Forgiving Yourself with Mary J. Blige

IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson - Higher Ground

In this episode of IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson, Grammy-winning artist Mary J. Blige opens up about her journey from a young s

Key takeaways

• Mary J. Blige discovered her singing ability at age seven and was immediately recognized for her vocal mimicry skills.
• Her breakthrough came when a demo tape of her performing Anita Baker's 'Caught Up in the Rapture' reached Andre Harrell, CEO of Uptown Records, leading to her signing with the label.

Main topics

• Mary J. Blige's early life and musical beginnings
• Her journey from the Bronx projects to global stardom

Notable quotes

"I was seven when I realized I could sound like anybody. Like, really do it."

"My mom had a scholarship for singing. And she had us... She couldn't pursue it because she had to take care of us."

Conclusion

Mary J. Blige's conversation with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson reveals a powerful narrative of

Transcript preview

Speaker 4 (0:00) When you said weren't working, what do you mean? Like, if something didn't happen, you know, if a record didn't sell or this didn't happen or, you know, this didn't get that many, whatever, I would go crazy on people. Yeah, yeah. Cursing Speaker 5 (0:13) people Speaker 4 (0:14) to oblivion and all that stuff. So when my drama album came out, I was like, I don't want to release this album without apologizing to every single person at this Speaker 5 (0:23) label. Speaker 4 (0:23) Get everybody, anybody that did anything for me. Line them up. I'm apologizing. I apologize to every single person. Speaker 3 (0:40) This episode is brought to you by Lilly. Speaker 5 (0:46) Hey. Hey, Craig. Welcome to IMO. Speaker 3 (0:49) It sure is nice to be here. Speaker 5 (0:52) I know. I haven't seen you in a second. I know. Speaker 3 (0:55) Yeah, we have a treat today. We've got, Speaker 5 (0:58) oh my gosh, one of my favorite people on the planet. Speaker 3 (1:02) Yeah, you guys have met before. See, this was my first time meeting Mary. I know. You're Speaker 5 (1:07) going to be in for a treat. I know. She's a real one. But this is the first time we've sat down for a conversation. We were talking about... The one and only Mary J. Blige is here. But even though we've met and spent a little bit of time together, this is the first time we're going to really be able to talk it out. But I love her in all kinds of ways. Just like everybody on the planet loves Mary J. Blige. But let's do a proper introduction. Speaker 3 (1:35) Well, Mary J. Blige is a singer, songwriter, actress, producer, and entrepreneur. Speaker 5 (1:42) Killing it. Speaker 3 (1:43) She is best known as the queen of hip hop soul with 15 studio albums, nine Grammy Awards, six BET Awards, 12 NAACP Awards. I want Speaker 5 (1:58) to see her trophy room. Speaker 3 (2:00) And won Primetime Emmy. So she out here acting too. Speaker 5 (2:04) She gonna EGOT it up in a minute. Speaker 3 (2:07) She's a member of the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, received a Lifetime Achievement Award from BET, and has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame. So after this, I'm going to have to go outside and find that John. So without further ado, Mary J. Blige. Speaker 4 (2:29) Hi, honey. It's good to see you. And you look so good. Thank you so much. So do you. So good. My big brother. Nice to meet you. Nice to meet you. Welcome Speaker 5 (2:43) to IMO, honey bunch. Thank you, Speaker 4 (2:45) beautiful. Speaker 5 (2:47) Thank you for being here. Thank Speaker 4 (2:49) you for having Speaker 5 (2:49) me. You got some stuff going on, don't you? I got a lot of stuff going on all the time. But you, what brings you to L.A.? What brings me to the West Coast? Speaker 4 (3:04) I'm about to do my first ever residency. That's... Yeah. Yeah, it's pretty major. Speaker 5 (3:15) So which arena? I mean, which casino? The MGM. Oh, my gosh. This is going to be... a blowout. How have you been thinking about this show? I mean, is it you? Is it you and other people? Is it going to be a bunch of surprises? Speaker 4 (3:34) It's me. It's all about me. It's called My Life, My Story. So we're kind of going to try to not make it into some theatrical, Speaker 5 (3:42) you know, because the Mary J. Blige show