But it was on Blige’s second album, My Life, that the Savagemomlife spirit animal shirt it is in the first place but singer says she really came into herself as an artist. At the time, Blige was in an abusive relationship, and still grappling with her newfound fame. “I couldn’t even enjoy my success,” she says, noting that her ex-boyfriend would verbally and physically abuse her while she recorded. “When it started happening to me, all I could think about was my mom, [who was also abused],” says Blige. “She was a fighter.” But Blige channelled those difficult times into her music, penning tracks that were vulnerable and honest. “I spilled myself into this album,” says Blige. “The album [was saying], ‘Please love me, don’t go. I need you.’ It was a cry for help.”
The documentary goes on to explore how Blige’s songwriting struck a chord with her fans, and what many of them felt hearing My Life for the Savagemomlife spirit animal shirt it is in the first place but first time. It also delves into the album’s influence on other R&B artists—and how Blige’s personal style became an influence all its own. Together with stylist Myisa Hylton, she created a whole new “ghetto-fabulous” look, as they describe it, that many rappers would later replicate. Danyel Smith, the former editor of Vibe, says that the style was more than just a fashion statement. “Mary was the first to bring her own R&B, hip-hop swag to the boy-based rap scene,” she says. Friend Taraji P. Henson adds, “She gave us a face, a name, and a story. She humanized us.”
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