Mary J Blige credits faith, pastors with confronting her pride as she took control of her career
Singer Mary J. Blige revealed Wednesday that her faith and the teachings of pastors helped her confront pride and take responsibility for her future.
During the "IMO" podcast on Wednesday, Blige told hosts Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson that around the time she came out with her "No More Drama" album, she realized she needed to start taking responsibility and control of her career, noting that she had been taken advantage of.
"I used to get upset and curse everybody out because things weren’t working. And it wasn’t their fault. It was my fault," she said, revealing she apologized to every single person that was involved in helping her release the album.
Robinson asked Blige where she got the wherewithal to take accountability and control.
"It’s the spiritual side of things," Blige said. "And I started listening to a lot of, like, TV pastors and people that had information, and pride and arrogance and all that stuff. A proud and haughty person won’t go further than this, you know? So it was a lot, I was getting a lot of information that caused me to pause and look at myself."
"And so I realized that I was being prideful and disrespectful to people and just different things that made me be like, 'Pump the brakes. I’m doing something wrong here. And I need to speak to people. I need to apologize to these people for my mistakes,'" she continued.
"I think I prayed the prayer, 'Lord, show me myself.' You know, and I still pray that prayer. I got to see me," Blige added.
She explained earlier in the podcast that around the time of the "No More Drama" album, she realized there were people that were in her life still trying to "destroy" her.
"When I was, like, ‘I’m still here, but my life is a mess and I need’ — and for some reason, certain people was coming into my life to help, while certain people were still there that was trying to destroy," Blige said. "So I had to keep those people in my life and take responsibility. My responsibility was I was ignorant to a lot of things and blame it on everybody else. So I took full responsibility."
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She also said she wanted to educate herself on finances in the music industry and noted that people she had around her were benefiting from the fact that she was "unaware."
"I don't want to start labeling things, but everybody was looking out for themselves, and they were benefiting off of the fact that I was unaware," she said. "And that happened for a long time. So, when I woke up and realized, you know, Mary, you have to get educated. You have to stay on your business."
Christian Toto, the editor of HollywoodinToto.com and host of the Hollywood in Toto podcast, told Fox News Digital, "Victimhood is the coin of the realm in Hollywood. 'I wasn't paid what I was worth.' 'The director treated me badly, but I didn't speak out for a good 20-odd years.' Blige's comments strike a very different, and refreshing tone."
"Hollywood is a brutal industry," he continued. "The pressure. The competition. The forces well beyond your control. It only makes sense that some artists turn to their faith to light their way and take responsibility for their careers."
"It's smart. And while it's not 'cool' or 'hip' to admit as much in Hollywood, Blige is wise enough to understand the truth is the truth. And she's happy to share it. Here's betting other struggling stars should consider her advice," Toto added.
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Seth A. Schachner, a former Sony Music executive and managing director of Strat Americas, told Fox News Digital that Blige's comments on "getting educated" were evergreen.
"Mary's comments on ‘getting educated’ as an artist are key — absolutely evergreen and still very current and valid. So many artists are focused on 'breaking through,' growing their fan base, getting a label deal, or the next, bigger gig," he said.
"'Getting educated' on the business side of music is even more key these days in today's music business, as the majority of artists have the freedom to operate on their own, without a label," he continued. "But once they've released their music, they still have to do everything that the ‘old school’ music industry did — from promotion to marketing to finding new business. It's a huge challenge for most artists, who are here, after all, to create music."
Blige, 55, released her "No More Drama" album in 2001.
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She also spoke to Obama and Robinson about why she decided not to have children.
"I said a lot of things when I was younger, because I didn’t want them, kids. I saw a lot of people, I saw a lot of my family members needing babysitters and them not having a choice, and you know, no freedom. So when you’re younger, those are the choices you make, ‘I don’t want any kids,'" Blige said.
However, she said that her perspective changed as she got older and she began to see the value that children brought to her family members' lives.