My Life (Mary J. Blige album)

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My Life
Studio album by
ReleasedNovember 29, 1994 (1994-11-29)
RecordedDecember 1993 – September 1994
Studio
  • Axis Studios Recording
  • Clinton Recording Studios
  • Daddy's House
  • The Hit Factory
  • Sound on Sound Recordings (New York City)
Dalvin DeGrate
  • Herb Middleton
  • Prince Charles Alexander
  • Poke
  • Mary J. Blige chronology
    What's the 411? Remix
    (1993)
    My Life
    (1994)
    Share My World
    (1997)
    Singles from My Life
    1. "Be Happy"
      Released: October 26, 1994
    2. "
      I'm Goin' Down
      "

      Released: January 18, 1995
    3. "Mary Jane (All Night Long)"
      Released: February 8, 1995
    4. "You Bring Me Joy"
      Released: May 28, 1995
    5. "I Love You"
      Released: May 28, 1995

    My Life is the second album by American

    Bad Boy Entertainment, which was at the time backed by Arista Records
    .

    Considered to be her breakthrough album, My Life became Mary J. Blige's second album to reach the top ten on the

    triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America, for shipments of three million copies in the United States.[2] It also won the 1995 Billboard Music Award for Top R&B Album. In 1996, following the album's success, MCA issued a remix EP entitled My Life Remix Album which featured artists such as LL Cool J and Lauryn Hill
    .

    A special commemorative edition of the album was released on November 20, 2020.[3]

    Background

    Following the success of her debut album, What's the 411?, and a remixed version in 1993, Blige went into the recording studio in the winter of 1993 to record her second album, My Life.[4] Producer Chucky Thompson was brought in and had originally been contracted to produce one song and an interlude for the project.[4] He ended up being a last minute replacement as the producers Blige worked with previously on What's the 411? demanded more money when the album was certified triple platinum.[4] Blige loved the one song Thompson produced for her, which made Combs change the direction of the album.[4]

    Combs called recording engineer

    112.[5] In the middle of recording My Life, Combs suggested covering Rose Royce's 1977 hit "I'm Going Down", which he wanted Alexander to handle the session. However, the two butted heads over production credit issues, as Combs wanted to give credit to himself and Thompson, although neither were present for the song's recording session.[5] Alexander fought hard to seek production credit from Combs and the two battled it out over the phone over the issue.[5] Combs later explained it was due to receiving a flat royalty rate for producing the majority of the songs and Alexander's production credit would have interfered with the royalty rate.[5] To circumvent this issue, Alexander insisted on having two more sessions with Bad Boy acts. One of the other songs he produced was another Rose Royce cover – "Love Don't Live Here Anymore" for Faith Evans' 1995 debut Faith.[5]
    Alexander was later called back in to do some mixing and recording.

    On the song "K. Murray Interlude", it originally featured The Notorious B.I.G.. He was taken off due to the song's lyrical content, which would have forced Uptown Records to release the album with a Parental Advisory sticker.

    The album was a breakthrough for Blige, who at this point was in a

    K-Ci Hailey.[6][7] In this period, Blige would once again dominate the charts with her singles: the Top 40 hit "Be Happy", a cover version of "I'm Goin' Down" and "You Bring Me Joy". The album uses primary soul samples from R&B musicians such as Curtis Mayfield, Roy Ayers, Al Green, Teddy Pendergrass, Marvin Gaye, Barry White, Rick James, and his protégés, the Mary Jane Girls.[5]

    Critical reception

    Professional ratings
    Review scores
    SourceRating
    Cash Box
    (favorable)[9]
    Chicago Tribune[10]
    Entertainment WeeklyB[11]
    The Guardian[12]
    Knoxville News Sentinel[13]
    Los Angeles Times[14]
    Mojo[15]
    NME7/10[16]
    The Philadelphia Inquirer[17]
    Pitchfork7.0/10[18]
    The Rolling Stone Album Guide[19]

    NME wrote that the beats "reign supreme" and commended Blige for "telling her audience she grew up the same way they did, listened to the same things, was influenced by the same situations."[16] Village Voice critic Robert Christgau gave it a three-star honorable mention, indicating "an enjoyable effort consumers attuned to its overriding aesthetic or individual vision may well treasure". He cited "Mary Jane" and "I'm Going Down" as highlights while calling the album "an around-the-way girl's recipe for happiness".[20] In a mixed review, Jonathan Bernstein of Spin found most of the songs too "ordinary" and felt that Blige's compositions "give her space to stretch out and emote, but for all the melody they possess they might as well be breathing exercises."[21] Connie Johnson was more critical in the Los Angeles Times, finding it "drab" and devoid of attitude from Blige, who "doesn't add her own hard-core signature to any significant degree".[14]

