POP MUSIC Beyonc & eacute;'s talent goes beyond her song-and-dance routine

MINNEAPOLIS-ST. PAUL STAR TRIBUNE
Beyonc & eacute; is too often viewed like musical bling-bling. People usually look first at the flash. Take Grammy night.
She walked away with a show-stealing five shiny statues. She wore four gorgeous gowns. And she gave two perfect performances.
But did anyone know that pop's current It Girl wrote most of her Grammy-winning songs? She also produced them. Still, many people just think of her as a bootylicious glamour puss with a standout voice.
"It is frustrating at times. I've accomplished so many other things that people don't really like to acknowledge," said Beyonc & eacute;, 22, who is on the Ladies First Tour with Alicia Keys and Missy Elliott. "I'm very involved with everything -- all the performances, the ideas, the concepts, the videos, the editing of the videos, the costumes."
Her track record should earn her R-E-S-P-E-C-T. Her 2003 solo debut disc, "Dangerously in Love," has topped 3 million in sales thanks to three hits, "Crazy in Love" (with Jay-Z), "Baby Boy" (with Sean Paul) and "Me Myself and I." The trio she fronts, Destiny's Child, has sold more than 40 million albums and singles since 1997. She also has starred in the popular movies "The Fighting Temptations" and "Austin Powers in Goldmember."
Tour
For her first solo tour, Beyonc & eacute; came up with most of the ideas. She promises material from her solo CD and a medley of Destiny's Child hits. There will be dancers and costume changes.
"I love Broadway musicals, and I like to watch a lot of those old movies to get my references, and I kind of try to make them current," she said. "I try to expose my fans to ballet and a lot of classical things and a lot of old Hollywood glamour, and mix it with things that are current now."
Like Prince, Beyonc & eacute; can dance and sing at the same time. Other superstars such as Janet Jackson, Britney Spears and Cher rely on taped vocals to assist them during uptempo numbers in concert.
"I don't use backing tapes," Beyonce said. "I've been dancing and singing since I was 9. When we were younger, my dad would have us jogging and singing in harmony. Back then I hated him for that, and I thought that he was just really, really mean. ... We were able to do cartwheels and sing. Now all that is coming in handy."
The anti-Janet?
In an era of vamps and vixens, Beyonc & eacute; seems almost wholesome. After singing "The Star-Spangled Banner" at the Super Bowl this year in a stylish white dress, she has been called the anti-Janet.
"That's crazy," said Beyonce, who entertained at halftime of the NBA All Star Game. "I love Janet Jackson. I grew up watching her and admiring her."
Beyonce is excited about the Ladies First Tour, which has been dubbed the Urban Lilith Fair -- an all-female tour with R & amp;B and hip-hop flavoring. Even though Beyonc & eacute; already has toured solo in Europe, she admits to being nervous about her U.S. tour because she's so accustomed to sharing the stage with her partners in Destiny's Child.
Recently, her Destiny's Child mates unexpectedly joined her at the Soul Train Awards, where she won "entertainer of the year" honors. The trio will return to the studio this summer to record a Destiny's Child album and probably go on tour in the fall.