Beyoncé and Tina Knowles are looking to capitalize more on Sasha Fierce.

Utilizing the name of the singer’s alter ego and third solo album, “I Am…Sasha Fierce,” the mother and daughter design team plans to launch a new junior apparel label, Sasha Fierce for Deréon, for back-to-school selling.
The collection, which is inspired by Beyoncé’s stage presence (she is on a world tour through November), includes a full range of sportswear, outerwear, handbags, footwear, eyewear, lingerie and jewelry. Positioned to sit alongside the company’s Deréon junior label, which is similarly priced, the line has so far been picked up by department stores including Macy’s and Dillard’s and specialty stores Jimmy Jazz and Against All Odds.

The collection, Tina said, is “edgier and trendier and reflects Sasha Fierce’s daring and outgoing attitude.”

The jewelry, shoes and eyewear, she added, “are really over the top” with large chains made in mixed metals such as silver with gold, heavily studded shoes and oversize sunglasses such as the ones Beyoncé has been seen wearing on tour. The clothes are a little more subdued to make the accessories stand out — a one-shoulder dress, black bodysuit, fake leather jacket with oversize collar, leggings and destructed jeans with mesh and lace details lining the ripped material.

“When the tour started, we noticed the definite style of it,” Tina explained. “Thierry Mugler designed the clothes for the tour, but we really wanted to celebrate the style and interpret that into a collection.”

Beyoncé, who said in a statement “the line really exudes a different side of my personality, which I am grateful that I can express,” had a lot of say in the creation of the collection, Tina said.

“She definitely tells me what she likes and what she doesn’t. It was her suggestion to line the rips of the jeans with the mesh and lace,” she said. “It makes the jeans look really different from what’s out there.”

Tina said while they launched the Sasha Fierce for Deréon collection to pay homage to the tour, she said they would happily keep it going if customers respond to it at retail.

“We have had tremendous success with our graphic T-shirt business based on the lyrics from Beyoncé’s new CD,” said Philip Davis, president of Deréon’s parent company, Beyond Productions LLC. “We believe the Sasha Fierce collection will enjoy the same success at retail and coincide with the success of Beyoncé’s world tour.”

The collection wholesales from $25 to $75. Davis declined to give first-year sales expectations for the label.

Singer BeyoncĂ© Knowles has interrupted one of her concerts in order to help a fan to propose to his girlfriend. The popstar paused during her performance of ‘Single Ladies/Put A Ring On It’ during a concert in Florida. The stadium was then plunged into darkness, while BeyoncĂ© said to the crowd: “I need a light… I’m not sure if production knows about this, but Lindell has something he wants to sing.”

She then handed her microphone over to the fan, who said: “BeyoncĂ©, you told me if I like it, I need to put a ring on it.” He then got on one knee and proposed to his girlfriend, who accepted to a loud cheer from the audience.

Here you’ll find all the media/updates from tonight’s 2009 BET Awards. Just keep refreshing and checking back for the latest!

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Arrivals

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Backstage Photoshoot

I’ve added a photo of BeyoncĂ© rehearsing at the 2009 BET Awards to the gallery. It’s a given that BeyoncĂ© is going to pay tribute to the late great Michael Jackson but we’ll have to wait until the show airs tonight to see what she does! I’ll be recording BeyoncĂ© all night so come back here for the videos!

Beyoncé posed for the British edition of GQ Magazine back in 2007. I finally got my hands on some outtakes taken by photographer Simon Emmett and added them to the gallery! This is one of my favorite shoots of Bey. She looks so stunning. Check out 10 medium quality outtakes from the shoot by clicking on the thumbnails below.

Scans from the May 2009 issue of Upscale Magazine have been added to BeyoncéGallery. Thanks a lot to Amy for donating them! Click on the thumbnails below to view the high qualities.

BeyoncĂ© performed in Philadelphia tonight as part of the I Am… Tour. I’ll be adding pictures later, but I had to post this video of BeyoncĂ© honoring and paying tribute to Michael Jackson. She sang one of his songs, “I Can’t Help It”, from his album Off the Wall. You can also read a review of tonight’s concert in the post below about her speaking on Michael.

