Love & Life (Mary J. Blige album)

Love & Life is the sixth studio album by American R&B recording artist Mary J. Blige. It was released by Geffen Records on August 26, 2003. The album marked Blige's debut on the Geffen label, following the absorption of her former record company MCA Records. In addition, it saw her reuniting with Sean "Diddy" Combs, executive producer of her first two studio albums What's the 411? (1992) and My Life (1994), who wrote and executive produced most of Love & Life with his Bad Boy in-house production team The Hitmen, including Mario Winans, D-Dot, and Stevie J.[1]

Love & Life
Studio album by Mary J. Blige
Released	August 26, 2003
Recorded	2002–03
Genre	R&B
Length	70:41
Label	Geffen
Producer	Mary J. Blige (exec.) Sean "Diddy" Combs (also exec.) Andy C. Malik Crosby D-Dot D-Nat Dr. Dre Sean Foote Majid Hasan Mechalie Jamison Stevie J Kay Gee Kipper Cecil Sanchez Sting Mario Winans
Mary J. Blige chronology
No More Drama (2001) Love & Life (2003) The Breakthrough (2005)
Singles from Love & Life
"Love @ 1st Sight" Released: June 24, 2003 "Ooh!" Released: September 15, 2003 "Not Today" Released: March 3, 2004 "Whenever I Say Your Name" Released: August 6, 2004 "It's a Wrap" Released: October 29, 2004

Love & Life was released to positive reception from music critics, who applauded Blige's vocal performances and her collaboration with Combs on most of the songs. Commercially, it became her second album to debut at the top of the US Billboard 200 chart with 285,298 copies album-equivalent units. Though less successful than its predecessor No More Drama (2001), the album was eventually certified platinum by the RIAA. Internationally, it entered the top ten in Canada, Sweden, Switzerland, and the United Kingdom. Love & Life also received numerous accolades, earning Blige her first nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album at the 46th Grammy ceremony.

In support of the album, five singles from the album were released. Lead single "Love @ 1st Sight", a collaboration with rapper Method Man, and second single "Ooh!" both reached the top thirty of the US Billboard 100 chart and peaked within the top forty on most charts they appeared on. "Not Today" featuring rapper Eve, "Whenever I Say Your Name", a duet with singer Sting, and final single "It's a Wrap" were less successful. In April and May 2004, Blige promoted Love & Life in her Love & Life concert tour, which visited several cities throughout the United States.

Background

Citing creative differences, Blige and Combs parted ways after the release of her multi-platinum second album My Life (1994).[2] The pair reconnected in 2001, when Combs was consulted to produce a remix for Blige's single "No More Drama" from her album of the same name.[2] Combs declared Love & Life a continuation of My Life.[2]

Critical reception

Professional ratings

Aggregate scores
Source	Rating
Metacritic	72/100[3]
Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[4]
Blender	[5]
Encyclopedia of Popular Music	[6]
Entertainment Weekly	B−[7]
LAUNCH	[8]
Los Angeles Times	[9]
Q	[10]
Rolling Stone	[11]
Slant Magazine	[12]
Vibe	3.5/5[13]

Love & Life received generally positive reviews from critics. At Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream publications, the album received an average score of 72, based on 10 reviews.[14] AllMusic editor Andy Kellman wrote that while the positive attitude of Love & Life creates a "distance that holds the album back from being one of her best [...] at least half a dozen cuts will vie for slots on a future best-of."[4] Rolling Stone writer Ernest Hardy believed that with Love & Life, Blige "solidifies her standing as the hood Oprah, offering songs of faith and affirmation [...] Her lyrics are confessional, with scant use of metaphor or simile, and little of the creative risk-taking of poetry – the point with Blige is relating, not memorable tunes."[11] Michael Paoletta from Billboard found the album "spirited, if uneven", and noted that it was "home to funky sensations, hip-hop attitude, and loved-up lyrics."[15] Vibe editor Dimitri Ehrlich wrote that on Blige's "sixth studio album, it's the songs of sadness and anger that work best."[13] In The Village Voice, Robert Christgau argued that the album's "selling point is a reborn P. Diddy overseeing a catchy set husbanded by many co-producers. It peaks in the middle, and ... ends stronger than No More Drama. Up against What's the 411? Mary sounds older yet still girlish, rounder and smoother and pitch-improved but praise Shirley Brown not perfect yet."[16]

Neil Drumming was more critical in Entertainment Weekly, focusing on the abundance of melancholy-heavy ballads and Combs' decision to rely on heavy sampling for most tracks, which he called "shallow, trebly echoes of their former selves". "Despite her signature heartache-inducing voice", Blige could not "save Love & Life from her heavy-handed songwriting", Drumming wrote, finding the lyrics "soggy with relationships" and lacking subtlety.[7] Jonah Weiner of Blender commented that "practically every song sounds as though we've heard it before – because, well, we have."[5] Q panned the record as mostly "a procession of syrupy ballads with added self-help litanies".[10]

