Mary J. Blige

Lore & Background

Mary Jane Blige was born on January 11, 1971, at Fordham Hospital in the Bronx, to nurse Cora and jazz musician Thomas Blige. She spent early childhood in Richmond Hill, Georgia, singing in a Pentecostal church, then grew up in the Schlobohm Housing Projects in Yonkers. Inspired by Aretha Franklin, Chaka Khan and Gladys Knight, she recorded a cover of Anita Baker's "Caught Up in the Rapture" at a mall booth in White Plains in early 1988. That tape reached Jeff Redd and then Andre Harrell of Uptown Records, who signed her in 1989 as a backup singer, the label's youngest and first female artist. Working with producer Sean Combs, she released What's the 411? on July 28, 1992.

Reader's Guide

What's the 411? went three times Platinum and made her the most successful new female R&B artist of 1992 in the United States. My Life followed on November 29, 1994, holding the top of the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart for eight weeks. She is also known for collaborating with rappers: her duet with Method Man won the 1996 Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group, and she appeared on Jay-Z's "Can't Knock the Hustle" and Ghostface Killah's "All That I Got Is You". Her biggest hits include "Real Love", "No More Drama", "Be Without You" and "Family Affair". On screen, Mudbound (2017) earned her two Academy Award nominations.

Did You Know?

• She was the first person nominated for acting and songwriting Oscars in the same year, both for Mudbound.
• Billboard named "Be Without You" the most successful R&B/hip-hop song of all time; it spent 15 weeks at number one on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
• My Life sold 481,000 copies in its first week.
• She received a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2018.