Background and career
Kelendria Trene "Kelly" Rowland (born February 11, 1981) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and television personality. She rose to fame in the late 1990s as a member of Destiny's Child, one of the world's best-selling girl groups. During the group's three-year hiatus, Rowland released her debut solo album, Simply Deep (2002), which appeared at number 1 on the UK Albums Chart and sold over five million copies worldwide. It included the Billboard Hot 100 number 1 single "Dilemma" (with Nelly), as well as the UK hits "Stole" and "Can't Nobody". Rowland also ventured into acting with starring roles in Freddy vs. Jason (2003) and The Seat Filler (2005). Following the disbanding of Destiny's Child in 2006, Rowland released her second solo album, Ms. Kelly (2007), which produced the international hits "Like This" (featuring Eve) and "Work". In 2009, she hosted the first season of The Fashion Show, and was featured on David Guetta's "When Love Takes Over", which topped the charts in several countries. Its success influenced Rowland to explore electronic dance music on her third solo album, Here I Am (2011), which spawned the UK hit singles "Commander" (featuring David Guetta), "Down for Whatever" and "What a Feeling", as a well as the electro-R&B single "Motivation" (featuring Lil Wayne). Her fourth solo album, Talk a Good Game (2013), became her third Top 10 album on the US Billboard 200 chart. Rowland was a television judge on the eighth season of The X Factor UK (2011), as well as the third season of The X Factor USA (2013). She has continued her television career by hosting Chasing Destiny (2016) and starring as a coach on The Voice Australia (2017–2020) and The Voice UK (2026-present). Rowland is credited with forming the girl groups Little Mix and June's Diary from her stints on The X Factor UK and Chasing Destiny. Rowland's work has earned her several awards and nominations, including four Grammy Awards, one Billboard Music Award, and two Soul Train Music Awards. Rowland has also received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame as part of Destiny's Child, and as a solo artist, she has been honored by the American Society of Composers, Authors and Publishers and Essence for her contributions to music. In 2014, Fuse ranked Rowland in their "100 Most Award-Winning Artists" list at number 20.
Kelendria Trene Rowland was born in Atlanta, Georgia, on February 11, 1981. She is the daughter of Doris Rowland-Garrison (December 6, 1947 – December 2, 2014) and Christopher Lovett. She has an older brother named Orlando. When Rowland was seven, her mother left her father, who was an abusive alcoholic and suffered post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) from serving in the Vietnam War, and Rowland went with her. When Rowland was seven or eight, she and her mother relocated to Houston, where at some point she moved in with fellow Destiny's Child member Beyoncé, referring to Beyoncé's mother Tina Knowles as "Mama T". In the early 1990s, Rowland joined Beyoncé, Tamar Davis and LaTavia Roberson in the girl group Girl's Tyme. Girl's Tyme competed on the nationally televised talent show Star Search, but lost the competition to Skeleton Crew. Beyoncé's father, Mathew Knowles, reduced the sextet lineup to a quartet, including new member LeToya Luckett, and began managing the group. In 1995, they signed with Elektra Records, but were released from the label months later. D'wayne Wiggins then began working with the group, and they were briefly signed to his label. The group went through several name changes, including the Dolls, Something Fresh, Cliché, and Destiny before deciding upon a final moniker. Under the name Destiny's Child, the group was picked up by Columbia Records. They continued performing as an opening act for other established R&B groups of the time, such as SWV, Dru Hill, and Immature.
Taken from a passage in the Biblical Book of Isaiah, the group changed their name to Destiny's Child, after signing to Columbia Records in 1997. That same year, Destiny's Child recorded their major label debut song "Killing Time", for the soundtrack to the 1997 film Men in Black. Later that year, the group released their debut single, "No, No, No", and the following year, they released their self-titled debut album. The album amassed moderate sales and won the group three Soul Train Lady of Soul Awards. The group released their multi-platinum second album The Writing's on the Wall in 1999. The album features some of the group's most successful singles such as "Bills, Bills, Bills", "Jumpin' Jumpin'" and "Say My Name". "Say My Name" won Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals and Best R&B Song at the 43rd Annual Grammy Awards. The Writing's on the Wall sold more than 15 million copies worldwide.
