Solo survivor

NOAH WEBSTER is widely held responsible for making American English easier to spell than its British counterpart. Among his greatest hits are the changes of musick to music, centre to center and plough to plow, although he failed to persuade the masses that women would be better off as wimmin. Nevertheless, his legacy continues: since the publication of the first genuinely American dictionary in 1806, lexicographers are forever updating it with new words. Recent additions to Merriam-Webster's Collegiate Dictionary include netiquette (internet etiquette), Botox, comb-over, and phat.

And then there's bootylicious - a word that, having been defined by Destiny's Child in their video to the song of the same name, gained widespread acceptance and entered the dictionary in 2002. A defiant hip-shake to stick-thin catwalk models, here was a word that embodied the female form. And in penning it, Destiny's Child, according to fashion designer Donatella Versace, 'made women all over the world realise that rail-thin models might look good on the runway, but it is women with real bodies - curves and a butt - who look good in reality'.

Beyonce Knowles, Kelly Rowland and Michelle Williams have all done very nicely as independent women too. With Crazy in Love, Knowles has managed to add 'Uh-oh! Uh-oh! Uh-oh!' to the dance-floor lexicon; Williams has surprised everyone with her two gospel-tinged albums while Rowland's solo outing Simply Deep became an unexpected smash in Europe (including a No 1 album in Britain). Her duet with rapper Nelly on Dilemma made her the first member of the trio to have a No 1 hit without her band mates.

They've also diversified. While Williams took over from Toni Braxton in the hit Broadway show Aida last year, Hollywood has beckoned the other two. Following Knowles' turn as Foxxy Cleopatra in Austin Powers: Goldmember, Rowland appeared in Hong Kong director Ronny Yu Yan-tai's Freddy Vs Jason last year. While Knowles has dabbled in her own clothing range and flew in Giorgio Armani's private jet to his Milan show last year, Rowland made her second visit to Hong Kong last weekend (the first being a whirlwind promotional visit with Destiny's Child in 2001) to dazzle the crowds at the Louis Vuitton 150th birthday bash at Tamar.

With this in mind, you'd think Rowland might be tired of being compared to her more famous friend. 'Not at all,' she says, stirring extra honey into her tea at the Ritz-Carlton hotel, the morning after the party. The previous evening, she frolicked on the stage in a short, shimmering number; today the 23-year-old singer appears in a holy-white trouser-suit, complete with a small crucifix dangling around her neck. Gone is the red bob of two years ago, replaced with long, lustrous curls. From temptress to gospel singer - such are the many layers of Destiny's Child. Whereas solo careers invariably mean the end of the band, Rowland is adamant that the three members of Destiny's Child are merely fortifying themselves before they reunite to record their fifth album in the summer.

'There are so many silly rumours going around that we've broken up,' she says. 'I'm not saying I'm surprised that people are saying things - everyone is at an incredible level right now. Beyonce is at an incredible level, so is Michelle. Thankfully, people are saying the same thing about me, and we know that when we finally bring all that back and add all those ingredients into Destiny's Child, then it can't be nothing but good.'