As the crowd filtered into the Wachovia Center tonight to see Beyoncé Knowles, the arena was filled with the songs of Michael Jackson.

One after another - “Billie Jean,” “Beat It,” “Thriller” - they paid tribute to the singer, who died Thursday and who left a profound mark on Knowles’ career. Halfway through the show, she made the debt explicit.

“If you know anything about me, you know that the reason I’m here is because of Michael Jackson,” she said. “He taught me just about everything I know.”

Her confident stage persona cracked for just an instant, and her voice caught ever so slightly as she said, “He was my hero.”

Knowles followed with a version of Jackson’s “I Can’t Help It,” coaxing those in the audience to raise their voices along with hers. As the song neared its peak, she built one vocal run on top of another, climaxing by singing, “Thank you, Michael” - words that echoed back at her from the back rows.

Knowles has never been shy about acknowledging Jackson’s influence. In 2006, while presenting him with a World Music Award, she said: “If it wasn’t for Michael Jackson, I would never have ever performed. He’s made such an impact on my life and every performer’s life.”

Last year, as part of her “Sasha Fierce” alter ego, she began sporting a titanium “roboglove” on one hand, emulating — consciously or not — Jackson’s rhinestone-studded glove.

Jackson, a consummate singer and dancer who shifted identities with every new album, exploited the then-nascent medium of music videos to blur the line between art and endorsement; his videos were commercials, and his famed 1984 Pepsi commercial doubled as promotion for his music.

Knowles has taken the full-court-press media strategy to greater lengths, in the process signing a deal with the same soda company as her idol.

Last night, Nia Evans, 15, of Wilmington, wore a homemade T-shirt that read, “Michael Jackson will live forever.”

“Michael Jackson was hip-hop and I love him and he’s gone,” she said while waiting in line with her mother.

“He was the icon of the old decades,” she said, casting a glance at her mother, “and BeyoncĂ© is the icon of this decade.”

While P. Diddy, The Game, Usher, Chris Brown, Mario Winans and Boyz II Men recorded Michael Jackson tribute song, Beyonce Knowles and Jay-Z choose to remember the late singer on-stage when 2009 BET Awards is kicked off on June 28. Joining them to pay tribute to Michael at the event are other performers which include Ne-Yo and The-Dream.

Beyonce and the other BET musical acts actually have rehearsed their songs for weeks, but they are willing to change the numbers in a bid to honor Michael. “To change it up in three days is something that’s not easy but they’re all willing and looking forward to it,” the awards’ producer Stephen Hill told Associated Press. “There’s a direct line from Ne-Yo to Michael Jackson. There’s a direct line from Beyonce to Michael Jackson. There’s a direct line from Jay-Z to Michael Jackson. I think they’ll want to pay tribute in their own way.”

Beside those singers, other musicians such as Usher and Justin Timberlake who didn’t plan to attend the gala ceremony, are rushing their way to Los Angeles to join their fellow celebs for this tribute. “We’re adding on. We’re trying to do the numbers we had already planned and we’re trying to add on, so it may be a longer show than we anticipated,” Debra L. Lee, Chairman and Chief Executive of Black Entertainment Television (BET) promised.

“This is going to be the first gathering of people who really cared for and were influenced by him since his death. It’s a tall order for us but we have every intention of paying respect to Michael Jackson,” Stephen commented. Then, Debra added, “There’s no artist that’s going to want to get up there and talk about themselves. They’re going to want to talk about Michael. We want to give out the awards, we want them to have their moment but it’s going to be more geared toward Michael Jackson.”

BeyoncĂ© called Jackson’s death a “tragic loss” on a “terrible day.”
“The incomparable Michael Jackson has made a bigger impact on music than any other artist in the history of music,” the 27-year-old singer said. “He was magic. He was what we all strive to be. He will always be the King of Pop!
“Life is not about how many breaths you take, but about how many moments in life that take your breath away. For anyone who has ever seen, felt, or heard his art, we are all honored to have been alive in this generation to experience the magic of Michael Jackson. I love you Michael.” - Quote from E! Online