Kelly Rowland fired Beyonces dad as her manager

In an official statement released yesterday, Kelly Rowland and Matthew Knowles (Beyonce’s father) announced that they were ending their “professional relationship.” Kelly has been under his management since her Destiny’s Child days, and he took over her career when she decided to go solo. Matthew also manages his daughters Beyonce and Solange, and another former Destiny’s Child member, Michelle Williams. He also started Music World, a record company that produces all of the music for his clients. The separation from Matthew Knowles will also mean a separation from his company.

In the joint statement, Kelly and Matthew try to curtail negative press by playing nice, but I’m not buying it:

“After a very positive meeting between Kelly Rowland and myself, we have amicably agreed to end our professional relationship. My company, Music World, will continue to manage Destiny’s Child as a group. As an artist Kelly has incredible talent and I only wish her the best. We will always be family first and foremost, and as a dad I only have love for Kelly.” – Mathew Knowles

“Mathew Knowles has been a positive influence in my career. I have had great success under his guidance – both as a member of Destiny’s Child and with my solo projects. Although we have decided to part ways professionally, the Knowles family and the entire Music World Entertainment team will always be my family.” – Kelly Rowland

[from That Grape Juice]

The split is especially surprising because Kelly considers Matthew to be a father, and he raised her as a daughter. During the Destiny’s Child days, Kelly actually lived in the Knowles house, and grew to think of them as her family. But it’s also true that Matthew Knowles does not have the best reputation. Like Joe Simpson, the father of Jessica and Ashlee, Matthew is known for being a bit of a hard ass. It takes a lot of tough love to raise successful superstar kids, but I’ve always heard that his temper got the best of him too often.

If Destiny’s Child decides to go back on tour – something they’re always hinting at – I wonder how they’ll handle it. He says that his company will manage the group, but the reunion will probably be tension-filled.

For anyone who’s interested, here’s the link to Matthew Knowles’ latest project. It’s a British girl group called “From Above” and they’re filming a reality show about their struggles to make it to the top. They’ll be releasing the show and their album sometime in 2009.

Matthew Knowles is shown on 8/21/08. Credit: PRPhotos Kelly Rowland is shown on 5/12/08 and 1/21/09. Credit: WENN

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