Mary J. Blige Essentials

Mary J. Blige Essentials

Mary J. Blige is that rare singer who can channel your pain—and then drag you onto the dance floor to sweat it away. Born Mary Jane Blige in the Bronx in 1971, the artist who would be dubbed the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul in the ’90s was raised mainly in Yonkers, NY, where she grew up listening to the greats: Aretha, Chaka, and Gladys Knight. Her voice is elastic, scrappy, and versatile, with more than a hint of world-weary grit. Her 1992 debut, What’s the 411?, spawned the ubiquitous “Real Love” and helped set the template for R&B’s marriage to hip-hop. Blige’s life was never separate from her art, and fans have followed her through addiction, marriage, divorce, and therapy, connecting with songs like “Not Gon’ Cry” and “No More Drama” out of deep identification: Here was an artist who sang women’s realities as they were almost never presented in popular music—and who always came out stronger. 1999’s Mary saw her move toward a more classic sound, though 2001’s smash “Family Affair” swung back toward hip-hop; that fertile tension has remained in her music since.

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