In 1992, Blige released her debut album What's The 411?. The album sold 3.4 million copies on the strength of singles You Remind Me, Real Love, Reminisce, Sweet Thing, and Love No Limit. The album pioneered a new genre known as Hip-Hop Soul and is credited with influencing the marriage of Hip-Hop and R&B.
In 1994, Blige released her sophomore album My Life. Blige wrote or co-wrote fourteen of the seventeen album tracks. Supported by singles Be Happy, Mary Jane (All Night Long), I'm Goin' Down, and You Bring Me Joy, the album sold over three million copies and was certified 3x platinum by the RIAA in 1996. It has since been included in Rolling Stone's 500 Greatest Albums of All Time.
Not Gon' Cry, a 1996 single written and produced by Babyface for Waiting To Exhale soundtrack (1995), peaked at #2 on the Billboard Hot 100, becoming Blige's highest charting single of the 1990s. The same year, Blige won her first Grammy for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group for her performance on I'll Be There for You/You're All I Need to Get By by Method Man.
On April 22, 1997, Blige released her third album, Share My World on MCA Records. Blige cut ties with producers Sean Combs and Chucky Thompson and worked with the likes of Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Rodney Jerkins, Babyface, R. Kelly, and Poke & Tone. The album debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200 with sales of 240,000 copies, Blige's first to do so. Supported by singles Love Is All We Need, I Can Love You, Everything, Missing You, and Seven Days. Share My World was certified 3x platinum by the RIAA and sold nearly 4 million copies in U.S.
In Summer 1998, Blige embarked on the Share My World Tour, which resulted in a Gold-certified live album released later that year, simply titled The Tour. The album spawned one single, Misty Blue.
On August 17, 1999, Blige's fourth album, titled Mary was released. It marked a departure from her more familiar hip hop-oriented sound; this set featured a more earthy, whimsical, and adult contemporary-tinged collection of songs. The album debuted at number two on the Billboard 200 chart, selling 239,000 copies in its first week. It spent 57 weeks on the chart and produced four charting singles: All That I Can Say, Deep Inside, Give Me You, and Your Child. Though not as successful as prior releases, the album still sold 2.1 million copies in the U.S. and was nominated for a Grammy for Best R&B Album.
On August 28, 2001, MCA released Blige's fifth studio album, No More Drama. The album's first single, Family Affair (produced by Dr. Dre) became her first number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, where it remained for six consecutive weeks. Two other singles, Dance For Me and No More Drama were released, with the latter becoming a Top 20 hit. On January 29, 2002, the album re-released and featured three new songs, one being Rainy Dayz, which was released as a single and became another Top 20 hit for Blige. No More Drama has since sold 3.2 million copies in the U.S. and 5 million copies worldwide.
In 2003, Blige won her second Grammy (and first as a lead artist) for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "He Think I Don't Know".
On August 26, 2003, Blige's sixth album Love & Life was released on Geffen Records (which had absorbed MCA Records.) Blige reunited with producer Sean Combs for the album. Despite the album debuting at number one on the Billboard 200 and becoming Blige's fourth consecutive UK top ten album, Love & Life became Blige's then lowest selling album selling 1 million copies. Still, it was nominated for Grammy Best Contemporary R&B Album.
Geffen Records released Blige's seventh studio album, The Breakthrough on December 20, 2005. For the album, Blige collaborated with J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Rodney Jerkins, will.i.am, Bryan-Michael Cox, 9th Wonder, Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis, Raphael Saadiq, Cool and Dre, and Dre & Vidal. It debuted at number one on both the Billboard 200 and Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts. Selling 727,000 copies in its first week, it became the biggest first-week sales for an R&B solo female artist in SoundScan history. The official lead single, Be Without You peaked at number three on the Billboard Hot 100, while peaking at number one on the R&B chart for a record-setting fifteen consecutive weeks. In March 2017, Billboard Magazine ranked "Be Without You" as the most successful R&B/Hip-Hop Song of all time. The song was nominated for Record of the Year and Song of the Year and won the Best R&B Song and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance categories at the 2007 Grammy Awards. Other singles included Top 40 Hit Enough Cryin, Top Five R&B song Take Me As I Am, and UK Top Three Hit One. The Breakthrough won the Grammy for Best R&B Album in 2007.
In December 2006, a compilation called Reflections (A Retrospective) was released. It contained many of Blige's greatest hits and four new songs, including the worldwide lead single We Ride (I See the Future). The album peaked at number nine in the U.S, selling over 170,000 copies in its first week, while reaching number forty in the UK. It has sold more than 1.6 million copies.
