She aint tell no lie tho. BEYONCE is the BIGGEST Female star on Planet. And I'm not saying this in terms of #1 singles or most records sold..
Here's a fun fact, I used to live in Africa for some years, and only a few people know who Mariah is or even heard the name "Mariah Carey" in their existence, however everyone knew who Beyonce was LITERALLY even the villagers (those with no T.V's or internet or radio), whether its just by her name or by her music and everything. Beyonce's name is extremely familiar to people in Africa and I'm pretty sure some other parts of the world as well.

But what I know is, if you created a poll and asked people in Africa to name 5 familiar american musicians, here's how it would turn out:
1.Micheal Jackson
2.Beyonce
3.Rihanna
4.Whitney Houston
5.Janet Jackson/Celine Dion