My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1)
Encyclopedia
My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1) is the tenth studio album
by American R&B
recording artist Mary J. Blige
. Titled as the sequel to her 1994 album My Life
, the album was released on November 21, 2011.
, Kanye West
, The Underdogs
, Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis
, Lil Ronnie, Jay-Z
, Timbaland
, Salaam Remi
, Maxwell
, Alicia Keys
, Raphael Saadiq
, Ester Dean
, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
, Johnta Austin
, Eric Hudson
, Q-Tip, Sean Garrett
, DJ Premier
, Gorilla Tek
, Don Pooh, Ne-Yo
, and Drumma Boy
. Reports claimed the album would be titled, LovHer and be released first quarter of 2011, but Mary revealed to Rap-Up. com during her Music Saved My Life Tour
in 2010, she was in no rush to release the album and she had not given it a title as of yet. A song called "Anything You Want" featuring Busta Rhymes
and Gyptian
leaked on line in August 2010.
Blige revealed to MTV.com, backstage at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards
, that
Producer-songwriter Danja, confirmed that he had been heavily involved in the new album. He said of the records he's made with Blige
Additionally it was revealed that singer-songwriter Kevin Cossom
was also working with Blige, writing songs for her upcoming album. The LP, recorded in Los Angeles, New York City and Atlanta, sees Mary looking toward the future while acknowledging the past.
On June 21, 2011, a track titled "Feel Inside" apparently featuring Nicki Minaj
leaked online. In an interview with MTV
it was revealed that the track was in fact two separate songs that the duo were respectively working on, but that someone had put together. Blige revealed that despite the fake collaboration, Minaj and Blige would be collaborating together on a song, written by Andrea Martin. "I was ****ed about the leaking of the Nicki Minaj and Mary J Blige record, because that's not fair and people shouldn't do that," she said bluntly. "But I'm over it. We move on. We're going to make more hot music." The album will also see the return of Brook Lynn, Blige's rap alterego last heard on "Enough Cryin'" and the remix to "Touch It
" by Busta Rhymes
.
. Blige performed "25/8
" on Dancing with the Stars
(October 4). On October 20, Blige debuted a new song from the album called, "Need Someone", at Perez Hilton
's "One Night In… New York City" benefit concert for GLSN. Blige also performed "Need Someone" on Later... with Jools Holland (November 1). Blige was a guest on the UK morning show, Daybreak
(November 2) and Alan Carr: Chatty Man
(November 6) to discuss the new album and single.
Throughout the month of November, Mary will be performing at numerous shows, including Black Girls Rock (November 6), the TeenNick HALO Awards
(November 6), the American Music Awards
(November 20), Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
(November 24), The Today Show
(November 25), Chelsea Lately
(November 25), CBS News Sunday Morning
(November 27) and The View
(November 29). In addition to this, Blige will also embark on a U.S. tour to promote the album. On the tour Blige will perform the original My Life album in its entirety, with shows in Oakland (November 11), Los Angeles
(November 17), New York City
(November 23) and Atlanta (November 25). The Los Angeles date will be shown live on Vevo November 17, 2011 at 11PM EST. The concert event, Mary J. Blige: UNSTAGED, will be directed by Adam Shankman.
HSN & Mary J. Blige will air a special My Life Concert on November 30th. In addition to this, Blige will be selling her perfume, My Life Blossom, during the special. Fans will have a chance to purchase the limited-edition My Life Blossom Holiday Gift Se,t including the My Life Blossom Eau de Parfum and Body Cream plus the HSN-Exclusive My Life II…The Journey Continues (Act 1) album.
On December 19, 2011, Blige will perform at "VH1 Divas Celebrates Soul". Blige will also be performing on CBS
' annual Home for the Holidays airing December 21st.
" was released for digital download on September 1, 2011, as the album's first single. The song was produced, and co-written by Eric Hudson
. Blige performed the song live for the first time at Good Morning America
on September 2, 2011. The song debuted on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart at number ninety-four, and has since peaked at number thirty-six. "Mr. Wrong", featuring Drake, was released as the second single from the album on October 28, 2011. The song is co-produced by Jim Jonsin and Rico Love.. "Mr. Wrong" impacted Urban radio on November 8, 2011.