is a Mary J. Blige show. Yes. It's fun. Speaker 4 (3:45) Yeah. But, you know, we're going to try to like tell a story with, you know, pictures and, you know. Speaker 5 (3:51) I don't want to give it all away. Yeah. Speaker 4 (3:53) But the music is going to be up. The music is going to be up. And then we're going to have our moments of I'm going down and all that stuff like that. Speaker 5 (4:01) What Speaker 4 (4:02) are Speaker 5 (4:02) we doing with the fashion? How are we thinking about that? Speaker 4 (4:05) We're going to go crazy with the fashion. Speaker 5 (4:08) But we're going to go like elevated. Yeah. Speaker 4 (4:12) Super ghetto fabulous. Are we talking gowns? Are we talking... We're talking moments like... I Speaker 5 (4:19) don't want to give. I know. Because we're so close. Yeah, we're so close. It's going to be good. It's going to be good. It's Speaker 4 (4:25) going to Speaker 5 (4:27) shock Speaker 4 (4:27) people. Speaker 5 (4:27) Oh, my God. Okay. And Speaker 3 (4:30) help me understand because... So what's the difference between sort of a residency and doing a tour? Speaker 4 (4:36) The difference for me is... So I've been touring for... And the only thing that's the beauty about the residency, the gift about it is that you sit still in whatever mansion you're in, in Vegas, you know, whatever you decide to do. And you drive 20 minutes to the MGM theater and Speaker 5 (4:56) you do your Speaker 4 (4:57) show. When touring was about, you get on the bus, you drive for 20 hours, you get on a plane. So I think the traveling. is what created, you know, such a, you know, a bad taste on Speaker 5 (5:12) that. Speaker 4 (5:13) But other than that, the performance is what we do it for. But the traveling is the Speaker 3 (5:21) difference. So the performance will be the same each night or similar each night? It'll be the same. Okay. It'll probably Speaker 4 (5:28) be different guests. But the difference is the traveling versus just sitting still and enjoying, you Speaker 5 (5:34) know, Speaker 4 (5:35) walking into your... living room full of fans. I mean, your music just transcends all Speaker 5 (5:39) kinds of stuff because it's so personal, you know? I mean, and it's reflective of what so many of us have gone through. But I like the fact that you say that you're going to run through your life, you know? Are you starting at the very beginning? Are you... Thinking about it in terms of your life when you were a child? Are you talking about the beginning of your life in the industry? I mean, how do you think about Speaker 4 (6:05) telling that story? Well, I think I have to start from childhood because that's when I discovered that music was, you know, my first love. Singing was, you know, everything to me. It made me feel amazing as a child. And so I have to start from childhood. Music was the thing. My mom was a singer, but she couldn't pursue her singing dreams because she had us. And she had a scholarship. Y'all making me nervous. Oh, don't be Speaker 3 (6:41) nervous. Speaker 4 (6:42) You among Speaker 3 (6:43) friends. Speaker 4 (6:44) I'm talking to Michelle Obama. I'm a little nervous. Give me a second to get my... My words right. So anyway, let me get that story correct. My mom had a scholarship for singing. And she had us, you know, at a young age. And she couldn't pursue it because she had to take care of us. Speaker 1 (7:07) So Speaker 4 (7:08) my mom was a woman who sang around the house. She was, I mean, she could sing anything like anybody. So it all started there for me, just watching her be a singer. Discovered that I can sing too. When did you remember finding Speaker 5 (7:23) your voice? I mean, like, Barry, if I could sing, I'd be singing all day. He'd be so sick of me. Wait, hold up. She Speaker 3 (7:31) sings even though she can't sing. Well, Speaker 5 (7:33) of course, you know. All Speaker 3 (7:35) day. Speaker 5 (7:38) But, you know, when does somebody with the talent like yours, how old were you when Speaker 4 (7:45) you were like, dag, I sound pretty good? I was seven. What? Seven. I was seven when I realized I could sound like anybody. Like, I could mimic anyone. I mean, like, really do it. And I remember I did a talent show. And I'm in school and I sang Reunited by Princess and Her. How Speaker 5 (8:03) old were Speaker 4 (8:03) you? I was seven, seven years old. Seven Speaker 5 (8:05) years old singing Reunited. And I sang the guy, you know, that's a duet. Oh, yeah. You sang both parts? I killed it. Now, did you have, you know, were you comfortable? Were you shy? I mean, you could sing, but you had the performing thing in you then? I just always do, Speaker 4 (8:23) like when it came to singing, I didn't have any fear. Yeah. So I just did it. It just was something that, you know, that was in me to do. And Speaker 3 (8:32) so you go to the talent show, you sing it. Afterwards, tell us what you felt like as a seven-year-old walking off the stage. Okay, you just killed it, like you said. Speaker 5 (8:43) Reunited, just reunited the auditorium up in here. Speaker 4 (8:48) I felt good because everybody was cheering. And the word was, wow, Mary can sing. That's what I remember in school. to hearing in school. Did Speaker 5 (8:58) that give you a little cred? I mean, did you, were you able to, you know? Speaker 4 (9:02) I was off and running after that. I was Speaker 1 (9:04) singing. I was Speaker 4 (9:06) singing in the house, singing with brushes, singing in the mirrors. It was on and popping after that. What about Speaker 5 (9:12) your brothers and sisters? You have one sister? I have Speaker 4 (9:17) two younger siblings. Two younger siblings. And my oldest sister that you just met. Speaker 3 (9:22) Yeah. And so when did you realize, oh, man, I can make a living doing this as opposed to just I'm good at it and I'm singing? I Speaker 4 (9:30) didn't realize I can make a living doing it. It was something I always wanted to do. But what happened was in Yonkers, in Westchester, there was a mall when we were teenagers called Galleria Mall. And they built a karaoke machine in the Galleria Mall. And everybody was talking about it. One of my friends was like, Mary, you should go and, you know, record in the Galleria Mall. How old were Speaker 5 (9:54) you? Speaker 4 (9:54) I think I was probably 14. And I went and I recorded Anita Baker's Caught Up in the Rapture. And because that was one of my favorite songs. And my mother's boyfriend at the time. He worked at General Motors with this artist by the name of Jeff Redd. Speaker 5 (10:10) Jeff Speaker 4 (10:10) Redd was already signed to Uptown Records. Remember, you called and told me that. Oh, Speaker 5 (10:15) yeah. Speaker 4 (10:15) That's Jeff Redd. Speaker 5 (10:16) So Speaker 4 (10:17) he was an artist that was already signed to Uptown Records with Andre Harrell. And my stepfather gave the tape to him. Speaker 2 (10:25) He Speaker 4 (10:26) gave the tape to Andre Harrell, who was the CEO of Uptown Records. Andre came to Yonkers to slow bomb. And I sang the whole Rapture album for him. The album? The whole rap, because that was my album, the whole Rapture album. Where were you when you performed for him a whole album? In my living room, in the projects. So he came to, Speaker 5 (10:47) wow. Speaker 4 (10:48) He came. When he heard the Caught Up in the Rapture tape that my stepfather gave him, Speaker 5 (10:52) he came to the projects. So you all are sitting around. Is everybody there, your brothers and sisters? Is it like Christmas morning and Andre Harrell shows up at your house? Speaker 4 (11:03) Well, these guys that were trying to like, you know, manage me at the time, they were the reason why I was even able to, you know, get this tape. So Reggie Johnson was someone that my stepfather, that Jeff Red knew. And they told Andre Harrell, you know, about, you know, I guess how to. get to me and everything. And they called my stepfather and they said, well, Andre's coming. So I had to meet him downstairs. Speaker 5 (11:34) And Speaker 4 (11:34) he pulled up in his BMW and he had... Was it just him? It was just him by himself. He from the Polo Grounds. Of course, he's going to come to Slopin. Speaker 5 (11:45) He Speaker 4 (11:45) had a black and white polka dot shirt on and a sash and his glasses. You know, Andre. And he came upstairs. And I sang acapella at almost every song from the Rapture album. Speaker 3 (11:58) And Speaker 4 (11:59) the rest Speaker 3 (11:59) is history. So what was his reaction? Did he play it cool? Well, Speaker 4 (12:04) he sat Speaker 3 (12:04) and listened to the third. Speaker 5 (12:05) You know, it must have been good by the time you got to the third record. He was just sitting Speaker 4 (12:10) there because Andre was