Mary J. Blige: 25/8
Mary J’s auspicious return to basics
The components heard throughout Mary J. Blige’s “25/8” are strongly identifiable: ‘70’s symphonic soul and some of that big Jay-Z hip-hop aggression. With Blige adding a new chapter to her 1994 best-selling breakout album My Life with My Life II, she wraps her big Aretha-tingling gospel pipes around big drum deliveries, studio-designed strings and a musical aura that screams for a Kanye West cameo. But Blige carries most of the song on her own, even working up a spirited handclap breakdown and enough fire to hold down some of the most memorable lyrics: “And I don’t want to have to rush/ but 24/7 ain’t enough.” The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul might just have a satisfying winner on her hands. It’s a very typical Mary J. track, but it’s one that invigorates her street formula and revives some of the funk that’s been billowing underneath some of her biggest R&B anthems.
J MATTHEW COBB
LISTEN TO:
MARY J. BLIGE – 25/8
[audio:http://hifimagazine.net/blog/wp-content/uploads/2011/09/10-Mary-J.-Blige-25-8.mp3|titles=Mary J. Blige – 25-8]
