DESTINY’S CHILD - INDEPENDENT WOMEN PART 1

Released: September 14, 2000

Charts:  UK: #1 (1 week) US: #1 (11 weeks)

Destiny’s Child released “Independent Women Part I” on September 14, 2000. Commissioned for the soundtrack of the “Charlie’s Angels” film reboot, the single married blockbuster marketing with an irresistible message of female empowerment. It also marked the first Destiny’s Child release to feature Michelle Williams and the only one to include Farrah Franklin, though Franklin had left the group before the song’s release.

At the time, Destiny’s Child were quickly emerging as one of the defining acts of late-’90s/early-2000s R&B. Following their breakthrough “The Writing’s on the Wall” (1999), the group leaned into themes of strength, independence, and financial autonomy. “Independent Women” extended that vision, with lyrics directly celebrating self-sufficiency: women buying their own cars, paying their own bills, and living without reliance on men.

The song’s origins were rooted in personal experience. Beyoncé Knowles had an argument with her boyfriend and began sketching lyrics about independence. That early draft became “Independent Women Part II,” a version that would later appear on the group’s “Survivor” album (2001). Columbia Records, however, saw the opportunity to tie Destiny’s Child to the “Charlie’s Angels” reboot, whose stars—Drew Barrymore, Cameron Diaz, and Lucy Liu—were even name-checked in the lyrics.

To give the track a polished, radio-ready sound, Columbia turned to hitmaking production duo Poke & Tone (Samuel Barnes and Jean-Claude Olivier), best known for crafting Will Smith’s “Gettin’ Jiggy Wit It” and “Miami.” With additional contributions from Cory Rooney, the team reworked the original version entirely, creating the harder-hitting “Part I” that became the global smash.

Released just weeks before the film premiered, the single was a juggernaut. On November 18, 2000, it hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it stayed for 11 consecutive weeks—a record run for an all-female group. It also topped charts worldwide and became the biggest hit of 2000 in the US.