She has a million-plus followers on Twitter, but often walks her son to school. She was interviewed by Italian Vogue, but goes incognito to pop-up parties in Chinatown.
Since moving to New York City last fall, Solange Knowles has kept up a dual life. Her public persona includes a DJ stint at a party at the Ferragamo store on Fifth Avenue and posing for V magazine. But her schedule also includes going to see avant-garde musicians like Grimes in Brooklyn warehouses and attending fundraising meetings at her 7-year-old son’s school.
And while she is acclimating to New York, the shadow of Beyonce Knowles, her older sister, extends like a skyscraper.
During a recent lunch at Walter Foods, Solange Knowles glanced around the patio with a sense of relief. When she dined there with her sister, she said, patrons ogled them and reached for camera phones.
“It did not feel like this,” she said. “I’m so proud,” she added, “of her success, but I could not do that.”
Instead of pursuing pop stardom, Knowles has wrapped herself in indie cred— a Pitchfork-approved chanteuse, boldfaced DJ and fashion ambassador. It’s an appealingly spongy zone of celebrity for the 25-year-old.
In the late ‘90s, the rise of Destiny’s Child turned the Knowles clan into an entertainment juggernaut. Beyonce was the star, their father was the manager, and their mother was the stylist and choreographer.
Solange never joined Destiny’s Child, but began travelling with the group as a backup dancer at 13. Knowles followed her sister’s path, pursuing a career as a singer and songwriter. Neither her debut album (Solo Star, in 2003) nor her sophomore effort (Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams,” 2008) was a commercial success.
At 18, she gave birth to Daniel Julez J. Smith II, which put her career and education on standby. She married his father, Daniel Smith. They divorced in 2007. Then came the move eastward. “I’ve been trying to talk her into going to Brooklyn for six years,” Beyonce said. “It’s so close to her personality. She’s such a fashionista—she’ll get used to it.”
“Solange can wear anything she wants,” said Humberto Leon, a co-owner of Opening Ceremony, the influential SoHo boutique. “I’ve enjoyed watching her evolution as a style icon.”
Brooklyn is also fertile soil for indie music. Despite her R&B origins, she has deftly infiltrated the genre, remaking a song by the Dirty Projectors, recording with Of Montreal and collaborating with Grizzly Bear and Twin Shadow.
Despite her familial advantages, Knowles still has a younger sibling’s stubborn streak. While she has helped to write several songs for Beyonce—Get Me Bodied and Upgrade U, among them—she has declined any professional help from her more famous sister.
“My sister will not record with me,” Beyonce said. “She’s her own woman.”
I really like Solange, but I do feel bad for her sometimes that she's always overshadowed by her sister, even if she is fairly successful in her own way.
It seems as though Solange wants to break free from Beyoncé and the Knowles empire. More power to her for wanting to do something different and having her own lane.
Maybe Solange could release some of that ~long awaited material~ she's supposedly been working in instead of doing DJ gigs & pointlessly posing for magazines... just a thought.
I love Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams, it's seriously lame how she'll probably never have commercial success, just because her sister casts such a huge shadow.
I hope she continues to get into the indie market, she's clearly really creative and talented.
Poor Girl, but its not really Beyonces fault she so succesful. Bey followed her dream & worked hard for it. Salonge is doing the same thing, she just isnt as commercially sucsessful.
I do belieave Salonge is a better song writer than Beyonce though.
I wish Solange was doing better. She is actually talented. She deserves commercial success. But I'm glad she hasn't gotten jealous of Beyonce. It takes A LOT to not be jealous of Beyonce.
I dunno, I wouldn't mind just being "the sister" that nobody cares about to a celebrity.
I mean, it sounds like an improvement over having someone only care because I was the sister, if that makes any sense. Honestly, she gets the best of both worlds.
Maybe Solange could release some of that ~long awaited material~ she's supposedly been working in instead of doing DJ gigs & pointlessly posing for magazines... just a thought.
Poor Girl, but its not really Beyonces fault she so succesful. Bey followed her dream & worked hard for it. Salonge is doing the same thing, she just isnt as commercially sucsessful. 
