Kelly Rowland thanks Tina Knowles for her role in training her

Kelly Rowland has often spoken about the immeasurable impact of Beyoncé’s mother, Tina Knowleshad on her. From motherly advice when she was just 11 years old to career guidance as a bona fide popstar, Knowles has been there for it all. During an episode of the “Mama, I Made It” podcast, Rowland, who recently concluded her tour with R&B sensations Brandy and Monica, got candid about how life with Tina Knowles made her the woman she is today.

Before joining Beyoncé in the girl group Destiny’s Child, Rowland moved with her family to Houston, Texas at a young age. As a result, the pair became particularly close, with Knowles often referring to the “Motivation” singer as his “bonus girl.” The love is clearly mutual, as Rowland calls Knowles “Mama T,” and the matriarch embraces her role as grandmother to Rowland’s two children, Titan and Noah.

On the “Mama, I Made It” podcast, Rowland opened up about their “rich” relationship, sharing that it’s been maintained over the decades. “You have to remember that I’ve known my Mama T for so long,” she said. “She knows everything about me. My mannerisms, my tone when I call her. She knows when I’m happy just by one tone,” she continued.

Kelly shared a deeper look into her relationship with Knowles, saying the iconic matriarch has been her “safe space” for years. “I can tell him anything and I’m not judged,” she said. “I am heard, I am seen by her. I see her, I hear her and I love her with every fiber of my being.”

“I can’t believe God thought of me the most by giving me two moms who can give me so much love and then also giving me sisters with Bey and Angie. [Beyince]and Solange,” she added. “The amount of love he gave me through people I can never repay him for.” Kelly said that when she thinks about the main group of women in her life, it makes her emotional because they have been such a strong foundation for her.

Knowles feels the same way about Rowland. In 2021, she wrote an open letter dedicated to her daughters in a magazine.

“I gave birth to two of you, but I have four amazing daughters,” she wrote of her aforementioned niece, Angie.

“Kelly, I know without a doubt that you are a true gift from God. You came to live with us when you were just 11 years old. You were the sweetest, kindest person I have ever met, and still are. You are also a true survivor. You never give up. Your discipline and drive always inspire me,” the “Matriarch” author added.

Elsewhere in the episode, Rowland spoke candidly about her relationship with her father, Christopher Lovett, after three decades apart. As Rowland told the host, she was okay with not having a relationship with her father until she thought about her son’s future questions about her.

“What was I going to tell him?” she said. “I could tell him everything about his grandmother. But what am I going to tell him about my father?” In 2020, Rowland finally reached out to Lovett, an eye-opening experience that brought her a lot of clarity. “…when I was able to meet him and talk to him and look him in the eyes, I understood why I was singing,” she said.