" was released as first promotional single of the album in March 2011. It's a reworked version of the song "Someone to Love Me" by Diddy Dirty-Money from their album "Last Train to Paris
" and features Lil Wayne
, and Diddy
. Produced by Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis
, and Arden Altino, "Someone to Love Me (Naked)" sample
s "You Roam When You Don’t Get It At Home" performed by The Sweet Inspirations. A music video for the song was premiered online on April 4, 2011. Blige, and Wayne performed the song live for the first time at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards on May 22, 2011. The song initially debuted on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart at number ninety-nine before falling off, only to return, and subsequently peak at number twenty-eight. "The Living Proof" hit the internet on July 5, 2011. It serves as the official soundtrack for "The Help
", and is produced by The Underdogs
. A music video for the song was released online on August 10, 2011. The song debuted on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart at number twenty-seven on November 3, 2011.
, with first-week sales of 156,000 copies in the United States.
s. At Metacritic
, which assigns a normalized
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
score of 71, based on 11 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Martyn Young of musicOMH
called it "a wonderfully assured collection of classy RnB pop that can justifiably rank amongst her best work", and commented that its ballads "are never grandiose or overblown and Blige’s perfectly poised vocals are genuinely affecting." BBC Music
's Lloyd Bradley dubbed the album "Blige's most enjoyable, exciting and consistent album in years" and complimented its music as a "clever updating" of her past hip hop soul. The Daily Telegraph
stated, "with the right collaborators [Blige] can conjure golden moments when the listener is transported simultaneously to the church pew and the dancefloor." Rolling Stone
writer Jody Rosen
called Blige "admirably unfashionable, staying in her sweet spot of midtempo hip-hop soul", adding that "she can still make pain pleasurable."
However, Andy Gill of The Independent
expressed a mixed response towards its "bumpy emotional terrain", adding that "by the time she's berating some partner for not listening to her, your sympathies wane." Kevin Ritchie of NOW
panned the album's "easy-listening ballads" and characterized Blige's direction as "dull and predictable". Entertainment Weekly
s Adam Markovitz commented that "Blige can still rip your heart out with a note", but criticized "the lovelorn lyrics" and "'modern' touches". Rebecca Nicholson of The Guardian
called it "a surprisingly robust return to form [...] elegant, refined and, for the most, part up-to-date", but also found it "far too long" and criticized the "listlessness and sentimentality" of its ballads. Los Angeles Times
writer Mikael Wood stated, "She gets away with the dramatics because she makes them so easy to buy: No working soul singer depicts struggle (and its hard-won defeat) more believably than Blige does, even when armed with so-so material, as she often is here."
Slant Magazine
's Eric Henderson disliked Blige's "lapses into self-pity", but commended the "slow burn" of the album's second-half as "her most credible adult-contemporary
music since 1999's Mary." Allmusic editor Andy Kellman stated, "Those who are hoping for something in the spirit of mid-‘90s Blige might be disappointed and think of the title as a ploy, but those who expect a wide variety of material in terms of style and mood will get precisely that." Although he found its ballads "a little toothless", Evan Rytlewski of The A.V. Club
stated, "What My Life II lacks in a single vision, though, it makes up for with consistently rousing performances from Blige, whose radiant voice has only grown fuller and bluesier with time."
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
recording artist Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
. Titled as the sequel to her 1994 album My Life
My Life (Mary J. Blige album)
My Life is the second studio album from American R&B and soul singer Mary J. Blige, Released by Uptown/MCA Records on November 29, 1994. Recording sessions for the album began in fall of 1993 and ended almost one year later. Many of the topics on My Life deal with clinical depression, Blige's...
, the album was released on November 21, 2011.
Background
It was confirmed in August 2010 that Blige had begun work on her tenth studio album with Swizz BeatzSwizz Beatz
Kasseem Dean , better known by his stage name, Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, DJ, rapper and painter. At the age of 17, he gained attention in the hip-hop world through his friendship with rapper DMX. Grady Spivey and rapper Cassidy helped launch his label Full Surface Records...
, Kanye West
Kanye West
Kanye Omari West is an American rapper, singer, and record producer. West first rose to fame as a producer for Roc-A-Fella Records, where he eventually achieved recognition for his work on Jay-Z's album The Blueprint, as well as hit singles for musical artists including Alicia Keys, Ludacris, and...
, The Underdogs
The Underdogs (duo)
The Underdogs is an R&B/pop production duo composed of Harvey Mason, Jr. and Damon Thomas.-Biography:Harvey Mason, Jr. is the son of Harvey Mason, Sr., a noted session drummer...
, Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis
Jerry Duplessis
Jerry 'Wonder' Duplessis is a Grammy Award nominated Haitian-born musical composer and record producer. His first major success was as producer for The Fugees' 1996 album The Score. He also played the bass guitar with The Fugees, and band member Wyclef Jean is his cousin.-Early Life:Jerry 'Wonda'...
, Lil Ronnie, Jay-Z
Jay-Z
Shawn Corey Carter , better known by his stage name Jay-Z, is an American rapper, record producer, entrepreneur, and occasional actor. He is one of the most financially successful hip hop artists and entrepreneurs in America, having a net worth of over $450 million as of 2010...
, Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
, Salaam Remi
Salaam Remi
Salaam Remi Gibbs, better known as Salaam Remi, is a hip hop producer and keyboard player, known for his association with Nas, Amy Winehouse, and his reggae-tinged approach to production...
, Maxwell
Maxwell (musician)
Maxwell , is an American R&B, funk and neo soul musician. He played an important role in the development of the soul sub-genre, neo-soul.-Early life:...
, Alicia Keys
Alicia Keys
Alicia Augello Cook , better known by her stage name Alicia Keys, is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and occasional actress. She was raised by a single mother in the Hell's Kitchen area of Manhattan in New York City. At age seven, Keys began playing the piano...
, Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq
Raphael Saadiq is an American singer, songwriter and record producer. Saadiq has been a standard bearer for "old school" R&B since his early days as a member of the multiplatinum group Tony! Toni! Toné! He also produced songs of such artists as TLC, Joss Stone, D'Angelo, Mary J...
, Ester Dean
Ester Dean
Ester Renay Dean is an American singer and songwriter, and record producer signed to Zone 4 Records/Interscope Records. She is most notable for her dual appearance on Rio: Music From The Motion Picture and her 2009 US hit single "Drop It Low", which featured singer Chris Brown...
, J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League
J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, which stands for Just Undeniably Some of The Illest Composers Ever, are a Grammy winning group of producers and instrumentalists from Tampa, Florida. The group consists of members Rook, Colione, and Kenny "Barto" Bartolomei. Most recently, they have been producing for Drake,...
, Johnta Austin
Johnta Austin
Johntá Austin is an American singer-songwriter, who is currently signed to Jermaine Dupri's So So Def Recordings. He is commonly known for collaborating with Producers Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri & The Production Team StarGate. Austin was awarded two Grammy Awards for his work on the songs...
, Eric Hudson
Eric Hudson
Eric Hudson is a South Orange, New Jersey native and Grammy award-winning music producer. Born to father Curt Hudson, songwriter/producer . He went to Columbia High School in South Orange, NJ and graduated in 2004.-2006:Omarion - 21* 01. "Entourage"* 03. "Electric"* 11. "Been With a Star"John...
, Q-Tip, Sean Garrett
Sean Garrett
Garrett Hamler, better known by his stage name Sean Garrett is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, and record producer. He has produced fifteen number one singles in only seven years of producing music. That number puts him in fifth place on the Billboard list of producers with the most number...
, DJ Premier
DJ Premier
Christopher Edward Martin , better known by his stage name DJ Premier , is an American record producer and DJ, and was the instrumental half of the hip hop duo Gang Starr, together with emcee Guru...
, Gorilla Tek
Gorilla Tek
Tony Castillo, better known as Gorilla Tek, or G-Tek is an award-winning American record producer and composer.He is well-known throughout South Florida. One half of the production duo Drummajorz, his success dates back to “Disco Rick and the Dogs”...
, Don Pooh, Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith, Jr. , better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. Beginning his career as a songwriter, Ne-Yo penned the hit "Let Me Love You" for singer Mario...
, and Drumma Boy
Drumma Boy
Christopher James Gholson, better known by his stage name Drumma Boy, is a multi-platinum award winning record producer and rapper from Memphis, Tennessee.-Early life:...
. Reports claimed the album would be titled, LovHer and be released first quarter of 2011, but Mary revealed to Rap-Up. com during her Music Saved My Life Tour
Music Saved My Life Tour
The Music Saved My Life Tour is the ninth concert tour by American recording artist, Mary J. Blige. Visiting North America, Europe, Asia and Australasia, the tour supports Blige's ninth studio album, Stronger with Each Tear.-Background:...
in 2010, she was in no rush to release the album and she had not given it a title as of yet. A song called "Anything You Want" featuring Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes
Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
and Gyptian
Gyptian
Gyptian Born on 25 October 1983, Jamaican reggae singer. He often appears with roots reggae songs within the reggae subgenre dancehall....
leaked on line in August 2010.
