Beyoncé is keeping it simple with her new album title. The singing sensation has announced the numeric name for her upcoming release.


In a cover story for Billboard, the 29-year-old megastar revealed that her fourth solo album is called 4. “We all have special numbers in our lives, and 4 is that for me,” she explained. “It’s the day I was born. My mother’s birthday, and a lot of my friends’ birthdays, are on the fourth; April 4 is my wedding date.”

In addition, she opened up about cutting professional ties with her father Mathew Knowles, who had managed her career up until this year. “It’s not that anything bad happened between us,” the “Run the World (Girls)” singer told the magazine.

“My family has my support always, and they support me, but when you’ve been working with the same people for 15 years, it’s natural to eventually have your own ideas. I believe that parents prepare their kids for the moment that they’re on their own: at this point, I’m taking everything my dad and my mother have taught me, and I’m able to do things my way. We were at a point where we’d learned so much from each other, and now it’s exciting for me to do this on my own and hire my own team. I’ve started managing myself.”

Beyoncé will be honored with the Billboard Millennium Award at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards on May 22 in Las Vegas.

* On naming her fourth solo album 4: “We all have special numbers in our lives, and 4 is that for me. It’s the day I was born. My mother’s birthday, and a lot of my friends’ birthdays, are on the fourth; April 4 is my wedding date.”

* On initially recording over 60 songs for 4: “I started off being inspired by [Afrobeat music pioneer] Fela Kuti. I actually worked with the band from “Fela!” [the hit Broadway musical based on his life] for a couple of days, just to get the feel for the soul and heart of his music; it’s so sexy, and has a great groove you get lost in. I loved his drums, all the horns, how everything was on the one. What I learned most from Fela was artistic freedom: he just felt the spirit. I also found a lot of inspiration in ’90s R&B, Earth, Wind & Fire, DeBarge, Lionel Richie, Teena Marie… I listened to a lot of Jackson 5 and New Edition, but also Adele, Florence + the Machine, and Prince.”

* “At this point, I really know who I am, and don’t feel like I have to put myself in a box. I’m not afraid of taking risks – no one can define me.”

* On ditching her father as manager: “It’s not that anything bad happened between us. My family has my support always, and they support me, but when you’ve been working with the same people for 15 years, it’s natural to eventually have your own ideas… We were at a point where we’d learned so much from each other, and now it’s exciting for me to do this on my own and hire my own team. I’ve started managing myself.”

* “I’m approaching 30, and finally took a break in my life, which I’ve never had. I took more than a year off: I traveled around, spent time with my husband, woke up in my own bed, ate whatever I wanted, went to museums and Broadway plays, watched documentaries, and just had life experiences.”

* “I never get to go to concerts because I’m usually performing, so I saw so many shows – great bands, like Muse and Rage Against the Machine, that also inspired the album.”

* On taking part in the upcoming Clint Eastwood-directed remake of A Star Is Born: “It’s a dream come true; I’m still in shock that it’s really going to happen. Clint Eastwood is clearly the absolute best, and I’m so honored and humbled. I was in no rush to do another movie unless it was the right film, and I didn’t even want to touch A Star is Born unless it was with him.”

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