    In 2002, My Life was ranked number 57 on Blender's list of the 100 greatest American albums of all-time.[citation needed] The following year, Rolling Stone placed it at number 279 on their 500 Greatest Albums of All Time,[22] 281 on a 2012 revised list,[23] and 126 on a 2020 list.[24] In 2006, the record was included in Time's 100 greatest albums of all-time list.[25]

    Accolades

    Publication Country Accolade Year Rank
    Blender United States The 100 Greatest American Albums of All time 2002 57
    Entertainment Weekly The 100 Best Albums from 1983 to 2008 2008 70
    Rolling Stone The Essential Recordings of the 90s 1999 *
    50 Essential Female Albums 2002 17
    The 100 Greatest Albums of the 90s 2010 63
    The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time 2003 279
    2012 281
    2020 126
    TIME Top 100 Albums of All Time 2006 *
    Vibe 100 Essential Albums of the 20th Century 1999 *
    Vibe 150 Albums That Define the Vibe Era (1992–2007) 2007 *
    The Rough Guide
    Soul: 100 Essential CDs 2000 *
    The New Nation
    United Kingdom Top 100 Albums by Black Artists 38
    FNAC France The 1000 Best Albums of All Time 2008 862

    Commercial performance

    My Life debuted at number nine on the US

    triple platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), for shipments of three million copies in the United States.[2] As of December 2009, the album has sold 2.8 million copies in the US.[27]

    Track listing

    Unless otherwise indicated, Information is taken from the Album's Liner Notes[28]

    No.TitleWriter(s)Producer(s)Length
    1."Intro"
    • K-Ci Hailey
    4:15
    17."Be Happy"
    5:49
    International bonus track
    No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
    18."(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman"2:56
    25th anniversary edition bonus disc[29]
    No.TitleWriter(s)ProducerLength
    1."Mary Jane (All Night Long)" (Remix) (featuring LL Cool J)
    • James
    • Blige
    • Combs
    • Thompson
    5:31
    2."I'm Goin' Down" (Remix) (featuring Mr. Cheeks)
    • Whitfield
    • Thompson
    • Combs
    • Alexander[a]
    • Ledford[a]
    3:50
    3."I Love You" (Remix) (featuring Smif-N-Wessun)
    • Blige
    • Combs
    • Thompson
    • Combs
    4:55
    4."Be Happy" (Bad Boy Butter Remix)
    • Blige (Lyrics)
    • DelValle (Lyrics)
    • Combs (Music)
    • Olivier (Music)
    • Combs
    • Poke
    4:44
    5."Be Happy" (Ron G Remix)
    • Blige (Lyrics)
    • DelValle (Lyrics)
    • Combs (Music)
    • Olivier (Music)
    • Combs
    • Poke
    3:42
    6."(You Make Me Feel Like) A Natural Woman"
    • Goffin
    • King
    • Wexler
    • Mtume
    2:56

    Notes

    • ^a signifies a co-producer
    Sample credits

    Personnel

    Unless otherwise indicated, Information is taken from the Album's liner notes[34]

    Charts

    Certifications

    Region Certification Certified units/sales
    Canada (Music Canada)[43] Gold 50,000^
    United Kingdom (BPI)[44] Gold 100,000*
    United States (RIAA)[45] 3× Platinum 3,000,000^

    * Sales figures based on certification alone.
    ^ Shipments figures based on certification alone.

