Tina Knowles is an American businesswoman, fashion designer, art collector, and activist. Born Celestine Ann Beyoncé in Galveston, Texas, to a longshoreman father and seamstress mother, she learned dressmaking at an early age. In 1986, she opened Headliners, a groundbreaking hair salon that became a multimillion-dollar phenomenon in Houston. As a stylist, designer, and mother, she helped guide the day-to-day path of Destiny’s Child—the music group comprised of Beyoncé, Kelly Rowland, and Michelle Williams—to global commercial success.
She co-founded Waco Theater Center, located in North Hollywood, California. The organization, whose letters spell out Where Art Can Occur, provides a platform for the art community to exhibit their visual and performing arts. It also serves as a place to mentor young children from underserved communities, exposing them to all forms of art and culture. WACO also provides education and financial support as well as after-school tutoring and counseling.
Ms. Knowles is presently working diligently on a voting campaign with The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights called AndStillIVote, to educate everyone on the power of their vote, and to encourage them to take advantage of absentee voting and mail-in voting due to the mobility restrictions in place as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Ms. Knowles, who has been an activist from her teen years in Texas, drew the attention of the entire country when she became the face of mothers taking a stand for voting rights in this historical election year.
With the Mothers of the Movement (those who lost their children to police brutality), and with the support of The Leadership Conference on Civil and Human Rights, she sent a letter to Congress encouraging them to pass the Heroes Act, which includes a $3.6 billion fund needed to cover safe and secure voting for all.
With her daughter Beyoncé, she co-founded and ran the House of Deréon, a clothing line named for her mother, and then added the Miss Tina line, which revolutionized size inclusivity. In 2024, she helped to create Cécred, her daughter Beyoncé’s haircare line. Her philanthropic portfolio includes the non-profit performing arts organization WACO Theater, The Knowles-Rowland Center for Youth in Houston, and Tina’s Angels, her thriving mentoring program for at-risk youth in South Central L.A. She serves as Chairwoman of BeyGOOD, a nonprofit dedicated to establishing economic equity through a wide array of initiatives. She is a grandmother of six and a Matriarch to many.
