Solange

Solange (died 10 May, c. 880) was a Frankish shepherdess and a locally venerated Christian saint, whose cult is restricted to Sainte-Solange, Cher. Saint Solange was the patron of the traditional Province of Berry, of which Cher is a part.

Solange was born to a poor but devout family in the town of Villemont, near Bourges, and consecrated her virginity at the age of seven; according to some, her mere presence cured the sick and exorcised devils. The son of the count of Poitiers was highly taken with the beauty and popularity of Solange and approached her when she was working on tending to her sheep, but she rejected his suit. He argued with her to no avail, and so he decided to abduct her.

At night, he came and took Solange by force, but she struggled so violently that she fell from his horse while he was crossing a stream. Her abductor grew enraged and beheaded her with his sword; Solange's severed head invoked three times the Holy Name of Jesus, according to the fully developed legend. Like Saint Denis and other saints in Gaulish territories, Solange picked up her head in her own hands and walked with it as far as the church of Saint-Martin in the village of Saint-Martin-du-Crot (which now bears the name of Sainte-Solange, the only commune in France to bear this name), only dropping truly dead there.

Solange Knowles

Solange Piaget Knowles (born June 24, 1986) is an American singer, songwriter, model, and actress. Knowles was born in Houston, Texas to Mathew and Tina Knowles, both of whom left their careers to support her older sister Beyoncé's recording interests. Expressing an interest in music from an early age, Knowles had several temporary stints in Destiny's Child, before signing with her father's Music World Entertainment label. Aged sixteen, Knowles released her first studio album Solo Star (2003) to moderate commercial and critical success.

In 2004, Knowles married Daniel Smith, eventually giving birth to their son Daniel Julez J. Smith Jr., which prompted a move to Idaho. Between 2005 and 2007, Knowles had several minor acting roles, including the direct-to-video Bring It On: All or Nothing (2006) and continued writing music for Beyoncé and ex-Destiny's Child band members Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams. In 2007, Knowles divorced Smith and moved to Los Angeles, California, beginning to write and record music again. Her second studio album Sol-Angel and the Hadley St. Dreams (2008) deviated from the pop-oriented music of her debut to the Motown Sound of the 1960s and 70s. It peaked at number 9 on the Billboard 200 and received positive reviews from critics. She followed this up with the 1980s pop/R&B-inspired extended play True (2012) and intends to release her third studio album in the future, on her own label Saint Records.