Blige revealed to MTV.com, backstage at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards
2010 MTV Video Music Awards
The 2010 MTV Video Music Awards took place on September 12, 2010 at Nokia Theatre in Los Angeles, honoring the best music videos from the previous year...
, that
Producer-songwriter Danja, confirmed that he had been heavily involved in the new album. He said of the records he's made with Blige
Additionally it was revealed that singer-songwriter Kevin Cossom
Kevin Cossom
Kevin 'K.C.' Cossom is an American singer, Grammy-nominated songwriter, producer and arranger. Born in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania and raised in Orlando, Florida, Cossom has written for a variety of artists including Keri Hilson and Mary. J Blige...
was also working with Blige, writing songs for her upcoming album. The LP, recorded in Los Angeles, New York City and Atlanta, sees Mary looking toward the future while acknowledging the past.
On June 21, 2011, a track titled "Feel Inside" apparently featuring Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj
Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist...
leaked online. In an interview with MTV
MTV
MTV, formerly an initialism of Music Television, is an American network based in New York City that launched on August 1, 1981. The original purpose of the channel was to play music videos guided by on-air hosts known as VJs....
it was revealed that the track was in fact two separate songs that the duo were respectively working on, but that someone had put together. Blige revealed that despite the fake collaboration, Minaj and Blige would be collaborating together on a song, written by Andrea Martin. "I was ****ed about the leaking of the Nicki Minaj and Mary J Blige record, because that's not fair and people shouldn't do that," she said bluntly. "But I'm over it. We move on. We're going to make more hot music." The album will also see the return of Brook Lynn, Blige's rap alterego last heard on "Enough Cryin'" and the remix to "Touch It
Touch It
"Touch It" is a rap/hip-hop song by Busta Rhymes which contains a sample from "Technologic" by the electronic band Daft Punk. Released as an official single on May 13, 2006, it was the first single from Rhymes' Aftermath/Interscope debut, The Big Bang...
" by Busta Rhymes
Busta Rhymes
Trevor Tahiem Smith, Jr., better known by his stage name Busta Rhymes ,Smith is an American rapper, producer and actor. Chuck D of Public Enemy gave him the alias Busta Rhymes after NFL wide receiver George "Buster" Rhymes...
.
Release and promotion
Originally scheduled for a September 20, 2011 release, the album was later pushed back to November 21, 2011. A deluxe edition for the album will also be available in the United States and the United Kingdom.Live Performances
Mary J. Blige embarked on promotional tours and live performances for My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1) and its accompanying singles through the United Kingdom and North America. Promotion began with a live performance of the album's lead single on September 1, 2011 at Good Morning AmericaGood Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
. Blige performed "25/8
25/8 (song)
"25/8" is a song taken from American R&B singer-songwriter Mary J. Blige's album My Life II... The Journey Continues . The song has musical production by Eric Hudson and was released as the first official single from the album....
" on Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars
Dancing with the Stars is the name of several international television series based on the format of the British TV series Strictly Come Dancing, which is distributed by BBC Worldwide – the commercial arm of the BBC. Currently the format has been licensed to over 35 countries...
(October 4). On October 20, Blige debuted a new song from the album called, "Need Someone", at Perez Hilton
Perez Hilton
Mario Armando Lavandeira, Jr. , better known as Perez Hilton , is an American blogger and television personality. His blog, Perezhilton.com , is known for posts covering gossip items about celebrities...
's "One Night In… New York City" benefit concert for GLSN. Blige also performed "Need Someone" on Later... with Jools Holland (November 1). Blige was a guest on the UK morning show, Daybreak
Daybreak (ITV)
Daybreak is the weekday breakfast television programme on the British commercial ITV network that broadcasts on weekday mornings from 06:00 to 08:30 and is currently presented by Adrian Chiles and Christine Bleakley from Monday to Thursday with Dan Lobb and Kate Garraway on Fridays...
(November 2) and Alan Carr: Chatty Man
Alan Carr: Chatty Man
Alan Carr: Chatty Man is a British comedy chat show presented by comedian Alan Carr. The award-winning show is on Channel 4. The show features interviews with celebrity guests, sketches, topical chat and music....
(November 6) to discuss the new album and single.
Throughout the month of November, Mary will be performing at numerous shows, including Black Girls Rock (November 6), the TeenNick HALO Awards
TeenNick HALO Awards
The TeenNick HALO Awards is a TV special that airs on TeenNick every December of every year. It profiles four ordinary teens who are Helping And Leading Others . Created by chairman Nick Cannon, the show is unlike any other award shows...
(November 6), the American Music Awards
American Music Awards
-Conception:The AMAs were created by Dick Clark in 1973 to compete with the Grammys after the move of that year's show to Nashville, Tennessee led to CBS picking up the Grammy telecasts after its first two in 1971 and 1972 were broadcast on ABC...
(November 20), Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade
The Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade, often shortened to Macy's Day Parade, is an annual parade presented by Macy's. The tradition started in 1924, tying it for the second-oldest Thanksgiving parade in the United States along with America's Thanksgiving Parade in Detroit, and four years younger than...
(November 24), The Today Show
The Today Show
Today is an iconic American morning news and talk show airing every morning on NBC. Debuting on January 14, 1952, it was the first of its genre on American television and in the world. The show is also the fourth-longest running American television series...
(November 25), Chelsea Lately
Chelsea Lately
Chelsea Lately is an American late night comedy talk show hosted by comedian Chelsea Handler on E!. The show debuted on July 16, 2007, and is produced by Handler's production company, Borderline Amazing Productions...
(November 25), CBS News Sunday Morning
CBS News Sunday Morning
CBS News Sunday Morning is an American television news magazine program created by Robert Northshield and original host Charles Kuralt. The program has aired continuously since January 28, 1979 on the CBS Television Network, airing in the Eastern US on Sunday from 9:00 to 10:30 a.m...
(November 27) and The View
The View
The View is an American talk show broadcast on the ABC as part of ABC Daytime. Created by Barbara Walters and Bill Geddie, who both also serve as the show's executive producers, the program features a panel of women as co-hosts...
(November 29). In addition to this, Blige will also embark on a U.S. tour to promote the album. On the tour Blige will perform the original My Life album in its entirety, with shows in Oakland (November 11), Los Angeles
Los Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
(November 17), New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
(November 23) and Atlanta (November 25). The Los Angeles date will be shown live on Vevo November 17, 2011 at 11PM EST. The concert event, Mary J. Blige: UNSTAGED, will be directed by Adam Shankman.
HSN & Mary J. Blige will air a special My Life Concert on November 30th. In addition to this, Blige will be selling her perfume, My Life Blossom, during the special. Fans will have a chance to purchase the limited-edition My Life Blossom Holiday Gift Se,t including the My Life Blossom Eau de Parfum and Body Cream plus the HSN-Exclusive My Life II…The Journey Continues (Act 1) album.
On December 19, 2011, Blige will perform at "VH1 Divas Celebrates Soul". Blige will also be performing on CBS
CBS
CBS Broadcasting Inc. is a major US commercial broadcasting television network, which started as a radio network. The name is derived from the initials of the network's former name, Columbia Broadcasting System. The network is sometimes referred to as the "Eye Network" in reference to the shape of...
' annual Home for the Holidays airing December 21st.
Singles
"25/825/8 (song)
"25/8" is a song taken from American R&B singer-songwriter Mary J. Blige's album My Life II... The Journey Continues . The song has musical production by Eric Hudson and was released as the first official single from the album....
" was released for digital download on September 1, 2011, as the album's first single. The song was produced, and co-written by Eric Hudson
Eric Hudson
Eric Hudson is a South Orange, New Jersey native and Grammy award-winning music producer. Born to father Curt Hudson, songwriter/producer . He went to Columbia High School in South Orange, NJ and graduated in 2004.-2006:Omarion - 21* 01. "Entourage"* 03. "Electric"* 11. "Been With a Star"John...
. Blige performed the song live for the first time at Good Morning America
Good Morning America
Good Morning America is an American morning news and talk show that is broadcast on the ABC television network; it debuted on November 3, 1975. The weekday program airs for two hours; a third hour aired between 2007 and 2008 exclusively on ABC News Now...
on September 2, 2011. The song debuted on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart at number ninety-four, and has since peaked at number thirty-six. "Mr. Wrong", featuring Drake, was released as the second single from the album on October 28, 2011. The song is co-produced by Jim Jonsin and Rico Love.. "Mr. Wrong" impacted Urban radio on November 8, 2011.
Other Songs
"Someone to Love Me (Naked)Someone to Love Me (Naked)
"Someone to Love Me " is a song by American recording artist Mary J. Blige, taken from her tenth studio album My Life II... The Journey Continues . Written by Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis and Leroy Watson, the song is a remix of "Someone to Love Me" from Diddy-Dirty Money's debut album, Last Train to...
" was released as first promotional single of the album in March 2011. It's a reworked version of the song "Someone to Love Me" by Diddy Dirty-Money from their album "Last Train to Paris
Last Train to Paris
Last Train to Paris is the fifth studio album by American rapper and producer Diddy, released on December 13, 2010 through Bad Boy Records . The album follows Diddy's alter-ego as he travels from London to Paris to regain a lost love...
" and features Lil Wayne
Lil Wayne
Dwayne Michael Carter, Jr. , better known by his stage name Lil Wayne, is an American rapper. At the age of nine, Lil Wayne joined Cash Money Records as the youngest member of the label, and half of the duo, The B.G.'z, with B.G.. In 1997, Lil Wayne joined the group Hot Boys, which also included...
, and Diddy
Sean Combs
Sean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
. Produced by Jerry "Wonder" Duplessis
Jerry Duplessis
Jerry 'Wonder' Duplessis is a Grammy Award nominated Haitian-born musical composer and record producer. His first major success was as producer for The Fugees' 1996 album The Score. He also played the bass guitar with The Fugees, and band member Wyclef Jean is his cousin.-Early Life:Jerry 'Wonda'...
, and Arden Altino, "Someone to Love Me (Naked)" sample
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
s "You Roam When You Don’t Get It At Home" performed by The Sweet Inspirations. A music video for the song was premiered online on April 4, 2011. Blige, and Wayne performed the song live for the first time at the 2011 Billboard Music Awards on May 22, 2011. The song initially debuted on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart at number ninety-nine before falling off, only to return, and subsequently peak at number twenty-eight. "The Living Proof" hit the internet on July 5, 2011. It serves as the official soundtrack for "The Help
The Help (film)
The Help is a 2011 comedy-drama film adaptation of Kathryn Stockett's novel of the same name. The film is about a young white woman, Eugenia "Skeeter" Phelan, and her relationship with two black maids during Civil Rights era America in the early 1960s...
", and is produced by The Underdogs
The Underdogs (duo)
The Underdogs is an R&B/pop production duo composed of Harvey Mason, Jr. and Damon Thomas.-Biography:Harvey Mason, Jr. is the son of Harvey Mason, Sr., a noted session drummer...
. A music video for the song was released online on August 10, 2011. The song debuted on Billboard's Adult Contemporary chart at number twenty-seven on November 3, 2011.
Commercial performance
The album debuted at number five on the US Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
, with first-week sales of 156,000 copies in the United States.
Critical response
My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1) received generally positive reviews from music criticMusic criticism
See also Music journalism for reporting on classical and popular music in the media.The Oxford Companion to Music defines music criticism as 'the intellectual activity of formulating judgments on the value and degree of excellence of individual works of music, or whole groups or genres'. In this...
s. At Metacritic
Metacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, which assigns a normalized
Standard score
In statistics, a standard score indicates how many standard deviations an observation or datum is above or below the mean. It is a dimensionless quantity derived by subtracting the population mean from an individual raw score and then dividing the difference by the population standard deviation...
rating out of 100 to reviews from mainstream critics, the album received an average
Weighted mean
The weighted mean is similar to an arithmetic mean , where instead of each of the data points contributing equally to the final average, some data points contribute more than others...
score of 71, based on 11 reviews, which indicates "generally favorable reviews". Martyn Young of musicOMH
MusicOMH
musicOMH is a United Kingdom-based website which publishes independent reviews, featues and interviews from across all musical genres including classical, metal, rock and R&B.-History:...
called it "a wonderfully assured collection of classy RnB pop that can justifiably rank amongst her best work", and commented that its ballads "are never grandiose or overblown and Blige’s perfectly poised vocals are genuinely affecting." BBC Music
BBC Music
BBC Music is a team working in the department of Audio and Music Interactive at the BBC. Responsible for the BBC Music website - the portal site to music content across the BBC website....
's Lloyd Bradley dubbed the album "Blige's most enjoyable, exciting and consistent album in years" and complimented its music as a "clever updating" of her past hip hop soul. The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph
The Daily Telegraph is a daily morning broadsheet newspaper distributed throughout the United Kingdom and internationally. The newspaper was founded by Arthur B...
stated, "with the right collaborators [Blige] can conjure golden moments when the listener is transported simultaneously to the church pew and the dancefloor." Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone
Rolling Stone is a US-based magazine devoted to music, liberal politics, and popular culture that is published every two weeks. Rolling Stone was founded in San Francisco in 1967 by Jann Wenner and music critic Ralph J...
writer Jody Rosen
Jody Rosen
Jody Rosen is an American journalist and author. He is the music critic for the online magazine Slate, and the author of White Christmas: The Story of an American Song....
called Blige "admirably unfashionable, staying in her sweet spot of midtempo hip-hop soul", adding that "she can still make pain pleasurable."
However, Andy Gill of The Independent
The Independent
The Independent is a British national morning newspaper published in London by Independent Print Limited, owned by Alexander Lebedev since 2010. It is nicknamed the Indy, while the Sunday edition, The Independent on Sunday, is the Sindy. Launched in 1986, it is one of the youngest UK national daily...
expressed a mixed response towards its "bumpy emotional terrain", adding that "by the time she's berating some partner for not listening to her, your sympathies wane." Kevin Ritchie of NOW
NOW (magazine)
Now is a free weekly newspaper in Toronto, Canada. It was first printed on September 10, 1981 by Michael Hollett and Alice Klein. Now is an alternative weekly mixing arts and entertainment news with political coverage....
panned the album's "easy-listening ballads" and characterized Blige's direction as "dull and predictable". Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
s Adam Markovitz commented that "Blige can still rip your heart out with a note", but criticized "the lovelorn lyrics" and "'modern' touches". Rebecca Nicholson of The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
called it "a surprisingly robust return to form [...] elegant, refined and, for the most, part up-to-date", but also found it "far too long" and criticized the "listlessness and sentimentality" of its ballads. Los Angeles Times
Los Angeles Times
The Los Angeles Times is a daily newspaper published in Los Angeles, California, since 1881. It was the second-largest metropolitan newspaper in circulation in the United States in 2008 and the fourth most widely distributed newspaper in the country....
writer Mikael Wood stated, "She gets away with the dramatics because she makes them so easy to buy: No working soul singer depicts struggle (and its hard-won defeat) more believably than Blige does, even when armed with so-so material, as she often is here."
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
's Eric Henderson disliked Blige's "lapses into self-pity", but commended the "slow burn" of the album's second-half as "her most credible adult-contemporary
Adult contemporary music
Adult contemporary music is a broad style of popular music that ranges from lush 1950s and 1960s vocal music to predominantly ballad-heavy music with varying degrees of rock influence, as well as a radio format that plays such music....
music since 1999's Mary." Allmusic editor Andy Kellman stated, "Those who are hoping for something in the spirit of mid-‘90s Blige might be disappointed and think of the title as a ploy, but those who expect a wide variety of material in terms of style and mood will get precisely that." Although he found its ballads "a little toothless", Evan Rytlewski of The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
stated, "What My Life II lacks in a single vision, though, it makes up for with consistently rousing performances from Blige, whose radiant voice has only grown fuller and bluesier with time."
Track listing
Charts
| Chart (2011) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| Dutch Albums Chart | 95 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
31 |
| US Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
5 |
| US Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
3 |
Release history
| Region | Date | Format | Label | Edition | Catalogue |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Australia | November 18, 2011 | CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... , digital download Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... |
Geffen Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:... |
Standard, deluxe | |
| Austria | |||||
| Germany | |||||
| Japan | |||||
| Netherlands | |||||
| New Zealand | |||||
| Spain | |||||
| Sweden | |||||
| Switzerland | |||||
| Canada | November 21, 2011 | ||||
| France | |||||
| United Kingdom | Polydor Records Polydor Records Polydor is a record label owned by Universal Music Group, headquartered in the United Kingdom.-Beginnings:Polydor was originally an independent branch of the Deutsche Grammophon Gesellschaft. Its name was first used as an export label in 1924, the British and German branches of the Gramophone... |
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| United States | Matriarch, Geffen Geffen Records Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:... |
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External links
- My Life II... The Journey Continues (Act 1) at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...