Contributed Anonymously:
In an interview with NPR’s Debbie Elliott about her latest album, ‘The Breakthrough’, Mary J. Blige cites Mariah Carey as a source of inspiration in her early singing career.
NPR: I read that you started singing as a kid in church and that you would also sing in talent shows. Was there some performance along the way where you started to think “Hey, I think I can do this, I like this”?
MJB: Let me see, I had performed at a club when I was a teenager. I sang one of Mariah Carey’s songs. I think it was ‘Love Takes Time’ ’cause I’m a fan of Mariah Carey’s. I love her. So it was that performance at the club that night. The club was called Arthur’s. [sings a verse of 'Love Takes Time'] That one. Her songs gave us a lot of hope and I finally got a chance to tell her, “You played a part in saving our lives, little project kids – we had nothing. You know, sometimes the lift for it felt like and it was your music that saved our lives and made us want to sing ’cause you were an angel and still are to us.”
Listen to the interview below.