Why did Beyoncé fire Mathew Knowles? Singer’s complicated relationship with her father explored as he defends her amid Kanye West's attack

Beyoncé fired her father, Mathew Knowles, as her manager in 2011 when she learned that he had been stealing from her. Though she maintained that the breakup was solely for commercial purposes.

Recently, after Kanye West made derogatory comments about Beyoncé and Jay-Z's 7-year-old twins, Sir and Rumi Carter, Mathew Knowles was quick to defend his daughter and grandkids.

On March 28, 2011, she announced that her father, Mathew Knowles, would no longer be serving as her manager. She stressed in a statement that their relationship wasn’t affected and that it was purely a business move.

She said:

"I've only parted ways with my father on a business level. He is my father for life, and I love my dad dearly. I am grateful for everything he has taught me."

She continued explaining her split from her father, Matthew Knowles,

"I grew up watching both he and my mother [Tina Knowles] manage and own their own businesses. They were hard-working entrepreneurs and I will continue to follow in their footsteps.”

Beyoncé claimed their split was mutual and presented it as a logical professional decision, with even Mathew claiming it was mutual, as he wanted to concentrate more on the gospel musicians that he represented.

Later, TMZ got a hold of legal papers revealing that Live Nation had accused Mathew Knowles of embezzling funds from Beyoncé’s 2010 I Am... World Tour. According to the company, he had been stealing from Beyoncé without her knowledge. He denied all accusations and filed a lawsuit against the company.

In a 2011 interview with the Associated Press, Mathew Knowles said:

“We absolutely have not taken any money from Beyoncé, and all dollars will be accounted for. In no way have we stole money. Again, this about the people who have made these claims — they have to come into the light.”

He went on to say,

“The relationship with Beyonce is extremely amicable. I want to make that clear. Where there’s concern is the people that she’s doing business with. I’m challenging all of these folks on integrity, professional integrity.”

He also claimed that they would have to work things out in court:

“The only way we will be able to understand this is through a court of law. That’s the only way either one of us will be clear if someone in our camps did something that was not correct.”

Mathew Knowles has praised Beyoncé's accomplishments despite their split. He continues to post about her on his social media platforms, sometimes congratulating her or simply praising her.

According to a statement released by Knowles' Music Entertainment, Beyoncé and her father, Mathew Knowles, “unequivocally have had and continue to have a close personal and business relationship…” and her father remains her sole and exclusive manager.

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Matthew Knowles defends Beyoncé and grandkids after Kanye West's offensive remarks

After Kanye West started attacking people on X with a string of offensive remarks, including antisemitic ones and feuds with other musicians, he also spoke about Beyoncé and Jay-Z. He made offensive remarks about the singer and rapper’s twin kids, using inappropriate language. In a now-deleted tweet, Kanye West, famously known as Ye, wrote on X:

"WAIT HAS ANYONE EVER SEEN JAY Z AND BEYONCES YOUNGER KIDS THEYRE R***** NO LIKE LITERALLY."

For this, he received immediate backlash.

Tina Knowles, the Halo hitmaker’s mother, was quick to respond. She uploaded a cryptic video on Instagram on March 19, where she can be heard saying:

She can be heard saying,

"So I'm on the set of a photoshoot today for my book and I wanted to tell you a corny joke because I have on all this glamourous hair and makeup."

Before asking,

"I got a corny joke, want to hear it, hear I go. What happens when a snowman throws a tantrum? He has a meltdown. Y'all know that's funny."

In an interview with TMZ on March 21, 2025, Matthew Knowles said,

"People pay a price for being stupid, especially in the music industry.”

he added,

"I'm hopeful Kanye gets the type of help he needs, in terms of mental health."

Beyoncé and Jay-Z have not yet responded to Ye’s offensive remarks, but according to a source, they are discussing a preferred course of action in this case—whether it would be private or handled through legal channels.

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Beyoncé and her father have a close relationship and continue to work together.