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Label: Geffen
Sound/Style: soulful but melodically minimalistic and edgy urban pop
By Steve Morley
Rap and hip-hop music represent a substantial cultural and generational dividing line. Hip-hop—the broader umbrella under which rap resides—is no mere fad. It’s been a fixture of popular music for well over 20 years, but is still misunderstood by much of mainstream America. Stereotyped as both misogynistic and hedonistic and known for its malevolent, window-rattling force, urban music has gotten, well, a bad rap. Not all hip-hop music glorifies wealth, rebellion and carnality, nor is it the sole property of swaggering males whose gold medallions hang nearly as low as their jeans.
One of today’s biggest-selling hip-hop artists, Mary J. Blige, has spent the last 15 years portraying the best and worst of what the genre and its culture represent. She was a young drug addict from the violence-riddled projects of Yonkers, New York when she burst onto the music scene in 1992. What makes her story so triumphant is her current freedom from substance abuse as well as her deliverance from chronic low self-esteem. When she recorded a karaoke demo tape for fun in the late ‘80s, she says, “we were so oppressed in that neighborhood that nobody believed that we could do anything—so we didn’t believe it either.” Blige believes in her abilities now, and the multi-platinum-selling artist uses the platform of stardom to encourage others who face the same obstacles.
On her eighth studio album, Growing Pains, Blige affirms that change is neither quick nor easy, but that it is possible. On “Work That,” she advises listeners to focus on strengths rather than perceived liabilities over a stiff, mechanized rhythm that rubs uncomfortably against her expressive vocals.
“Work In Progress,” an empathetic and confessional ode to setbacks in the growth process, is in a slower groove that better accommodates Blige’s soul-influenced style and explains her mantle as “The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul.”
Despite her knack for stylistic expansion, though, much of the disc sports an edgy, contemporary production squarely aimed at hip-hop’s core audience. Her concessions to those fans include a few steamy offerings, though these are not as explicit as they are straightforward about normal physical desires from a feminine point of view. Because her message is often one of positive female self-image, Blige’s more sensual songs are at least framed in a context of healthy and committed partnerships. “Stay Down” finds her standing firm in the face of marital difficulty and taking the relational high road.
She raises her hackles at an insensitive mate on “Roses,” but it’s all in the interest of being honest and setting boundaries necessary for good relationship—an especially useful tool for anyone that’s experienced abuse and oppression like Blige has known.
Blige’s tough-and-tender blend on Growing Pains is both grounded and optimistic, offering hip-hop hope for growth that promises more gain than pain.
Audio Clips
"Work That"
"Grown Woman"
"Just Fine"
"Feel Like A Woman"
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