always like, cool. So he was just watching. And I didn't know what that look was. I guess that look was, Speaker 3 (12:20) wow, you know. We got something here. We Speaker 4 (12:23) got something. Yeah. And my mom was just looking all proud. You know, we didn't know, you know. Speaker 5 (12:28) And Speaker 4 (12:28) I wasn't like excited because, you know, being famous was just really far fetched. It was something that we didn't think could happen to us. But it happened. But I wasn't like, oh, yeah, I'm gonna get a deal. I Speaker 5 (12:40) just Speaker 4 (12:40) was like, yeah, this is what I do. I sing. This is what I do. No big deal. And Speaker 3 (12:44) you weren't nervous and nothing. Nope. See, that's a skill. to be able to be under that pressure. That's a Capricorn. Oh, here we go. Under pressure, Speaker 4 (12:54) we're right. Under pressure, it's not a Capricorn. Speaker 3 (13:06) This episode is brought to you by Progressive Insurance, a company committed to helping people move forward and live fully. Mish, thinking back to when you picked up your first home. what was the biggest priority for you? For me, I was just laser focused on location. I needed to make sure I was central and close to family. Speaker 5 (13:29) Yeah, that was the same thing for us as well. I think when Barack and I bought our first home, we really only looked in one neighborhood. And that was Hyde Park on the south side of Chicago. It was down the street from where you and Janice and the kids lived. And that meant the world. So we didn't even look in neighborhoods that weren't close to family, where the girls would go to school, where we were working. So for us, location was key. Speaker 3 (14:00) I'm curious, if you were back in that position today, do you think your priorities would stay the same? Or has your perspective... perspective shifted a bit. Speaker 5 (14:11) That's Speaker 3 (14:11) a Speaker 5 (14:11) good question. Barack and I talk about this a lot, and we've come to learn that community and family support matters much more than I think we give it credit for. Sometimes we see young professionals, they prioritize living close to their job or taking the promotion. But as you grow your family, we found that just having people around that you can count on is worth a lot more than you think it does. So I think we probably would still prioritize location, community over a lot of other things. I Speaker 3 (14:53) agree. I think young Craig would be very happy with the house I'm in now, but he'd be even happier to see all the ways my family have made it our home. Also, the backyard. He'd love that. Oh my God, you know I love my backyard. You know, when you do finally achieve that homeowning goal, it feels amazing. But getting to that point, that's where things tend to get complicated for a lot of people. Buying a home today is not easy with rising costs and a lack of clear guidance, leaving many feeling unsure where to start. That's why Progressive is here to help homebuyers get off the sidelines through their Open the House initiative. Right now, Progressive is expanding its up payment program, offering up to $13,500 each in down payment assistance to at least 200 eligible first-time buyers. That could be a game changer for homebuyers who need a little help to close that last gap. They also offer practical tools, educational resources, and guidance to help people navigate the home buying process with more confidence. Learn more about the Up Payment Program and Progressive's commitment to first-time homebuyers at progressive.com slash openthehouse, where homebuyers can access home buying resources and support to empower them in their housing journey. Speaker 5 (16:23) What was home like? What was your family like? What was your mother like? Speaker 4 (16:28) My mother was beautiful. She worked two jobs. It was just me, my mom, and my sister. Speaker 5 (16:34) So Speaker 4 (16:34) it was just before my two siblings came, Speaker 5 (16:36) my Speaker 4 (16:37) mom raised us by herself. And, you know, some, you know, the projects. Need I say more? No. Not a great environment. Speaker 5 (16:47) But, Speaker 4 (16:47) you know, she was this little woman who had to be a man and a woman. So we were raised like that, my sister and I. But she was also this kind woman that would take in the whole projects if she needed to. She was just, she was