Tina Knowles might just be the real player behind one of music’s most iconic sister duos—Beyoncé and Solange Knowles. During an appearance with CNN News Central on April 25, the 71-year-old matriarch pulled back the curtain on what it took to raise two wildly talented—and very different—daughters without letting sibling rivalry get the best of them.
“I think one of the things is that you look at them as individuals, because they were very, very different. [Solange] is very, very different,” Tina explained when asked how she managed to make both daughters feel special in their own right.
But things didn’t always look so harmonious in the House of Knowles.
Tina shared that when Beyoncé began performing at just 10 years old, the family dynamics got a little dicey—especially with little sister Solange trying to join in the fun.
“She was in the singing group, and the kids would say to Solange every day, ‘Be quiet, Solange,’ because she would try to choreograph and, you know, she wanted to be involved — and they didn’t want her involved,” Tina said.
“And then I started noticing that Beyoncé would allow them to talk to her like that or she would say, ‘OK, Mom, can you get Solange out of here? Because she’s doing …’ And I’m like, ‘Wait a minute, this is her house, and you’ve got to be nice to her.’”
Tina said she saw a “wall between them coming” and decided to take a step many would’ve avoided at the time—therapy.
“My family was like, ‘You’re going to make those girls crazy.’ Because, you know, especially in the Black community back then [people didn’t go to therapy]. Back then, it was really taboo,” she recalled.
“Even my [ex-]husband [Mathew Knowles], he was like, ‘I just don’t know if they’re too young for you to do that.’ And I’m like, ‘I’m not asking. I’m going to find somebody.’”
And find somebody she did.
Tina said the therapist she chose turned out to be “wonderful” and exactly what her daughters needed. Unsurprisingly, Beyoncé wasn’t too thrilled about the idea.
“She hated therapy,” Tina said. Solange, on the other hand, was all in. “She loved talking and, you know, expressing herself,” Tina added.
The result? Sister goals. “The outcome was great. It was really great because they had been super tight since,” Tina beamed.
Sidner applauded Tina’s parenting choice, calling it “such a beautiful gift,” noting how close Beyoncé and Solange are today. Tina agreed with a proud smile, saying, “Yeah, they are very tight.”