Commercial performance

In the US, Love & Life became Blige's second number-one album.[17]

In the United States, Love & Life debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 albums chart, selling 285,298 copies in first week.[17] It became Blige's second number-one album on the chart, following 1997's Share My World.[17] The album also opened at the top spot on Billboard's R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, marking Blige's sixth consecutive album to top the latter chart.[17] MTV News noted that this feat lifted Blige "among music's most consistent artists on the albums chart," since from "her last four albums, three debuted in the top two slots, and the fourth took number nine. All of Blige's three most recent releases "each sold between 240,000 and 294,000 copies in the weeks they debuted."[18] In October 2003, Love & Life was eventually certified platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) for the shipping of one million copies. At 994,000 sold units, however, it was temporarily ranked as Blige's lowest-selling studio release at that time – until the release of her album Stronger with Each Tear in 2009.[19]

In the United Kingdom, Love & Life became Blige's fourth consecutive album to reach the top ten of the UK Albums Chart, debuting at number eight. In November 2003, it was certified silver by British Phonographic Industry (BPI), indicating sales of more than 60,000 units. Elsewhere, the album reached the top twenty in Denmark, France, Norway, and the Wallonian region of Belgium, and peaked at number six on the Canadian Albums Chart. Love & Life also entered the top three in Sweden and Switzerland, where it ranks among Blige's highest-charting albums as of 2016.

Accolades and impact

Love & Life and its singles earned Blige numerous awards and nominations. At the 46th Grammy Awards, the album received a nomination for Best Contemporary R&B Album, losing to Beyoncé's Dangerously in Love.[20] Meanwhile, the album's second single, "Ooh!" received a nomination for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance, also losing to "Dangerously in Love 2" by Beyoncé. The album's international fourth single, the Sting-featured "Whenever I Say Your Name" won a Grammy Award for Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals.[20] The same year, Love & Life received a Best Female R&B/Soul Album nod at the 2004 Soul Train Music Awards, though it again lost to Dangerously in Love.[21]

Despite its critical success, media journalists considered Love & Life a disappointment since it failed to duplicate the combined commercial success of previous album No More Drama (2001) and its parent singles such as "Family Affair" and "No More Drama".[22][23] Blige later expressed discontent with the success of the project, citing both Combs's dominant role and the large group of collaborators on the project as pivotal. In a 2006 interview with Billboard, the singer stated that she "knew that Love & Life was something that disappointed [the fans]. None us where in a good place. Too many cooks spoiled the soup. You had [Diddy] saying 'Do this, do that' and I wanted something else".[19] Blige also criticized record company executives for stepping in the recording process.[24] In 2013, while commenting on her musical catalogue, she further remarked: "Love & Life was confusion and we didn’t know what the heck we were doing."[25]

Track listing

Love & Life – Standard edition

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer(s)	Length
1.	"Love & Life Intro" (featuring P. Diddy & Jay-Z)	Blige Sean Combs Shawn Carter Dimitri Christo Les McCann	Sean "Diddy" Combs D-Nat Stevie J	2:48
2.	"Don't Go"	Blige Combs Bruce Miller Deric Angelettie John Williams Johnny Mercer	Combs D-Dot	4:28
3.	"When We"	Blige Combs Mechalie Jamison Andy Creamer Mario Winans Marvin Gaye Anna Gordy Gaye Elgie Stover	Combs Andy C. Jamison	3:36
4.	"Not Today" (featuring Eve)	Blige Miller Andre Young Theron Feemster Mike Elizondo Eve Jeffers	Dr. Dre Mike Elizondo Ron "Neff-U" Feemster	4:13
5.	"Finally Made It" (Interlude)	Blige Combs Angelettie Richard Holland	Combs D-Dot	1:39
6.	"Ooh!"	Blige Combs Jamison Christo Hamilton Bohannon	Combs D-Nat	4:07
7.	"Let Me Be the 1" (featuring 50 Cent)	Blige Combs Jamison Curtis Jackson Malik Crosby Cecil Sanchez George Clinton Sidney Barnes Theresa Lindsey	Combs Crosby Sanchez	4:40
8.	"Love @ 1st Sight" (featuring Method Man)	Blige Combs Jamison Winans Clifford Smith Steven Jordan Kamaal Fareed Ali Jones-Muhammed Malik Taylor	Combs Winans Stevie J	5:18
9.	"Willing & Waiting"	Blige Jamison Creamer David Lewis Wayne Lewis	Combs Andy C. Jamison	4:19
10.	"Free" (Interlude)	Blige Winans	Combs Winans	2:04
11.	"Friends"	Blige Sean Foote Majid Hasan Tom Brock Robert Taylor Barry White	Combs Foote Hasan Winans^[A]	4:02
12.	"Press On"	Blige Keir Gist Charmelle Cofield Darrell Crofts Jimmy Seals	Combs Kay Gee	4:17
13.	"Feel Like Makin' Love"	Blige Combs Jamison Jordan	Combs Stevie J	4:42
14.	"It's a Wrap"	Blige Combs Winans	Combs Winans	4:20
15.	"Message in Our Music" (Interlude)	Blige Robert Bell Ronald Bell George Brown Robert Mickens Claydes Smith Alton Taylor Dennis Thomas Rick Westfield	Combs Blige	2:14
16.	"All My Love"	Blige Combs Miller Christo Donald Addrisi Richard Addrisi	Combs D-Nat	4:16
17.	"Special Part of Me"	Blige Combs Winans	Combs Winans	4:33
18.	"Ultimate Relationship (A.M.)"	Donald Lawrence Steve White	Combs Lawrence	5:05
Total length:				1:10:41

Japan bonus track

No.	Title	Length
19.	"Happy Endings"	5:13

UK and Brazil bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer	Length
19.	"Didn't Mean"	Blige Combs Winans Fareed Taylor Muhammad J. Yancey	Combs D-Nat	3:43

International bonus track

No.	Title	Writer(s)	Producer	Length
19.	"Whenever I Say Your Name" (featuring Sting)	Sting	Sting Kipper	5:25

Japan and UK reissue bonus track

No.	Title	Length
19.	"If I Don't Love You This Way"	4:01

Notes and sample credits

^{^[A]} denotes co-producer

• "Love & Life Intro" contains excerpts from "Morning Song", written by Les McCann.
• "Don't Go" contains a sample from "The Long Goodbye", performed by Lou Donaldson.
• "When We" contains a sample from "Just to Keep You Satisfied", performed by Marvin Gaye.
• "Finally Made It" contains a sample from "Better Days", performed by Rufus and Chaka Khan.
• "Ooh!" contains a sample from "Singing a Song for My Mother", performed by Bohannon.
• "Let Me Be the 1" contains a sample from "I'll Bet You", performed by Funkadelic.
• "Love @ 1st Sight" contains a sample from "Hot Sex", performed by A Tribe Called Quest.
• "Willing & Waiting" contains a sample from "When Love Calls", performed by Atlantic Starr.
• "Friends" contains a sample from "Mellow Mood Part I", performed by Barry White.
• "Press On" contains excerpts from "Summer Breeze", performed by Seals and Crofts.
• "Message in Our Music" contains a sample from "Summer Madness", performed by Kool & the Gang.
• "All My Love" contains excerpts from "Never My Love", performed by The Association.
• "Didn't Mean" contains excerpts from "Find a Way", performed by A Tribe Called Quest.

Charts

Weekly charts Chart (2003) Peak position Australian Albums (ARIA)[26] 62 Austrian Albums (Ö3 Austria)[27] 49 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Flanders)[28] 41 Belgian Albums (Ultratop Wallonia)[29] 19 Canadian Albums (Billboard)[30] 6 Danish Albums (Hitlisten)[31] 19 Dutch Albums (Album Top 100)[32] 22 French Albums (SNEP)[33] 18 German Albums (Offizielle Top 100)[34] 21 Italian Albums (FIMI)[35] 21 Norwegian Albums (VG-lista)[36] 13 Scottish Albums (OCC)[37] 28 Swedish Albums (Sverigetopplistan)[38] 3 Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[39] 3 UK Albums (OCC)[40] 8 UK R&B Albums (OCC)[41] 3 US Billboard 200[42] 1 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[43] 1

Year-end charts Chart (2003) Position Swiss Albums (Schweizer Hitparade)[44] 89 US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums (Billboard)[45] 45 Certifications Region Certification Certified units/sales Japan (RIAJ)[46] Gold 100,000^^ United Kingdom (BPI)[47] Gold 100,000^^ United States (RIAA)[48] Platinum 1,000,000^^ ^^shipments figures based on certification alone

See also

• List of Billboard 200 number-one albums of 2003
• List of Billboard number-one R&B albums of 2003

References

1. Pride, Felicia (September 12, 2003). "Mary J. Blige: Love & Life". PopMatters. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
2. "Mary J. Blige: Love & Life". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. 2003-08-09. p. 13. Retrieved 2016-08-22. blige LOVE & LIFE.
3. "Love & Life by Mary J. Blige Reviews and Tracks". Metacritic. August 26, 2003. Retrieved April 6, 2018.
4. Kellman, Andy. "Love & Life". AllMusic. All Media Network. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
5. Weiner, Jonah (September 2003). "Review: Love & Life". Blender: 138.
6. Larkin, Colin (2011). "Mary J. Blige". The Encyclopedia of Popular Music (5th ed.). Omnibus Press. ISBN 0857125958.
7. Drumming, Neil (2003-09-05). "Love & Life (2003)". Entertainment Weekly. Time Inc. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
8. O'Connell, Sharon (September 8, 2003). "Mary J Blige - 'Love & Life'". LAUNCH. Archived from the original on June 19, 2004. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
9. Nichols, Natalie (August 24, 2003). "A little too much of a good thing". Los Angeles Times. Retrieved September 28, 2016.
10. "Review". Q. November 2003. p. 113.
11. Hardy, Ernest (2003-08-25). "Mary J. Blige: Love & Life". Rolling Stone. Wenner Media. Retrieved 2007-11-08.
12. Cinquemani, Sal (September 3, 2003). "Mary J. Blige: Love & Life". Slant Magazine. Retrieved July 22, 2013.
13. Ehrlich, Dimitri (2003-10-01). "Revolutions". Vibe. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
14. "Love & Life Reviews, Ratings, Credits, and More". Metacritic. CBS Interactive. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
15. Paoletta, Michael (2003-09-06). "Essential Reviews". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
16. Christgau, Robert (2003-09-23). "The Commoner Queen". The Village Voice. Retrieved 2012-08-20.
17. Hilburn, Robert (2003-09-04). "Blige, blissfully in love, goes straight to the top". Los Angeles Times. Times Mirror Company. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
18. D'Angelo, Joe (2003-09-03). "Mary J. Blige, Hilary Duff Take Over Top Slots On Albums Chart". MTV News. Viacom. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
19. Newman, Melinda. "New Mary J. Album A Sales Breakthrough". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2016-08-22.
20. "46th Annual GRAMMY Awards". The Recording Academy . Retrieved 2016-08-25.
21. Hall, Sarah. "Beyoncé Tops Soul Train Noms". E!. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
22. "Mary J Blige, Rose Hall, New York 16 October". The Guardian. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
23. Browne, David (December 23, 2005). "The Breakthrough Review". Entertainment Weekly. Retrieved on 2011-04-16.
24. Reid, Shaheem. "Mary J. Blige's Breakthrough Is Coming Out This Year After All". MTV News. Retrieved 2016-08-27.
25. Penrice, Ronda Racha. "Mary J. Blige on Black Nativity, Mary and Forgiveness". Uptown. Archived from the original on 2016-08-13. Retrieved 2016-08-25.
26. "Australiancharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
27. "Austriancharts.at – Mary J. Blige – Love & life" (in German). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
28. "Ultratop.be – Mary J. Blige – Love & life" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
29. "Ultratop.be – Mary J. Blige – Love & life" (in French). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
30. "Mary J. Blige Chart History (Canadian Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
31. "Danishcharts.dk – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
32. "Dutchcharts.nl – Mary J. Blige – Love & life" (in Dutch). Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
33. "Lescharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
34. "Longplay-Chartverfolgung at Musicline" (in German). Musicline.de. Phononet GmbH. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
35. "Italiancharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
36. "Norwegiancharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
37. "Official Scottish Albums Chart Top 100". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
38. "Swedishcharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
39. "Swisscharts.com – Mary J. Blige – Love & life". Hung Medien. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
40. "Mary J. Blige | Artist | Official Charts". UK Albums Chart. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
41. "Official R&B Albums Chart Top 40". Official Charts Company. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
42. "Mary J. Blige Chart History (Billboard 200)". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
43. "Mary J. Blige Chart History (Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved 2016-08-19.
44. "Jahrescharts 2003". Swisscharts.com. Hung Medien. Retrieved 2015-10-10.
45. "2003 Year-End Chart – Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums". Billboard. Prometheus Global Media. Retrieved 2014-06-30.
46. "Japanese album certifications – MAry J. Blige – Share My World" (in Japanese). Recording Industry Association of Japan.
47. "British album certifications – Mary J. Blige – Love & Life". British Phonographic Industry. Retrieved 2016-08-19. Select albums in the Format field. Select Gold in the Certification field. Type Love & Life in the "Search BPI Awards" field and then press Enter.
48. "American album certifications – Mary J. Blige – Love & Life". Recording Industry Association of America. Retrieved 2016-08-19. If necessary, click Advanced, then click Format, then select Album, then click SEARCH. 

External links

• Official website