Newspaper Page Text
Pain 'progress
MARY J. BLIGE channeled hardship into passionate music and a shelf
of Grammys. Now, she’s in a loving marriage and hitting all the high notes.
BY REBECCA LOUIE
On the chart-topping a
single Real Love, mk
from her 1992 de-
but album, a raw '/U
and emotionally rav
aged Mary J. Blige begged the -Mjj
heavens for a boon: “Send me l
someone real/to caress me and '
to guide me / towards a love my
heart can feel.” For years, the uni- 1
verse denied her. Ihmultuous rela
tionships, self-acknowledged sub
stance abuse and deep insecurities
mounted. Blige sang about them all,
and even though her pain brought
her stardom, it also threatened to destroy her. Then,
in 2000, producer Kendu Isaacs walked into her life.
“It was a wake-up call,” says Blige, 37. Dressed
in an olive turtleneck sweater, jeans, Michael Kors
boots and no makeup, Blige looks more like an
understated urban Every girl than the runway
ready megastar she has become. In a Manhattan
hotel suite, she sits back in a chair and shakes her
head. “Kendu wasn’t afraid to challenge me, like,
‘What’s wrong with you? Why would you do this to
yourself?’ ” says Blige, her expressive hands grip
ping the air to emphasize her point. “Once I found
love, I found self-love. It’s the awareness that some
one [cares] about you, so why don’t you?”
The pair married in 2003, and Isaacs now man
ages her career. Among his tasks is brokering big
deals, such as Blige’s recent Heart of the City tour
with hip-hop icon Jay-Z. Onstage, Blige show
cased songs from her eighth studio album, Grow
ing Pains, which bumped Josh Groban out of the
No. 1 spot in January. With Isaacs’ support, she
6
USA WEEKEND • June 20-22, 2008
* Mmf
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• Blige with husband Isaacs and
their children, Jordan and Nasir
implements what she’s learned and articulates what
she wants. She understands she’s the boss, that she
is her brand, so she has to take control of it.”
The duo enforce their own laws when it
comes to mixing work with play. A cadre
of assistants keeps them from bug-
ging each other about little things. -
They wait for heated moments
to cool down before push
point. And when
k slowly achieved sobriety and a
K sense of self-worth.
Hftfr The new Mary was reflected
3P# in her music, in which themes
of healing have replaced heart
£7ol ache. The songs still express
!§■■ Blige’s signature vulnerability,
only now they offer optimism
Hr as well. In 2006, Blige won three
r of her eight Grammy nominations
for The Breakthrough, her celebra
tory self-affirmation.
“Over the years I’ve watched her
study the industry,” Isaacs says of
Blige’s professional evolution. “She
Isaacs’ pager is off, no work talk is allowed. Those
moments are family time, spent at a new Saddle
River, N J., mansion complete with a movie theater,
hardwood basketball court, wine tasting room and
six-car garage.
lthough Blige doesn’t have children of her own,
v she is a loving stepmom to Isaacs’ two children
(Nasir, 8, and Jordan, 9) from a previous relation
ship. Isaacs marvels at how she flourishes with the
kids. “You got to look at how Mary grew up,” he
points out. “One of the things lacking in her A
life was the intimacy and af
fection that other peo-
But
niteb. ha.- it. My
Cover and cover story photographs by Ben Watts, Kramer + Kramer