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NEWS : STORIES
Don't say Mary J. Blige doesn't know how to seize the moment. After having been thrilled at the chance to headline a tour earlier this year in support of her 1997 release, Share My World, Blige elected to reward her fans for their
"I never [headlined] before, so I said, 'Let's just capture it,' " the 26-year-old "queen of hip-hop soul" said Tuesday from the Park Meridian Hotel in New York. "It was a real good year for me, so I just wanted to show that." The result is The Tour, a recording of one of Blige's electrifying April shows at the Universal Amphitheatre in Los Angeles. After a brief intro, the album kicks off with "Real Love," the first hit from her 1992 debut, What's The 411, and continues chronologically through songs from 1994's My Life and 1997's Share My World. The album wraps up with two live covers, as Blige works her way through R&B legend Aretha Franklin's "Daydreaming" and soul and gospel singer Dorothy Moore's "Misty Blue." "Those are both songs that my mother just loved," Blige said of their inclusion. "I remember hearing them both a lot when I was a kid, so both songs were influential to me as a singer." Of all the songs on The Tour, though, Blige said the version of Share My World's "Everything" (RealAudio excerpt of live version) on The Tour was her best argument for putting out a live album. "It's just that moment," she explained. "The singing doesn't even matter on that one. It's the feel that the song brings. It's just crazy." Blige got her start performing as a child in Savannah, Ga., where she sang in the choir of her Pentecostal church. When she was 16, she recorded what became her demo in the karaoke studio of a shopping mall in Yonkers, N.Y.: a version of Anita Baker's "Caught Up In The Rapture" that caught the attention of Uptown Records' Andre Harrell, who quickly signed Blige to his label. What's The 411, her 1992 debut, became a smash hit and unleashed a whole new mixture of R&B and hip-hop that is now a radio staple. She followed it with two more successful albums that used the same formula, 1994's My Life and 1997's Share My World. The Tour not only presents an overview of Blige's career and influences, but it is also notable for capturing her true vocal range, which stands apart from the studio-manipulated sound that appears on her records. And that's just the way Blige wanted it. "It's live and there's mistakes and a little profanity," she said. "It's raw. It's what you expect from a concert from an artist." She also said she resisted any temptation to return to the studio to clean up the tracks a little bit. "I wanted [listeners] to understand that it's live -- this is what happens in concerts. I'm not afraid to have the world hear me crack," she continued. "They always say that I can't sing anyway, so whatever." Blige fan Anita Stewart said she thinks that releasing a live recording where the singer's voice isn't completely on point fits into the Blige's persona. "Mary has this image of being a strong woman, and I think that her releasing an album of singing that is slightly off further demonstrates that," she explained. "It shows how confident she is in her abilities and that she's singing because it pleases her." As for her recording plans, Blige said that she was working on a new album with a group of producers which includes Jimmy Jam, Terry Lewis and Babyface and that she has recorded about 10 songs already. The album, she added, is due in January. According to a label spokesperson at MCA, "No Happy Holidays" is the title of the first single.
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