Along with their commercial successes, the group became entangled in much-publicized turmoil involving the filing of a lawsuit by group members Luckett and Roberson for breach of contract. Michelle Williams and Farrah Franklin appeared in the video of "Say My Name", and Luckett and Roberson were dismissed from the group. Franklin would eventually quit the group after five months. After settling on their final lineup, the trio released "Independent Women Part I", which appeared on the soundtrack to the 2000 film, Charlie's Angels. It became their best-charting single, topping the Billboard Hot 100 for eleven consecutive weeks. That same year, Luckett and Roberson withdrew their case against their now-former bandmates, while maintaining the suit against Mathew, which ended in both sides agreeing to stop public disparaging. Later that year, while Destiny's Child was completing their third album Survivor, Rowland appeared on the remix of Avant's single "Separated". Survivor, which channeled the turmoil the band underwent, spawned its lead single of the same name, which was a response to the experience. The song went on to win a Grammy Award for Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals. The themes of "Survivor", however, caused Luckett and Roberson to refile their lawsuit; the proceedings were eventually settled in June 2002. The album was released in May 2001, debuting at number one on the US Billboard 200 with first-week sales of 663,000 copies sold. Survivor has sold over twelve million copies worldwide, over forty percent of which were sold in the US alone. The album also spawned the number-one hit "Bootylicious" on which Rowland sang lead vocals. Before releasing their remix album This Is the Remix in 2002, the group announced a temporary hiatus to pursue solo projects.
In 2002, Rowland was featured on Nelly's single "Dilemma", which won the pair a Grammy Award for Best Rap/Sung Collaboration. The song became one of the most successful singles of the year, topping many charts worldwide, including the United States, where it became Rowland's first number-one single as a solo artist, selling worldwide over 7.6 million copies. Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian wrote that because of the song's success, "Rowland is no longer a mere backing vocalist for Beyoncé.". Rowland's debut solo album, Simply Deep, was released on October 22, 2002, in the US. Featuring production contributions by Mark J. Feist, Big Bert, Rich Harrison, and singers Brandy and Solange Knowles providing background vocals, the album took Rowland's solo work further into an alternative music mixture, which Rowland described as a "weird fusion [of] a little bit of Sade and a little bit of rock." Simply Deep debuted at number 12 on the Billboard 200 and at number three on the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, with first-week sales of 77,000 copies sold. It was eventually certified gold by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA). As of 2013, Simply Deep remains as Rowland's best-selling album in the US, with 602,000 copies sold. Released to an even bigger success in international territories, Simply Deep topped the UK Albums Chart and became a gold-seller in Australia, Canada, and New Zealand, resulting in worldwide sales total of 2.5 million copies. Simply Deep yielded the international top-ten single "Stole" and the UK top-five single "Can't Nobody". Rowland transitioned into acting in 2002, playing the recurring role of Carly in the fourth season of UPN sitcom The Hughleys. She continued her acting career the following year, with guest roles in UPN sitcom Eve as Cleo, and in NBC drama series American Dreams as Martha Reeves. In August 2003, Rowland made her big-screen debut playing the supporting role of Kia Waterson alongside Robert Englund and Monica Keena in the slasher film, Freddy vs. Jason, which grossed $114.5 million at the box office worldwide.
In July 2005, Rowland starred opposite Duane Martin and Shemar Moore in the romantic comedy The Seat Filler, which grossed $17.9 million worldwide. She played Jhnelle, a pop star who falls for an awards-show seat filler whom she mistakes for a high-profile entertainment attorney. After a three-year hiatus that involved concentration on individual solo projects, Rowland rejoined Beyoncé and Michelle Williams for Destiny's Child's final studio album Destiny Fulfilled, released on November 15, 2004. The album hit number two on the Billboard 200 and spawned the top-five singles "Lose My Breath" and "Soldier", which features T.I. and Lil Wayne. The following year, Destiny's Child embarked on a worldwide concert tour, Destiny Fulfilled ... And Lovin' It. During the last stop of the European tour in Barcelona, Spain, on June 11, Rowland announced that they would disband following the North American leg of the tour. Destiny's Child released their first compilation album Number 1's on October 25 in the US, which peaked at number one on the Billboard 200. On March 28, 2006, Destiny's Child accepted a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. After Hurricane Katrina in 2005, Rowland and Beyoncé founded the Survivor Foundation, a charitable entity set up to provide transitional housing for victims and storm evacuees in the Houston, Texas area. The Survivor Foundation extended the philanthropic mission of the Knowles-Rowland Center for Youth, a multi-purpose community outreach facility in downtown Houston. Rowland and Beyoncé lent their voices to a collaboration with Kitten Sera, titled "All That I'm Lookin for". The song appeared on The Katrina CD album, whose proceeds went to the Recording Artists for Hope organization. Rowland, along with stars such as Jessica Simpson and the cast of Grey's Anatomy autographed pink Goody Ouchless brushes that were made available for auction on eBay, with all proceeds going to Breast Cancer Awareness. Also, during this time, the singer teamed up with Kanye West, Nelly Furtado, and Snoop Dogg to design a Nike sneaker for another eBay auction. All proceeds went to AIDS Awareness. Rowland returned to television in 2006, playing Tammy Hamilton, in the sixth season of UPN sitcom Girlfriends. Rowland initially hoped her three-episode stint would expand to a larger recurring role, but as the show was moved to The CW Television Network the following year, plans for a return eventually went nowhere.