Blige's eighth studio album, Growing Pains, was released on December 18, 2007, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 and at number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It sold 629,000 copies in its week and was certified Platinum by the RIAA. The album won Grammy for Best Contemporary R&B Album in 2009. It spawned the Top 40 Hit Just Fine.
Blige's ninth studio album, Stronger with Each Tear, was released on December 21, 2009, debuting at number two on the Billboard 200 and at number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 332,000 units in its first week of release. The album had sold 726,100 copies in the United States by April 2010, and was certified Gold by the RIAA on January 6, 2011.
Blige was honored at the 2009 BET Honors Ceremony and was paid tribute by Anita Baker and Monica.
Blige's tenth studio album, My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1), was released in November 2011. The album debuted at #5 on the Billboard 200, selling 156,000 copies in the first week; it was eventually certified Gold in 2012 and has sold 763,000 in the US.
A Mary Christmas, Blige's first holiday album, was released on October 15, 2013 through Matriarch and Verve Records. In early December, A Mary Christmas became Blige's 12th top ten album after it rose to #10 in its eighth week and was certified Gold by the RIAA.
Think Like A Man Too, which serves as Blige's 12th studio album, was released on June 17, 2014. On Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, the soundtrack album charted at number six, marking Blige's 16th top ten entry on the chart, tying her with Mariah Carey for the second-most top tens by a female artist.
Following her concert date at the Essence Festival, on July 9, 2014 it was announced Blige would move to London to experiment with a new sound for her new album. Blige spent a month in London recording her album in RAK Studios with a host of young British acts, including Disclosure, Naughty Boy, Emeli Sandé and Sam Smith. Twelve new songs, co-written and recorded by the singer, were released on November 24, 2014 on an album entitled The London Sessions. The album received acclaim and was included on many Best Albums of 2014 lists. The album debuted at number nine on the Billboard 200 and number one on Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums, with 55,000 albums sold and 2,000 shifted in album-equivalent units. It became her 13th top ten entry on the Billboard 200 and her tenth number one entry on Top R&B/Hip-Hop albums.
Following a heavily publicized divorce from her husband and manager Kendu Isaacs, Blige released her thirteenth studio album Strength of a Woman on April 28, 2017. Supported by Urban AC hit singles Thick of It and U + Me (Love Lesson), Strength of a Woman debuted at number three on the US Billboard 200 on the issue dated ending May 20, 2017, with 78,000 album-equivalent units, selling 72,000 standard copies in its first week. It became Blige's highest-charting album since 2009's Stronger with Each Tear, and her tenth top five entry on the chart.
In 2017, Blige starred in the period drama film Mudbound directed by Dee Rees. Playing Florence Jackson, the matriarch of her family. For her performance in Mudbound, Blige was nominated for the Academy Award for Best Supporting Actress and Golden Globe Award for Best Supporting Actress. She also received nominations for Best Original Song for Mighty River, becoming the first person nominated for an Academy Award for acting and original song in the same year.
On July 12, 2018, Blige released a new single, titled Only Love.
About You
Mary J. Blige Lyrics
Jump to: Overall Meaning ↴ Line by Line Meaning ↴
Yeah, it feels, it feels good
Mary J, Will.I.Am
Tell 'em how ya feel
Boy you got me goin' crazy
I don't know what to say anymore
Cause still I wanna be your lady
I'm not giving up on us but
Things can get a little hard in this life
But you know, you know I love you
You're everything I ever wanted
Everything I've never wanted
In a man, can't you see
What you're doing to me
I'm sayin' yes and sayin' no
Because I don't want you to know
How I really feel, how I really feel
About you (you know how I feel)
About you (you know how I feel)
About you (how I feel, you know how I feel)
So glad to have you in my life
(It's a new life for me, yeah)
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
You, you're the one for me
I don't wanna be free
Boy, you have rescued me
But sometimes I don't want to be bothered
Baby, don't think I am shady
Just adjusting to ya
I don't wanna confuse ya or even misuse ya
But I love ya, I love ya, yeah, yeah
You're everything I ever wanted
Everything I've never wanted
In a man, can't you see
What you're doing to me
I'm sayin' yes and sayin' no
Because I don't want you to know
How I really feel, how I really feel
About you (you know how I feel)
About you (you know how I feel)
About you (how I feel, you know how I feel)
So glad to have you in my life
(It's a new life for me, yeah)
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
Ooh, so glad to have you in my life
So glad to have someone to hold me
So very happy with my life
I'm so glad, so glad, so glad
Baby, you a soul mama
Love's what I'm a bring to you
Quick don't pause like a comma
Won't stall on ya when it's time to put it on ya
Don't call on another chick I'm callin' on ya
Won't trip on ya, I don't bring the drama
I won't dip out when it's trauma
I'm holdin' on mama, hold up, wait a minute
We've been through the downs ups, but stayed in it
So glad that I've got you, that I got you
So glad that I got you, I got you
You're everything I ever wanted
Everything I've never wanted
In a man, can't you see
What you're doing to me
There it is
The song "About You" is a collaborative effort between Mary J. Blige, Will.I.Am, and Nina Simone. The lyrics speak about the complex emotions that come with being in a relationship. Mary J. Blige sings about feeling crazy for her significant other and not wanting to walk out the door. She admits that sometimes things can be difficult, but she loves them nonetheless. The chorus, "About you (you know how I feel)," denotes a sense of security within the relationship, as the two of them know how the other feels.
