I mean… we’ve all thought it, some of us have flat out said it, even Glee referenced it when Mercedes Jones, who was not having it as a background singer said, “I’m Beyoncé I ain’t no Kelly Rowland.”
Kelly's clearly not been oblivious to the chatter and took a mentoring moment as an opportunity to speak her truth on what people have been holding above her head for years. During a candid conversation with The Voice Australia contestant Chris Sebastian, Rowland related to his feelings of being overshadowed by his older brother, and revealed she often felt like she was compared to Beyoncé.
“I know this feeling. Can you imagine what it’s like being in a group with Beyoncé? I would just torture myself in my head. Like, I can’t wear this dress because they’re going to say it’s like B. Or, I can’t have a song like that because it sounds too much like B. They’re gonna compare anyways.”
Kelly went on to admit, “I would be lying if I said ‘No, it’s never bothered me.’ That’s bull. There was a whole decade, if I am being completely honest, decade that it was like the elephant in the room, the thing that would constantly be on my shoulder.”
Despite the comparisons, Rowland has paved her own path to success, releasing four solo projects, including 2002's Simply Deep, 2007's Ms. Kelly, 2011's Here I Am and 2013's Talk a Good Game. Most recently, this past April, she unveiled a new single “COFFEE.”
The “Delimma” singer capped off her advising words with the following: “the world would be boring if we all did the same thing over and over again. And I don’t want to be on [Beyoncé’s] level. I want my own, and Michelle wants her own. When people compare, it’s just so insane to me.”
Preach Kelly preach. We have to agree with her on this one. Let’s put it this way, if it weren’t for all three members of Destiny’s Child then “Bootylicious” and “Survivor” would not exist, and we simply just aren’t interested in living in such a world.
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