    See also

    References

    1. Complex
      . Retrieved October 5, 2017.
    2. ^ a b c "American album certifications – Mary J. Blige – My Life". Recording Industry Association of America. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. Retrieved February 6, 2013.
    3. ^ "Mary J. Blige to Re-release 'My Life' in November | 25th Anniversary". 31 July 2020.
    4. ^ a b c d e f g h i Williams, Chris. "Mary J. Blige's My Life LP (1994) revisited with co-producer Chucky Thompson | Return To The Classics". Soulculture.com. Archived from the original on 2014-08-19. Retrieved 2014-08-18.
    5. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k "Key Tracks: Mary J. Blige's My Life". Redbullmusicacademy.com. Retrieved 2015-12-28.
    6. ^ Murrell, Morgan (24 June 2021). "Mary J. Blige On Her "My Life" Album: "I Was Depressed, Ready To Die"". BuzzFeed. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
    7. ^ Mulkerrins, Jane (2013-11-01). "Mary J Blige: 'The way I was living, I should have been dead'". Evening Standard. Retrieved 2021-06-25.
    8. ^ Swihart, Stanton. "My Life – Mary J. Blige". AllMusic. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
    9. Cash Box
      . Retrieved March 9, 2022.
    10. ^ Preston, Rohan B. (December 29, 1994). "Worth The Wait". Chicago Tribune. Retrieved December 20, 2018.
    11. ^ Hopkins, Tracy (November 25, 1994). "My Life". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
    12. ^ Sullivan, Caroline (December 9, 1994). "Mary J. Blige: My Life (MCA)". The Guardian. London.
    13. ^ Campbell, Chuck (December 23, 1994). "Germans Put New Spin On Punk Music". Knoxville News Sentinel.
    14. ^ a b Johnson, Connie (December 25, 1994). "Forget '411,' Mary J., Better Call 911". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 18, 2016.
    15. ^ Waring, Charles (December 2020). "Mary J. Blige: My Life". Mojo. No. 325. London. p. 95.
    16. ^ a b "Mary J. Blige: My Life". NME. London. January 7, 1995. p. 34.
    17. ^ Wood, Sam (December 11, 1994). "Mary J. Blige: My Life (Uptown/MCA) / Carleen Anderson: True Spirit (Virgin Records America)". The Philadelphia Inquirer.
    18. ^ Soto, Alfred (November 24, 2020). "Mary J. Blige: My Life". Pitchfork. Retrieved November 24, 2020.
    19. .
    20. .
    21. ^ Bernstein, Jonathan (February 1995). "Mary J. Blige: My Life". Spin. Vol. 10, no. 11. New York. pp. 76–77. Retrieved February 10, 2013.
    22. ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time: My Life – Mary J. Blige". Rolling Stone. New York. November 18, 2003. Archived from the original on December 20, 2010. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
    23. ^ "500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. New York. May 31, 2012. Retrieved September 10, 2019.
    24. ^ "The 500 Greatest Albums of All Time". Rolling Stone. New York. September 22, 2020. Retrieved October 31, 2020.
    25. ^ Tyrangiel, Josh (November 13, 2006). "The All-TIME 100 Albums – Mary J. Blige: My Life". Time. New York. Archived from the original on March 7, 2007. Retrieved March 13, 2010.
    26. ^ "Artists". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 23 May 2022.
    27. ISSN 0006-2510. Retrieved July 26, 2023 – via Google Books
      .
    28. ^ My Life (liner notes). Mary J. Blige. MCA/Uptown Records. 1995. MCD 11398.{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
    29. ^ "My Life 2CD – Mary J. Blige Official Store". Shop.maryjblige.com.
    30. Praeger, 2011), p 52
      .
    31. .
    32. ^ a b Folk, Antwane (27 June 2021). "How Mary J. Blige's Pain Drew Her to the Sunshine on 'My Life'". Rated R&B.
    33. ^ a b c Arnold, Chuck (29 November 2019). "Mary J. Blige's 'My Life' at 25". Billboard.
    34. ^ Blige, Mary J. (1994). My Life (Album Notes). Uptown Records.
    35. ^ "Top RPM Albums: Issue 7989". RPM. Library and Archives Canada. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
    36. ^ "Dutchcharts.nl – Mary J. Blige – My Life" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
    37. ^ "Mary J. Blige | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
    38. ^ "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2022-11-11.
    39. ^ "Mary J. Blige Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
    40. ^ "Mary J. Blige Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-09-03.
    41. ^ "Billboard 200: Year End 1995". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
    42. ^ "R&B/Hip-Hop Albums: Year End 1995". Billboard. 2 January 2013. Retrieved June 21, 2018.
    43. ^ "Canadian album certifications – Mary J Blige – My Life". Music Canada.
    44. ^ "British album certifications – Mary J Blige – My Life". British Phonographic Industry.
    45. ^ "American album certifications – Mary J Blige – My Life". Recording Industry Association of America.

    External links