Tina Knowles Reveals Why There's a New Chapter in Her “Matriarch” Paperback
Tina Knowles Reveals Why There's a New Chapter in Her “Matriarch” Paperback
Angel Saunders, Yamillah HurtadoFri, April 24, 2026 at 3:00 PM UTC
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Tina Knowles speaks at the 2026 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USCCredit: Michael Tullberg/Getty -
Tina Knowles reveals why the paperback edition of her memoir is slightly different from the hardcover
Matriarch: A Memoir was initially released in hardcover on April 22, 2025
The mother of Beyoncé and Solange shares intimate details about her life, from parenthood to marriage and beyond
Tina Knowles is giving fans even more in her memoir the second time around.
During a conversation with moderator Angel Jennings at the 2026 L.A. Times Festival of Books on Saturday, April 18, the 72-year-old businesswoman and author opened up on why she decided to add a new chapter in the paperback version of Matriarch.
MatriarchCredit: One World
“I end the book with finding out I have breast cancer and going through surgery, just a little bit about it,” Knowles said at the event, which was held at USC.
“And I've had so many people to ask me, ‘Well, what did you do? How did you take care of yourself? You know, how was your mental state?’ And all of that,” she explained.
The hardcover version of Matriarch: A Memoir was published in April 2025 and followed her rise from a little girl in Texas to a “cultural icon, businesswoman, fashion designer and philanthropist,” according to an official synopsis.
In the book, the mother of Beyoncé, 44, and Solange, 39, revealed she was diagnosed with breast cancer after missing a mammogram. After its success, Knowles said she decided to share more of her journey.
“I just thought that would be a good idea to update it and just put a paperback out because you reach a different audience with paperbacks,” Knowles said. “And I love the idea of that because I wanted that to happen, but I also wanted to catch people up on what happened since that time and all the lessons that I learned from having that experience because it was a tough ordeal.”
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Doctors discovered stage 1 breast cancer in her left breast, and Knowles underwent surgery to remove the tumor, as well as a breast reduction in 2024.
Tina Knowles (R) speaks at the 2026 Los Angeles Times Festival of Books at USCCredit: Michael Tullberg/Getty
Now Knowles is urging individuals to “get your mammograms.”
“I could have missed mine because I missed two mammograms and didn't even realize it during COVID,” she said. “Finding out that I had breast cancer and catching it at the early stage was, you know, it's a miracle. So go and get your mammograms. [It] is so important to take care of yourself.”
The matriarch also shared her gratitude for her strong support system during her time of need.
“I don't care if they're related to you by blood or if they're friends, you need your inner circle during that time because no matter at what stage, when you hear the word ‘cancer,’ it is the most frightening thing that you can ever go through and you need people around you that are gonna support you and get you through it,” Knowles said. “And thank God I had plenty of people that helped me get through it, but some people are not that fortunate.”
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Matriarch: A Memoir is available in paperback on April 28 and available for preorder now, wherever books are sold.
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Source: “AOL Entertainment”
