million.
On her first tour Beyonce visited a staggering 97 venues – the tour grossed over $24 million. Beyonce was the most powerful woman in music, could she stay at the top?

7. Beyoncé’s 2009 ‘I Am… World Tour’ grossed $119.5 million.

8. Beyoncé only had one boyfriend before Jay Z.
She told The Telegraph in 2008; “When I was 12, 13 I had my first boyfriend, and he was my boyfriend till I was 17. At that age, that was a long time. I’ve always been very loyal and a little more mature. Though I was too young for it to really be a boyfriend – we didn’t live together, we didn’t, you know… That was my only experience with a guy, and since then I’ve only had one other boyfriend in my life – Jay.

9. Beyoncé’s middle name is Giselle.

10. Beyoncé rapped the first verse of ‘Partition’ off the cuff, without even writing it down.
She said she was embarrassed after she recorded it, and worried her mum would be mad at her.

11. Beyonce And Jay Z’s Daughter Blue Ivy Carter Was A Record Breaker After Just Two Days!
After the birth of their first child, Jay Z released the track ‘Glory’ via his social networking site, with Blue Ivy (B.I.C) credited as a contributor, owing to her cries being included at the end of the track. This means that Beyonce and Jay Z’s first born, at just two days old, became the youngest person to ever appear on the Billboard 100 (the song debuted at number 74 on the R&B/hip-hop chart)

12. Beyonce managed to add a word to the Oxford English Dictionary. That’s powerful.
Only the most powerful woman in music could make a word like ‘bootylicious’ an actual, official world.

13. Beyonce’s alter ego is called Sasha Fierce.
Only someone respected all over the world could create her own alter ego and be taken seriously. Beyonce said she created ‘Sasha Fierce’ to keep her sexy, aggressive, provocative stage persona separate from who she really is, claiming “I’m not like her in real life at all”.

14. ‘Beyonce’ became the fastest-selling album in iTunes Store’s history

15. Beyoncé purposely wore little on her visual album to make a point.
“I wanted to show that you can have a child and you can work hard and you can get your body back.”

16. Beyoncé’s mum, Tina Knowles, was born with the full name Celestine Ann ‘Tina’ Beyincé.

17. It was Kelly Rowland that made the announcement that Destiny’s Child would be splitting.
It was on June 11th 2005, during the last stop of their European tour in Barcelona, that Kelly Rowland announced that Destiny’s Child would disband.

18. The release of Beyoncé surprise self-titled album generated over 1.2 million tweets in 12 hours.

19. Beyonce performed for the Obamas twice.

20. Beyoncé was the first solo female to headline Glastonbury in over 20 years.
In 2011 Queen Bey took to the main stage and broke the cycle.

21. Beyoncé began recording her surprise self-titled album in 2012.
She invited musicians to live and work with her in The Hamptons, New York for a month long creative session.

22. Beyoncé’s 2013 Super Bowl performance prompted 268,000 tweets per minute.
It currently holds the position for the second most tweeted about moment in history.

23. In total, 80 songs were recorded for Beyoncé’s 2013 self-titled album.
Beyoncé said she was attracted to the more effortless tracks for the final cut.

24. Beyoncé donated her entire salary from the film ‘Cadillac Records’ to charity.
It went to Phoenix House, an organization of rehabilitation centers for heroin addicts around the country.

25. Beyoncé’s self titled fifth studio album sold one million digital copies worldwide in six days.

26. ‘Halo’ is the song that has spent the longest time on the Hot 100 charts in Beyoncé’s career.

27. Beyonce’s favorite number is 4.
42 – Her mum was born on January 4th. She was married on April 4th. Her birthday is September 4th and her husband’s is December 4th. Bey’s fourth studio album is titled ‘4.’

28. Beyonce And Jay Z Met On The Set Of ’03 Bonnie And Clyde’
It is rumoured that the recording session of the track (which was to be Jay Z’s second and Beyonce’s first top ten single) was the first meeting for the husband and wife to be.

29. A 12-year-old Beyonce appeared on ‘Star Search’ in 1993.
She entered the biggest talent show on TV at the time as a member of the band ‘Girl Tyme,’ – they came second (as shown in her ‘Flawless’ video). It was the first step on Beyonce’s road to becoming the most powerful woman in music.

30. Destiny’s Child achieved their first number one with ‘Bills, Bills, Bills’.
The lead single from their album was released back in 1999 (can you believe it?)

31. ‘The Writing’s On The Wall’ sold over 15 million copies worldwide.
Eight million were sold in the UK, making it eight-time platinum certified. It was one of the top selling albums of 2000.

32. Destiny’s Child has sold more than 60 million records worldwide to date.
They are the ninth most successful artist/ band of the 2000s and one of the most successful female groups ever.

33. Beyoncé set a new record when she earned 6 Grammys in 2010 for her ‘I Am… Sasha Fierce’ album.

34. In a 2013 H&M campaign, Beyonce criticised the brand for airbrushing her.
Beyonce asked that only natural images were used, rather than any that have been ‘retouched’.

35. Throughout a career spanning over two decades, Beyoncé has won 22 Grammy Awards.

36. In the noughties Beyoncé achieved more top 10s than any other female artist.
They included ‘Sweet Dreams, ‘Diva’, ‘Ego’, ‘Broken-Hearted Girl’, ‘Halo’ and ‘Video Phone.’

37. The name ‘Beyoncé’ comes from Beyonce’s maternal grandfather.
Tina Knowles’ father was called Lumis Albert Beyincé and Tina’s maiden name is ‘Beyincé.

38. Jay Z Is Beyonce’s “First Listener”
Beyoncé asks Jay Z to listen to her new songs before anyone else. Hov revealed that he and Beyonce deliberated over the tracks in the running for Bey’s self-titled album at home while “dancing in [their] socks”.

39. Beyonce is one of the best-selling music artists of all time.
As a solo artist she has sold over 13 million albums in the US, and over 118 million records worldwide (a further 60 million additionally with Destiny’s Child), making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time

40. Beyonce released her own documentary in 2013 ‘Life Is But A Dream,’ which she produced and directed.
The autobiographical documentary gave an insight into the star’s personal and professional life, showcasing just how much control she has over her own music and shows.

41. What is Beyonce’s Instagram?
Beyonce is on Instagram using the handle @Beyonce with 134 million followers and counting. Beyonce’s Twitter and Facebook handle is also @Beyonce. Beyonce also has a secret Snapchat.

42. How old is Beyonce?
Beyonce is 38 years old and her birthday is on September 4th 1981.

43. How tall is Beyonce?
Beyonce is 5’7 inches tall.

INSIDE BEYONCE’S WORLD

FAMILY MATTERS

By Capital xtra