Mary Jane Blige (born January 11, 1971), is a three-time Grammy Award-winning American R&B, soul, and hip-hop soul singer, songwriter, producer, and actress who has sold over sixty-five million albums and singles worldwide. She is widely known as the "Queen of Hip-Hop Soul".
Birth name Mary Jane Blige
Also known as Brook Lynn, The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul
Born January 11, 1971 (age 36)
Origin The Bronx, New York, United States
Genre(s) R&B, soul, hip-hop soul
Occupation(s) Singer, songwriter, record producer, actress
Years active 1990–present
Label(s) Matriarch/Geffen
(2003–present)
MCA
(1997?2)
Uptown/MCA
(1992?6)
Website MJBlige.com
Background
Blige was born in the Bronx, New York City, New York to a jazz musician father and a nurse mother. When she was four, her father, Thomas, left the family, leaving her mother Cora to raise two children by herself. A couple years later, Mary's family relocated to Yonkers, where they resided in one of the city's most dangerous housing projects. She sang lead in her church's choir, and at seven she won a talent contest singing Aretha Franklin's "Respect". On the February 1, 2006 episode of The Oprah Winfrey Show, Mary revealed that she was sexually assaulted as a child by a family friend.
In her teen years, Blige began experimenting with recreational drugs and eventually dropped out of high school. She has a young brother named Bruce Miller (he contributed lyrics to "Family Affair"), as well as sisters LaTonya Blige-DaCosta (the woman dancing with Mary in her "Family Affair" music video) and Jonquell.
Music career
In 1988, at age seventeen, Blige recorded an impromptu cover of Anita Baker's 1986 "Caught Up in the Rapture" at a recording booth in a local shopping mall. Her mother's boyfriend at the time later played the cassette for a music industry contact, Jeff Redd, a recording artist and A&R runner for Uptown Records. In 1989 she was signed to the label, becoming the company's youngest and first female artist.
After signing with Uptown, her early years at the company had little activity as the label continued to focus most of its attention on its more established acts; she became the label's background singer. In 1990, she did her first live show as a background singer for artist Jeff Redd at the Apollo. In the same year, she also sang the hook on "I'll Do 4 U" by rapper and label mate Father MC. Mary also appeared in the concert-themed music video, in the role of a back-up singer.
What's the 411?
What's the 411? (1992)Blige's debut album with Uptown was overseen by up-and-coming label executive Sean "Puffy" Combs. The project included some of the top R&B and hip-hop producers of the time, including Tony Dofat, Mark Morales (of The Fat Boys fame), Mark C. Rooney, and Dave "Jam" Hall. Also included in the producers mix were Combs and Donald "DeVante Swing" DeGrate (member of, and driving force behind, fellow Uptown act Jodeci).
On July 28, 1992, Uptown released What's the 411?. That summer, the album's lead single, "You Remind Me", was released to radio; it peaked at number twenty-nine on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, and climbed to number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs. It was followed up that fall with "Real Love", which fared even better ? becoming Blige's second number-one on the R&B chart and first top ten Hot 100 single, where it peaked at number seven. Both singles were also certified Gold.
More What's the 411? singles followed into 1993, including: "Reminisce", a cover of Rufus's 1975 "Sweet Thing", and "Love No Limit". By the end of 1993, What's the 411? had sold two million copies, and Blige had been crowned "The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul". Mary confesses at the time she believed the title to be nothing more than a marketing tool. The album's success spun off What's the 411? Remix, a remix album released in December that was used to extend the life of the What's the 411? singles on the radio into 1994.
My Life
My Life (1994)On November 29, 1994, Uptown Records released Blige's second studio album, My Life. Darker, moodier, and slightly less uptempo than its predecessor; the set was again overseen by Combs (then calling himself "Puff Daddy"). Combs co-produced all but one of the albums tracks, and took over as Blige's manager.
Unlike What's the 411?, Blige helped write a large part of the material, basing that on her personal life ? hence the title. Although overwhelmingly praised by both critics and fans, Blige also received some criticism for the album being so sample-heavy.
