“It’s Album Time!!!” exclaims ever amazing R&B Goddess Mary J. Blige on her Twitter account New Years Day. What a great birthday present! R&B has never been my preferred genre of music but when it comes to R&B there are few artists I want to hear more than Ms. Blige. She continues:
@maryjblige: I’m still Creating. I’ve been Quiet about it because I’m focussing!!! But its Coming!!!
Good news indeed! Back in August it was confirmed that Blige had begun work on her tenth studio album (WOW! Landmark!). Confirmed and rumored collaborators include Q-Tip, Swizz Beatz, Jay-Z, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Ryan Leslie, Bangladesh, Johnta Austin, Eric Hudson, DJ Premier, Gorilla Tek, Jerry Wonder, Don Pooh and Ne-Yo. That’s quite the laundry list of R&B/Hip-Hop hitmakers! Back in September Blige talked to MTV News behind the scenes at the 2010 MTV VMAs, discussing what fans could expect from her forthcoming album. Here’s what Blige told MTV News:
“Swizz [Beatz] and I, [we’re] in the studio cooking up something real nice,” Blige told MTV News backstage at the VMAs. The songbird, who hit the stage on Sunday with Swizzy and Drizzy for “Fancy,” revealed that she and the super-producer are crafting sonic heat similar to her first two studio albums but plan to update the vintage Blige sound. “[It will be] more like [What’s the 411?], My Life 2011, ’12. It’s headed [in] that direction but in a new [way]. Not what it used to be.” – {SOURCE}
In that same interview, Blige shot down the possibility of a dance club vibe on her new album, telling MTV News, “If it goes into the club direction, it will probably be more soulful than futuristic” {SOURCE}. Disappointing but not surprising. Blige does get remixed for the clubs so chances dance music fans will get their fill this time as well. Glad to see that we have new music from Mary J. to look forward in 2011!