Interview: Mary J. Blige

why is she famous? Mary J. Blige is the Queen of Hip Hop/Soul. The three-time Grammy Award-winning singer-songwriter-producer has paved the way for legions of female R&B and hip-hop singers over the years. Her seventh studio album, The Breakthrough, has been tearing up the charts since its release in December 2005. quick bio Seeking an escape from a rough childhood in the projects, Mary J. Blige quickly turned to music. Though she has been singing since she was a child, her career officially began in 1992 with the release of her debut album, What's the 411?. Since then, Mary has released six more highly successful albums and has had a major impact on the R&B/hip-hop world. With the success of her latest album, The Breakthrough, which had the biggest-ever first-week sales for an R&B solo female artist, Mary is now turning to a new passion: acting.

Q-1: Your most recent album, The Breakthrough, has been doing amazingly well since its release in December 2005. But the buzz was that you were originally supposed to release a greatest hits album. Is this true and what made you change your mind to put out original material instead?

Well, it wasn't me that changed my mind 'cause the record company automatically was trying to put out a greatest hits. But I guess they didn't realize the urgency in the record because I guess they had their minds set on a greatest hits. But when they finally realized the urgency in the record, I guess by listening to it, then everything got switched around.

Q-2: Can we still expect that greatest hits album in the future?

Later on, not right now, not at this moment.

The "J" in Mary J. Blige stands for Jane.

Q-3: You worked with U2 as well as so many talented producers on this album, and over the years, you've worked with so many talented artists. Who did you like working with the most?

I truly enjoy Bono, I think he is an amazing person, I love him. And he just, our chemistry together, man, is just amazing, I guess 'cause his heart is amazing, and I have an amazing heart, and that was just fun. will.i.am was fun to work with, too.

Q-4: And are there any other artists you haven't worked with yet but would like to?

Um, there are so many. But for production, I always say Kanye West, I would love, if it doesn't happen, that's cool, but I would love for it to happen. I would love to work with Kanye.

Find out what Mary is nervous about...

 

Q-5: You are credited over and over for having built up the careers of so many R&B and hip hop artists, and particularly for having been a major influence on female singers like Beyonce, Alicia Keys, Ashanti, and many more. How does it feel to have such a major influence on the genre in general and specifically to have paved the way for so many female artists?

It feels really good because at the end of the day, I know that I didn't get instantly gratified for everything that I did, y'know, and I had to work really, really hard for it. And if me paving the way, laying down the bricks, the cement, or whatever needs to be laid down, for these other artists to come up, you look back at all of that work, it just makes you feel like, wow, I have no complaints with the road that I laid down. There's a lot of good work out there.

Q-6: Who were your most important musical influences along the way?

I would say it would be Anita Baker, Chaka Khan, Teena Marie, Melissa Morgan, Mariah Carey, Aretha Franklin, Gladys Knight, Al Green, Otis Redding, Stevie Wonder, Sam Cooke, The Slayton Singers, and the list goes on and on.

Q-7: And who do you feel is the best female artist out there right now?

Um, me! (Laughs). You have incredible talent, like Alicia Keys is incredible... very talented person. Um, Fantasia is incredibly talented. Beyonce is talented. There's some great talent out there.

Q-8: I'm sure you'll agree that it is incredibly hard in the entertainment world today to keep a head on your shoulders. What's your advice for young artists out there today to avoid getting sucked into the negative aspects of fame and keep their heads on straight?

Well, just don't let the hype of what people are saying and how much they love you, y'know, just take the compliment and be thankful that people are complimenting you, but don't let it consume you, don't let your circumstances around you and the way people view you make you act a certain way. Just be whoever it is you are and stay humble and enjoy the ride.

Q-9: You mentioned Fantasia before. What do you think of the overnight sensations that are produced now on shows like American Idol? Does it frustrate you to see that some artists have it so easy now?

It doesn't frustrate me, it kinda hurts me because it's gonna hurt the artists in the long run when they get the instant gratification for one single or one album, because as quick as people take you up, they run away and they drop you when the next person comes out, y'know, that's made a better record than you, so if you haven't felt any pain of failure or any pain of rejection in this music business, you're gonna really suffer. Being instantly gratified is gonna hurt a lot of people.

Mary has the Chinese symbol for strength tattooed on her right hand.

Q-10: Your albums have been incredibly successful over the years and you've won many awards, but is there anything you haven't accomplished yet that you would like to accomplish or that you strive toward?

I'm striving toward this acting thing. I'm definitely gonna work hard on that, whatever comes my way, I'm gonna work hard on it.

Q-11: Yes, you're set to play Nina Simone in her upcoming biopic. How do you feel about this particular project?

Actually, that's something that just came out of nowhere! (laughs). Yeah, I was not expecting that at all, y'know, I'm a little nervous about it to be honest with you, but I've been doing some research, I have read some stuff on her, and I think if we pull it off, it's gonna be a challenge because she's definitely different from me physically, so we'll have to pull off her physical gestures. As far as her history, I can try to draw from somewhere in me to make that happen.

Q-12: So can we expect to see you in other film projects in the future?

Oh definitely, yes. It has been probably about four years now I've been thinking about this.

Q-13: What other projects are in store for you in the near future?

Just touring, probably, I don't know the dates yet, but that's the next thing, and just making some more music and making some movies, and getting the proper clothing line launched so the women, my fans can be happy.