The album's first single, "Be Happy", peaked at number twenty-nine on the Hot 100, and rose to number six on the R&B chart. In early 1995, it was followed up with a cover of Rose Royce's 1976 "I'm Going Down". Other My Life singles included: "You Bring Me Joy", "I Love You", as well as the heavily played (but never officially released as singles) album tracks, "Mary Jane (All Night Long)" and "My Life". The album proved to be yet another multi-Platinum success for Blige, going triple Platinum. In spite of its success and her growing fame, Blige later admitted she was simultaneously dealing with long time bouts with drug addiction, alcoholism, and depression; in addition to an abusive relationship with Hailey. It was around this time that Death Row Records CEO, Suge Knight, approached Blige and signed her to Suge Management as a part-time manager and consultant.
Also in 1995, Blige involved herself in several outside projects: recording a cover of Aretha Franklin's classic "(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman" for the soundtrack to the hit FOX's series New York Undercover and "Everyday It Rains", co-written by R&B singer Faith Evans, for the soundtrack to the hip-hop bio pic The Show. That summer she scored a hit duet with rapper Method Man on his song, "I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By" (which sampled the classic Marvin Gaye and Tammi Terrell's 1968 "You're All I Need to Get By"). Later in the year, she also recorded the Babyface-penned and -produced "Not Gon' Cry", for the soundtrack to motion picture Waiting to Exhale. The Platinum-selling single rose to number two on the Billboard Hot 100 and number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs in early 1996, and became her biggest hit at the time. That year, Mary won her first Grammy Award ? "Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group" for her collaboration with Method Man.
Share My World
Share My World (1997)On April 22, 1997, MCA Records released Blige's third album, Share My World. She and Combs had dissolved their working relationship, so, unlike her first two albums, he had no involvement in the project. Instead, a group high-profile producers were involved, including: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Chucky Thompson, R. Kelly, Babyface, and most notably an up-and-coming Rodney Jerkins, who helmed a significant portion of the album.
Share My World, a noticeably more vibrant and optimistic toned set, debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and spawned four hit singles: "Love Is All We Need" (featuring Nas), "I Can Love You" (featuring Lil' Kim), "Everything", and "Seven Days". It was certified triple Platinum, selling over four million copies in the U.S alone and over five million worldwide. In early 1998, Blige won an American Music Award for "Favorite Soul/R&B Album". That summer she embarked on the Share My World Tour, which resulted in a Gold-certified live album released later that year simply titled The Tour. The album spawned one single, "Misty Blue".
Mary
Mary (1999)On August 17, 1999, Blige's fourth album, titled Mary was released. A departure from her more familiar hip-hop-oriented sound, this set featured a more earthy, whimsical, and adult contemporary-tinged collection of songs, reminiscent to 1970s and early 1980s soul. Also featured on the album were high-profile guests, including Aretha Franklin (who dueted with her on "Don't Waste Your Time"), Elton John (who played keys on "Deep Inside", which featured a sample of his '70s-era hit "Bennie and the Jets"), Eric Clapton (who played guitar on "Give Me You"), and Lauryn Hill (who wrote, produced, and sang background on "All That I Can Say"). Blige also recorded a cover of Stevie Wonder's 1976 "As" with George Michael, which is featured on the UK release and also on the Australian release of his greatest hits album Ladies & Gentlemen: The Best of George Michael.
On December 14, 1999, the album was re-released as a double-disc set. The second disc was enhanced with the videos for the singles "All That I Can Say" and "Deep Inside" and also included two bonus tracks ? "Sincerity" (featuring Nas and DMX) and "Confrontation" (a collaboration with hip-hop duo Funkmaster Flex & Big Kap originally from their 1999 album The Tunnel).
Though the album was critically praised, becoming her most nominated release to date, and sold respectfully well (going double Platinum and moving almost two million), it wasn't as commercially successful as Blige's prior albums: all of the singles ("All That I Can Say", "Deep Inside", "Your Child", and "Give Me You") were less performed on the radio and did more poorly on the charts. Blige and MCA also used the album for the nightclub market by issuing club-friendly dance remixes of the Mary singles. In lieu of this, Mary scored a number-one hit on the Billboard Hot Dance Club Play chart with "Your Child", which topped the chart for one week in October 2000.
