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Beyoncé turns 36 today — celebrate with 36 of her most iconic moments. (Photo via @beyonce Instagram)

Happy Birthday Beyoncé! 36 iconic moments in honor of Queen Bey’s 36th birthday

The '80s blessed the world with many wonderful things including Full House, Pac-Man, knee socks and neon spandex. But the most important, was the birth of a icon for the ages 一 better known as Beyoncé.

Monday marked an important day for many Beyhivers. In honor of her 36th birthday, here are 36 of the showstopping diva’s most iconic moments. 

1.) Beyoncé is born 

#tbt

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The soon-to-be superstar was born on Sept. 4, 1981, in Houston, Texas.

2.) Girl’s Tyme

Before being named Destiny’s Child, Beyoncé was a part of the group Girl’s Tyme. They competed on a competition show called Star Search. Beyoncé and the girls lost to a rock group called Skeleton Crew. The beginning of the video is featured on her song “***Flawless”. 

3.) Destiny’s Child


In 1997, Destiny’s Child was signed to Columbia Records and Music World Entertainment. In 1998, the group released their self-titled debut album. The following year, the group had widespread success with their second album The Writing's on The Wall generating hits like “Say My Name”and “Bills, Bills, Bills”. 

4.) No, No, No pt. 2 


“No, No, No pt. 2” was the first single of Destiny’s Child that the group heard played on the radio. Both Beyoncé and Kelly Rowland have spoken about this monumental moment for the group. 

5.) Destiny’s Child performs at the Grammy Awards 


Destiny’s Child made their debut Grammy Awards performance in 2001. 

6.) DC wins their first Grammy Award

Destiny’s Child took home two awards for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best R&B Song at the 2001 Grammy Awards.

7.) Foxxy Cleopatra 

During her time with Destiny’s Child, Beyoncé participated in other projects. She made her theatrical film debut in 2002 in the movie Austin Powers in Goldmember as Foxxy Cleopatra. She also recorded “Work It Out” as the film’s lead single.

8.) Dangerously In Love 

In 2003, Beyoncé released her first solo album Dangerously in Love after Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams released their solo efforts. It was the most successful of the three, debuting atop the Billboard 200. The album’s lead single, “Crazy in Love” featuring Jay-Z became Queen Bey’s first number-one single as a solo artist. 

9.) End of Destiny’s Child

Destiny’s Fulfilled was the fifth and final studio album released by the trio. This album spawned the hit “Lose My Breath”, an uptempo dance song which also received a Grammy nomination for Best R&B Vocal performance by a Duo or Group.

10.) Dreamgirls 

In 2006, Beyoncé starred alongside Jamie Foxx, Eddie Murphy and Jennifer Hudson in the theatrical adaptation of Dreamgirls. Knowles’ character, Deena, sings “Listen” during the height of the film. Columbia Records released the song as the lead single for the film's soundtrack. 

11.) B’Day 

B’Day was released on Sept. 4, 2006, coinciding with Beyoncé’s 25th birthday. The album debuted atop the Billboard 200 becoming her second consecutive number-one album. B’Day produced single “Ring The Alarm” which was a different sound than we’ve heard from the singer. It also produced its biggest single “Irreplaceable”, which reached number one in the United States along with many other countries. 



12.) Queen Bey gets married

On April 4, 2008, Beyoncé married her partner, Jay-Z in what was a secret rooftop wedding in New York City. 

13.) I Am… Sasha Fierce 

I Am… Sasha Fierce is Beyoncé’s third studio album. Spawning hits like “Single Ladies (Put a Ring on it)” and “Diva”, I Am… introduces Beyoncé’s alter-ego Sasha Fierce to the world. This album debuted atop the Billboard 200 becoming Knowles’ third consecutive number-one album. 

14.) “Telephone” 


In 2010, Lady Gaga released “Telephone” featuring Beyoncé. The single sold 7.4 million copies worldwide and was nominated for a Grammy. 

15.) Beyoncé announces her pregnancy during “Love On Top” 


The world went crazy during Beyoncé’s performance of “Love On Top” during the 2011 MTV Video Music Awards. At the beginning of the performance, Queen Bey addressed the crowd with, “I want you to feel the love that’s growing inside of me." And at the end, in the most graceful way, Knowles drops her mic and opens her blazer to reveal her gorgeous baby bump — formally announcing her first pregnancy with daughter Blue Ivy Carter. 

16.) Beyoncé sings at former President Barack Obama’s inauguration 


During President Barack Obama’s second inauguration ceremony, Beyoncé graced the world with her version of “The Star Spangled Banner”. During this performance, many people criticized the singer for lip-syncing to a pre-recorded track of the song. 

The Obamas and Knowles-Carters have a very public friendship. Beyonce sang “At Last” during the first Inaugural Ball in 2009. Former first lady Michelle Obama has been very vocal about her love for the 36-year-old singer as well. 

17.) Beyoncé silences the haters during the Super Bowl press conference 


After her performance of the National Anthem at the presidential inauguration, Beyoncé showed up to the 2013 Super Bowl press conference ready to face the music. As soon as she stepped on stage she asked everyone to stand as she prepared to blow them away with an acapella version of “The Star Spangled Banner”. Proving that she can in fact sing, she finished by asking the press “any questions?” … Iconic. 

