Beyoncé

Beyoncé has become one of the most potent powerhouses in the music industry by marrying her talents as an entertainer with an almost unmatched ability to shape the cultural conversation. She can make the earth stand still with a surprise album drop or politically charged call to arms.

The Queen Bey is arguably the most disruptive force in music today, as she showed in 2016 with the stealth release of her video album “Lemonade,” a powerful rumination on womanhood, infidelity and black culture that instantly became the year’s most talked-about music event. By successfully reinventing her carefully calibrated image with an album that doubled as a ringing affirmation of feminism and black identity, Beyoncé proved herself to be a musician and mogul who can do no wrong.

Born Beyoncé Giselle Knowles, the Houston native launched into stardom as a teenager with Destiny’s Child, the R&B group that would become one of the best-selling female groups of all time. Her 2003 solo debut, “Dangerously in Love,” sold five million albums and earned five of her 22 career Grammy Awards. Her six studio albums have all achieved platinum status and debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 chart. She is married to the rapper Jay Z.