The video for the song "Give Me You" featured basketball player Michael Jordan.
In 2000, a Japan-only compilation, Ballads, was released; it featured what was considered the best of Mary's ballad material.
No More Drama
No More Drama original cover (2001)On August 28, 2001, MCA released Blige's fifth studio album, No More Drama. The album's first single, "Family Affair", produced by Dr. Dre, became her first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for six consecutive weeks. It was followed by the top twenty Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis-produced title track (originally recorded for the Mary album), which sampled "Nadia's Theme", the piano-driven theme song to the daytime drama The Young and the Restless.
No More Drama re-release cover (2002)Though the album sold almost two million copies in the U.S., MCA decided to repackage and re-release the album on January 29, 2002. The No More Drama re-release featured a new album cover, deleted three of the songs from the original track listing, while adding two brand-new songs (one of which was the third single and top twenty Hot 100 hit "Rainy Dayz", featuring Ja Rule), plus two remixes ? one of the title track, serviced by Puff Daddy (then known as "P. Diddy"). The album sold another million-plus units in the U.S. and five million worldwide, and Blige won her second Grammy ? "Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" for the song "He Think I Don't Know".
On July 22, 2002, Dance for Me was released on MCA Records. This album is a collection of club remixes of some of her past top hits including the Junior Vasquez remix of "Your Child" and the Thunderpuss mix of "No More Drama". This album was also released in a limited edition double pack 12" vinyl for DJ-friendly play in nightclubs.
Love & Life
Love & Life (2003)On August 26, 2003, Blige's sixth album Love & Life was released by Geffen Records, which had absorbed her previous label, MCA. Blige heavily collaborated with Diddy for this set. Because of the history between them on What's the 411? and My Life, which is generally regarded as their best work, and Blige having just had her successful fifth album, expectations were high for the reunion effort.
Despite the album debuting at number one on the Billboard 200, Love & Life's lead-off single, the Diddy-produced "Love @ 1st Sight" (which featured a rap cameo by Method Man), just barely cracked the top ten on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs ? while altogether missing the top twenty on the Hot 100. The two following singles, "Ooh!" and "Not Today" (featuring Eve) fared worse. Although the album was certified Platinum, it became Blige's lowest-selling and biggest commercial disappointment to date. Critics and fans alike largely panned the disc for its lack of consistency and noticeable attempts to recapture the early Blige/Combs glory.
Blige and Diddy reportedly struggled and clashed during the making of this album. The public's lukewarm reception to Love & Life contributed to the two parting company again when the project was completed.
The Breakthrough
The Breakthrough (2005)In spite of buzz circulating in the summer of 2005 that Blige's next release would be a retrospective aptly titled Reminisce, she and her label formally announced that an album of brand-new material was on the way instead. On December 20, Geffen released Mary's seventh studio album, titled The Breakthrough.
The album debuted at number one on both the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums and Billboard 200 charts, selling 727,000 in its first week ? the biggest first-week sales for an R&B solo female artist in SoundScan history, the fifth largest first-week sales for a female artist and the fourth largest debut of 2005.
The production on the album included Blige, Rodney Jerkins, will.i.am, Bryan Michael Cox, 9th Wonder, Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Raphael Saadiq, Cool and Dre, Dre & Vidal, and included a duet with U2 on the cover of their 1992 hit, "One". The lead-off single "Be Without You" quickly raced up both the Hot 100 and R&B charts; it topped the R&B chart for a record-setting fifteen consecutive weeks and peaked at number three on the Hot 100. The album's second single, "Enough Cryin", peaked at number thirty-two on the Billboard Hot 100, and rose to number two on the R&B chart.
"One" was the album's second single in the UK, and gave Mary her biggest hit to date in the UK, peaking at number two on the UK Singles Chart. In addition, "One" was voted in Britain as the song with the nation's favorite lyrics: "One Life, With Each Other Sisters, Brothers".
On December 31, 2006, "One" was announced by BBC Radio 1 to be the thirty-fifth highest-selling single of 2006 in the UK.