18.) Super Bowl XLVII 

In 2013, Beyoncé headlined the Super Bowl XLVII halftime show. During the performance, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams made special appearances and gave a tribute to their former girl group Destiny’s Child. Beyoncé’s performance became the second most-watched show in Super Bowl history garnering 110.8 million viewers. The show also generated more than 299,000 tweets per minute making it the second most-tweeted moment in the history of Twitter. 

19.) Life Is But a Dream 


Life Is But a Dream 一 Beyoncé’s autobiographical documentary. It premiered in 2013 on HBO. 

20.) Beyoncé 


Surprise!

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on


Beyoncé. Her fifth studio album was unexpectedly released on Dec. 13, 2013. Beyoncé debuted atop the Billboard 200. This became Knowles’ fifth consecutive number-one album. She also became the first female in the chart’s history to have her first five studio albums debut at number one. Beyoncé sold 1 million copies worldwide in six days. 

21.) On The Run Tour 


In 2014, Jay-Z and Beyoncé announced a joint tour effort titled “On The Run”. The concert aired on HBO on Sept. 20, 2014. 

22.) Michael Jackson Vanguard Award


After the release of her fifth studio album, Beyoncé received the Michael Jackson Vanguard Award at the 2014 MTV Video Music Awards. The 14-minute performance was a medley of songs from Beyoncé.

23.) Met Gala elevator fight 


In May of 2014, a video of Beyoncé, husband Jay-Z and younger sister Solange Knowles was leaked. It showed Solange attacking Jay and a classy Beyoncé in the corner. There were a lot of rumors circulating as to what this fight was about, specifically Jay-Z cheating. In a recent interview, Jay said it was over a disagreement. 

24.) “***Flawless Remix” ft. Nicki Minaj 



After the infamous elevator fight, Beyoncé poked fun at it with a line in her remix for “***Flawless”. In the song she says, “Of course sometime s--t goes down when it's a billion dollars on an elevator." This is her way of letting the haters know that her and Jay are worth more than a billion dollars combined and they are bound to have problems every once in awhile. 

25.) Sisterly Love


Good Morning

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on


Beyoncé has never been one for a public display of her life. So, to silence the critics, she posted a photo of her and sister after the Met Gala. The Beyhive took this as Queen Bey’s way of letting everyone know, things were good. 

26.) Beyoncé is the highest earning woman in music for the second year

In 2013, Beyoncé earned $53 million. She outdid herself by doubling that total in 2014 earning a whopping $115 million

27.) “Formation”


Download "Formation" on TIDAL

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The song that changed everything. On Feb. 6, 2016, Beyoncé released “Formation” directly to TIDAL. 

28.) Super Bowl 50 

On Feb. 7, 2016, Beyoncé joined British rock group Coldplay and American singer Bruno Mars on stage during the Super Bowl 50 halftime show. 

29.) The Formation World Tour 


Tickets On Sale Starting Monday, Feb. 15 at LiveNation.com

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on

Immediately following her Super Bowl 50 performance, Beyoncé announced her seventh concert tour. Knowles was met with harsh criticism from conservative America like “Boycott Beyoncé”. She clapped back at her haters by using this saying to sell merchandise during her tour … the queen strikes again. 

30.) Lemonade 


#LEMONADE The Visual Album. Available now on BEYONCE.TIDAL.COM

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on

On April 23, 2016, Beyoncé released her sixth studio album. The record was another visual album that aired on HBO followed by a release to TIDAL. On Aug. 25, 2016, the album was made available for purchase on Amazon Music and iTunes. Lemonade debuted atop the Billboard 200 chart becoming Knowles’ sixth consecutive number-one album. Lemonade was nominated for nine Grammy Awards — ultimately earning two. 

31.) 2016 Video of The Year

Beyoncé performed a medley of Lemonade at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. She also took home the moonman for Video of The Year. 

32.) 2016 Best Female Video 


Besides Video of The Year, Beyoncé also went home with the moonman for Best Female Video at the 2016 MTV Video Music Awards. 

33. Country Music Awards


Beyoncé performed “Daddy Lessons” with the Dixie Chicks at the 50th Country Music Awards. 

34.) Beyoncé is pregnant … with twins


On Feb. 1, 2016, Beyoncé posted a lavish photo to Instagram stating she was expecting. She captioned it, “We would like to share our love and happiness. We have been blessed two times over. We are incredibly grateful that our family is growing by two, and we thank you for your well wishers. — The Carters” 

This photo is now the most liked picture on all of Instagram. 

35.) 2017 Grammy Awards


At the 2017 Grammy Awards, Beyoncé gave an iconic performance clothed in gold, channeling the African goddess of fertility, Oshun. Not to mention, she did this while pregnant. 

36.) Rumi and Sir Carter


Sir Carter and Rumi 1 month today.

A post shared by Beyoncé (@beyonce) on

After many reports, Beyoncé confirmed that she gave birth to twins Rumi and Sir Carter by sharing this photo on Instagram. 

Happy Birthday, Queen Beyoncé. 

@jprintup1 

jp583215@ohio.edu

Editor's note: A previous version of this article did not fully display. The dates have been updated as a result of an internal glitch that caused several social media posts not to display.

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