For decades he was the musical force behind Beyonce and Solange, helping guide their lucrative careers in music and film.
Mathew Knowles is the founder, president and chief executive of Houston-based Music World Entertainment. He's also their father.
Recently, the Knowles family was in the news when Beyonce parted ways professionally with her father. In a recent interview, Knowles chided a reporter for referring to it as a "split". He prefers to call it a transition.
Knowles, 59, was in Atlanta recently for the 42nd Annual Dove Awards, which will air on gmc (formerly known as Gospel Music Channel) on Sunday.
Knowles, a native of Gadsden, Ala., is putting heavy emphasis on the gospel imprint of the Music World empire. Recently, Music World Gospel, formerly known as Spirit Rising Music, has a roster that includes Brian Courtney Wilson, Vanessa Bell Armstrong and Juanita Bynum. Also signed to the label is Trin-i-tee 5:7, which is set to release their new CD, "Angel and Chanelle", next month.
Knowles was also recently named to the board of the Gospel Music Association. He recently spoke with us about the, er, "transition" and gospel music.
Q: What is your relationship with your daughter, Beyonce?
A: I'm her father first. That's probably going to be a surprise to everyone. Beyonce and I have had a wonderful 20 years working together... She's watched her mother and her father be entrepreneurs. Her mother owns her own clothing line and owned her own hair salon. Both of our daughters have learned a lot about this business. Beyonce will soon be 30 and I understand it... I think she's going to do a great job being a businesswoman. If she needs me, she will certainly call and I'll certainly be there."
Q: What can we expect from Music World in terms of gospel music?
A: We've been very fortunate. We've been strategically building our roster of artists. It started back in 2002. Even before then, actually. We started about 2000 when members of Destiny's Child were starting to look at separate careers. Michelle Williams was coming from Rockford, Ill., and she really wanted to be a gospel artist. So we had two choices. We could either look at her going and signing with a gospel label or we could start our own. And we did, Spirit Rising, which has since changed its name. That's how we got into the business and we've had incredible success with Michelle, who had two gospel albums, the "Fighting Temptations" soundtrack and we were slowly on our way. Recently... we've looked at strategically signing artists like Juanita Bynum, Vanessa Bell Armstrong, Trin-i-tee 5:7, Pastor Rudy. We've got Micah Stampley.
Q: Where do you see this genre going? There's gospel, hip-hop Christian, Christian rap. Christian rock.
A: I think there's so much growth in this genre. It's no different than any other music, there's growth in every way. ... [People] have different musical tastes and the way we deliver the message musically has got to change... There are kids out there who want to hear hip-hop and a positive message as well.
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