The current single from The Breakthrough is "Take Me as I Am", which peaked at number three on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs.
Since The Breakthrough's release, it has sold nearly three million copies in the U.S and is one of the five best-selling albums of 2006. Blige won nine Billboard Music Awards for work done on The Breakthrough. She also received eight Grammy Award nominations for the 2007 Grammy Awards for The Breakthrough, the most of any artist for the 2007 awards. "Be Without You" is nominated for both "Record of the Year" and "Song of the Year". The album has sold over six million copies worldwide as yet.
Brook Lynn
In 2006, on a guest appearance for Busta Rhymes' "Touch It" (Remix), Mary revealed that she had also performed using an alter ego, as rapper Brook Lynn. Brook is also featured on "Enough Cryin" and "Gonna Breakthrough", both from The Breakthrough.
Current activities
On November 14, 2006 Blige released an album of duets, Mary J. Blige & Friends, with accompanying DVD at Circuit City stores. Duet partners include Sting, Santana, Elton John, Robin Thicke, and Patti LaBelle. All the proceeds, through February 2007, from the duets album are to go the Boys & Girls Club of America.
On December 12, 2006, Reflections - A Retrospective was released. The album contained some of Blige's top songs as well as four new songs including the singles "We Ride (I See the Future)" (the first single) and "Reflections (I Remember)". The first single from the album in the UK, however, was "MJB Da MVP". The track was only included on the international version of the album. The album peaked at number nine in the U.S, selling over 170,000 copies in its first week, while reaching number forty in the UK. The album showed consistency in the UK, as it remained between forty-two and forty-four for three weeks, eventually peaking inside the top forty in the album's fourth week on the chart.
Blige will also be featured with Aretha Franklin on the soundtrack to motion picture Bobby. They duet on the lead track, "Never Gonna Break My Faith".
On December 7, 2006, Mary became the artist with the most number of Grammy Awards nominations for the year, eight:
"Record of the Year" for "Be Without You"
"Song of the Year" for "Be Without You"
"Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals" for "One" (with U2)
"Best Female R&B Vocal Performance" for "Be Without You"
"Best R&B Performance by a Duo or Group with Vocals" for "Love Changes" (with Jamie Foxx)
"Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance" for "I Found My Everything"
"Best R&B Song" for "Be Without You"
"Best R&B Album" for The Breakthrough
The 49th Annual Grammy Awards will be held on February 11, 2007 in Los Angeles, California.
[edit] Personal life
Blige had a tumultuous, very public six-year affair with Jodeci frontman Cedric "K-Ci" Hailey, which ended in 1997. After that, she kept many of her relationships private. She has been linked with many male stars including singer Case, producer/singer Malik Pendleton, and rapper Nas.
In 2000, Blige began a relationship with record industry executive Martin Kendu Isaacs (known as simply Kendu). Blige said that Isaacs got Blige to kick her alcohol habit after issuing an ultimatum that he was leaving her if she came home drunk. Isaacs and Blige married on December 7, 2003 in a small private ceremony at Blige's home. Blige is now the stepmother of Kendu's three children from a previous marriage. Blige has talked about having children of her own one day.
Acting career
Blige as Mrs. Butler on Prison Song (2001)Blige made her acting debut in 1998 on The Jamie Foxx Show playing Ola Mae, a preacher's daughter who wanted to sing more than gospel music. In 2001, she played Mrs. Butler in the independent feature film, Prison Song, starring rapper Q-Tip. The same year, Blige made a cameo on the Lifetime network series, Strong Medicine, playing Simone Fellows, the lead singer of a band who is sick, but refuses to seek help.
In 2004, Blige starred in her first off-Broadway play, The Exonerated. The play chronicled the experiences of real death row inmates. Blige portrayed Sunny Jacobs, a woman who spent twenty years in prison for a crime she did not commit.
In December 2005, it was reported that Blige had landed the starring role in the upcoming MTV Films biopic on Nina Simone. The film's writer, Cynthia Mort, said Blige was the perfect person to bring Simone to life. There is no word yet as to when the film will start shooting.