The verse sung by Will.I.Am adds an extra layer to the song. He refers to the relationship as a "new life" and says that Mary J. Blige is his "soul mama." He promises to bring love, not drama, to the relationship and assures her that he won't leave her when things get tough. Together, the lyrics express the highs and lows of being in a relationship and the importance of sticking it out through the difficult times.
Overall, the song is a testament to the fact that love isn't always easy, but it's worth it in the end. The lyrics connect with listeners who have experienced the ups and downs of relationships and the emotions that come with them.
Line by Line Meaning
Mary J Will I am in the place with the love
Mary J and Will.I.Am are together in a place filled with love
Yeah, it feels, it feels good
The feeling is good
Mary J, Will.I.Am
The duo Mary J and Will.I.Am
Tell 'em how ya feel
Express your feelings to them
Boy you got me goin' crazy
You make me go crazy
I don't know what to say anymore
I don't know what else to say
Cause still I wanna be your lady
I want to be your lady, even now
You know that I would never walk out that door
I would never leave you
I'm not giving up on us but
I'm not giving up on us
Things can get a little hard in this life
Life can be a bit difficult
But you know, you know I love you
But you know I still love you
You're everything I ever wanted
You're everything I've ever wanted in a man
Everything I've never wanted
You're also everything I've never wanted
In a man, can't you see
I can't deny that you're a great man
What you're doing to me
You're driving me crazy
I'm sayin' yes and sayin' no
I'm indecisive
Because I don't want you to know
Because I don't want you to know how I really feel
How I really feel, how I really feel
How I truly and deeply feel
About you (you know how I feel)
About you (you know how I feel)
So glad to have you in my life
I'm so happy that you're in my life
(It's a new life for me, yeah)
(It's a new and better life)
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah)
You, you're the one for me
You're the one for me
I don't wanna be free
I don't want to be free from you
Boy, you have rescued me
You rescued me, boy
But sometimes I don't want to be bothered
Sometimes I don't want to be disturbed
Baby, don't think I am shady
Baby, don't think I'm being dishonest
Just adjusting to ya
I'm just getting used to you
I don't wanna confuse ya or even misuse ya
I don't want to confuse or hurt you
But I love ya, I love ya, yeah, yeah
But I love you, I love you, yeah, yeah
Ooh, so glad to have you in my life
Ooh, I'm so happy to have you in my life
So glad to have someone to hold me
I'm glad to have someone hold me
So very happy with my life
I'm very happy with my life
I'm so glad, so glad, so glad
I'm so glad, so glad, so glad
Baby, you a soul mama
Baby, you're a soul mate
Love's what I'm a bring to you
I'll bring love to you
Quick don't pause like a comma
I won't delay like a comma
Won't stall on ya when it's time to put it on ya
I won't wait to love you
Don't call on another chick I'm callin' on ya
Don't call anyone else, I'm calling you
Won't trip on ya, I don't bring the drama
I won't cause any drama or problems
I won't dip out when it's trauma
I won't leave when things are tough
I'm holdin' on mama, hold up, wait a minute
I'm hanging on, wait a minute
We've been through the downs ups, but stayed in it
We've been through tough and good times, but we stayed together
So glad that I've got you, that I got you
I'm so happy that I have you
So glad that I got you, I got you
I'm glad that I have you
There it is
That's it
Lyrics © BMG Rights Management, Universal Music Publishing Group
Written by: Will Adams, Mary Blige, Anthony Newley, Leslie Bricusse, Keith Harris
Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind