ASCAP Voice of Music Award

In this age of fabricated celebrities and fake "reality" shows, the ascent of an artist like Mary J. Blige is a cause for celebration. She is the real deal. As a writer and a performer she has taken the pain and grit of her life and turned it into some of the greatest music of our time. By mixing the sounds of old school R&B with raw soul and edgy rap and injecting her songs with starkly confessional and self-empowering lyrics, she has not only created a unique and powerful voice in modern music, thus earning the title of "Queen of Hip-Hop Soul," but has become an inspiration to millions around the world.

Symbolically, what Mary represents is an achievement unto itself. She is an artist that continues to challenge herself and channel her struggles into her music. For many, her work symbolizes renewal, revelation and redemption. So it is all the more impressive, not to mention gratifying to her fans, friends and colleagues, that she continues to build a critically-acclaimed body of work, reach new audiences and achieve the incredible success she so richly deserves.

Born in the Bronx on January 11, 1971, Mary lived for a few years in Savannah, GA, before moving with her mother and older sister to a housing project in Yonkers, NY. A rough life there left Mary with scars, both physical and emotional, and she dropped out of high school her junior year. One day at a mall in White Plains, NY, she recorded herself singing Anita Baker's "Caught Up in the Rapture" on a karaoke machine. Mary's stepfather got the tape of that recording into the hands of Uptown Records CEO Andre Harrell. So impressed was Harrell that he signed her to sing backup for local New York acts. However, in 1991, Sean "Puffy" Combs recognized Mary's ultimate potential and began working with her on her first album, What's the 411?, along with producers Dave Hall, Mark Morales and Mark Rooney.

The combination of Mary's unique vocal style and the producers' stylish flourishes struck gold. Mary's debut became one of 1992's biggest crossover hits and earned Mary two Soul Train Awards, for Best New Artist and Best Solo Album - Female. She was on her way. For almost fifteen years now, the music world has seen the evolution of a songwriter and an artist unlike any other. Whether in songs she has cowritten, such as "You Know," "Family Affair," "Be Without You" "My Life 06," "Be Happy" and "We Ride (I See the Future)," or in songs written by others, such as "No More Drama," "King & Queen," "Real Love," "911," "Not Gon' Cry," "I'll Be there For You/You're All I Need To Get By" and many others, Mary pours her heart and soul into everything she does. We believe her when she sings, and that authenticity has made Mary a superstar.

"In reflections of my life I see the lessons that I've learned," Mary sings in the title track to her recent retrospective album, Reflections. In a few words, the lyric encapsulates Mary's appeal. While her success has grown she has never forgotten the tough life that she struggled to rise above and the hard-earned wisdom that came with it. She appreciates the chances she was given to prove herself. In kind, although she often works with established writer/producers, she continues to give up and coming writers the opportunity to collaborate with her.

Mary's ability to invest her work with genuine emotional truth has opened doors for her as an actress as well. She has guest-starred on the hit CBS drama The Ghost Whisperer and is currently linked to a project about the late jazz singer and classical pianist Nina Simone.

Mary has also made an impact outside the studio. In 2001, she partnered with MAC Cosmetics on the AIDS awareness and fundraising campaign Viva Glam, and was also honored for community activism with Rock The Vote's Patrick Lippert Award. In 2006, she released Mary J. Blige & Friends, an exclusive two-disc CD/DVD set, benefiting Boys & Girls Clubs of America.

Throughout her storied career, Mary has garnered nearly every major music award possible. But more than that, she has gained the respect of her fellow songwriters and performers across the musical spectrum, many of whom have collaborated with Blige, including U2's Bono, Eric Clapton, Common, Jamie Foxx, Ja Rule, Elton John, R. Kelly, John Legend, LL Cool J, Ludacris, Method Man, Carlos Santana, Sting, Will.i.Am, and the Queen of Soul herself, Aretha Franklin.

As a songwriter she has not only written songs that are profound and personal, but she has rewritten the rules for what soul music can be. And with a voice that is a beacon of truth, passion and wisdom, Mary reminds us of music's transformative power.

The ASCAP Voice of Music Award Presented to Mary J. Blige, whose music illuminates people's lives through song.


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