Who was Tina Knowles married to? Beyonce's mother opens up about her marriage to Matthew Knowles in new memoir

Beyonce's mother, Tina Knowles, shared details about her marriage to Matthew Knowles in her new memoir, Matriarch. She shares her two children, Beyonce and Solange, with her ex-husband.

Knowles's memoir was released on April 22, 2025. In the book, the businesswoman wrote about various important events of her life, including her marriage to Matthew Knowles, her children, and her fight with breast cancer. Speaking about Matthew, she addressed claims of infidelity in the marriage.

"There were already problems in our marriage that first year. But the suspicions I had would get washed away by the fact that our love was stronger than a misstep...It was us against the world, taking on what life brought us," she wrote.

When she was pregnant with Solange, things worsened. Knowles added:

"The marriage was deteriorating faster than I could possibly find ways or even reasons to make it work — ­even with the pregnancy. I had gotten used to these extremes — incredibly joyous half the time as we shared life’s adventure, then being disgusted and heartsick over how brazen his cheating could get."

Tina Knowles has been married twice. She was with Matthew Knowles between 1980 and 2011 and with actor Richard Lawson between 2015 and 2023. Tina filed for divorce from Lawson in July 2023.

Speaking further about her first marriage to Matthew, she wrote in her memoir:

"I was caught in this dance with him, each doing the same steps over and over: He would cheat or act up, and I would say I’d had enough. He would beg for forgiveness, crying and promising to get better... But this is what married people did, I told myself."

Matthew Knowles was a Houston-based salesman who later worked as a talent manager. The former couple married in 1980, and Tina filed for divorce in 2011.

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Tina Knowles opens up about her early days of separation from Matthew Knowles and handling her children, Beyoncé, and Solange

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In her memoir, Matriarch, Tina Knowles opened up about the first time she found out her husband's infidelity and the early days of their separation. Knowles recalled in her book that the news came in 2009, when she realized that her husband had fathered a child outside of their marriage. She wrote that when Matthew Knowles tried to speak to her, she said:

"I screamed, 'Get out! Get out!' like he was some demon. 'I hate you!' ... my world had exploded."

The former couple divorced in 2011 after 31 years of marriage. Knowles mentioned that she failed like she had failed Beyonce and Solange.

"I was deeply sad, not about him but about the marriage. I felt like I failed. I failed us, my kids — ­myself."

In an interview with People Magazine about her book, Tina Knowles further spoke about this difficult time in her life. She mentioned that she was "bad at balance" during the early days of separation and could not take time out for herself. However, she slowly started the journey of "nurturing" and "healing" herself.

Four years later, Tina Knowles tied the knot for the second time with actor Richard Lawson. However, things went downhill for her, and she filed for divorce in 2023. In her book, she wrote:

"It's been a rollercoaster. My journey has been filled with, Oh God, so many obstacles, so many hardships, but it's also been filled with tremendous amounts of joy...It's been an amazing ride. I wouldn't trade it for anything in the world."

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Apart from weighing in on her marriage, Tina Knowles also wrote about various other topics. She spoke about the early days of Beyonce and her rise to stardom, her relationship with Jay-Z and eventual marriage, and her battle with breast cancer.

Matriach is available for purchase in the United States.