No More Drama - Mary J. Blige

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No More Drama
There is one word that describes this song and that is wow. When I first listened to the album this song really stood out, the music and lyrics. The song and video are really moving and strong. It really shows Mary at her best, her vocals are strong and emotional. No More Drama is at number 9 at the moment in the charts, but I believe deserved number one. It is defiantly one of my favourite Mary tracks, every ...
...When I first listened to No More Drama I instantly liked it, the same happened with this song.

Written By: Mary J Blige and Brenda Russell
Produced By: Kiyamma Griffin
All Vocals By: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10



Never Been
I could tell instantly this track was produced and written by Missy Elliot. It has her distinctive electronic beat and her rap adlibs in the background!! ... more

(This review refers to the original album “No More Drama” not the re-packaged one, which features extra remix tracks)

As you may know I have already written a review on one of the most influential artists of all time, now I am back reviewing her 4th album “No More Drama” which includes the fantastic hit “Family Affair”

Who am I talking about? None other than Ms Mary J Blige. A fantastic singer, performer and songwriter. She has already had major success with her previous album, and has been around since 1994, where we saw a fresh face, now we see Mary J and recognise her as an extremely influential artist. Her first release from the album “Family Affair” was one of her biggest hits ever and her new single “No More Drama” is a masterpiece and hopefully will give her even more success.

Her image has changed slightly but her raw vocals and song writing skills have improved dramatically. She has returned with new and producers she has worked before with, and out came “No More Drama” This album is fairly new and released winter 2001. It is hard to say that this album is a classic, like many of her others, but I’m sure that time will tell.

The title of the album may not be a coincidence, Mary is known for her tantrums and has said for a few years that she has grown up and those days are past, so the title of the album confirms this. The title track (current single) is very emotional and the strongest song on the album.

Love
A fast track to start off her return, a really great song, as soon as I heard it I liked it, it is a fast beaty track with a lot of emotional vocals from Mary. The song has a shouting chorus in the background, it sounds strange but sounds really good!! That is what I like about her; her voice is very strong and has a lot of feeling in it. I’m sure if this song was released that it would do well, as it is a club hit, but also a great R’n’B hit. It is a fantastic song to start off the album.

Written by: Mary J, Bruce Miller, Ron Lawrence and Kwame Holland.
Produced by: Ron “Amen RA” Lawrence
Lead vocals: Mary J Blige
Background vocals: Mary J Blige and Kamarko Miller

10 out of 10

Family Affair
The song that shot off her return, a great beaty dance track with a great beat. The chorus is very catchy and I was very surprised when I realised who produced it. I am not surprised though that the song was so successful, it has to be one of Mary’s great songs of all time. I play this song over and over!!
Written by: Mary J Blige, Bruce Miller, Andre Young, Camara Kambon, Asiah Lewis, Luchana N Lodge and Mike Elizondo.
Produced by: Dr Dre
All Vocals: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10

Steal Away
Again when I heard this song I liked it instantly. It was produced by the Neptunes (I don’t know who they are, but they produced a great track!) and they also appear on the song. It is a mid tempo track, with such a catchy chorus. It is another very strong feature on the album and would make a great single. The man who features on the single (Pharrel Williams, from the Neptunes) has a sweet high voice, which compliments Mary’s husky voice.

Written By: Mary J Blige and Pharrel Williams
Produced by: The Neptunes
Lead Vocals by: Mary J Blige and Pharrel Williams
Background vocals by: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10

Crazy Games
This is not one of the best songs off of the album, but it doesn’t mean it isn’t catchy and singable to!! It has a great classic hip Hop beat, which is typical of a Mary song. I don’t think it would do too well as a single, as it isn’t a very commercial song, although Mary J Blige fans will adore it.

Written by: Mary J Blige and Kenny Dickerson
Produced by: Kenny Falv
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige

9 out of 10

PMS
Now many will say that this is a strange track , I have read some very adverse comments about this song. I think it is uncalled for, in fact it’s brave of a artist to talk about something like PMS, (which is all about the time before and during your period!!!!) The song itself is a really great track, and reminds me of a blues song, which obviously fits in with the lyrics!!! Obviously some people don’t like the song for the lyrics, I put it down to being embarrassed!!!

Written By: Mary J Blige, Terri Robinson, tara Tillman, Chucky Thompson and Al Green.
Produced By: Chucky Thompson
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige, Terri Robinson and Tara Geter Tillman.

10 out of 10

No More Drama
There is one word that describes this song and that is wow. When I first listened to the album this song really stood out, the music and lyrics. The song and video are really moving and strong. It really shows Mary at her best, her vocals are strong and emotional. No More Drama is at number 9 at the moment in the charts, but I believe deserved number one. It is defiantly one of my favourite Mary tracks, every album I gain another one!! The piano and almost dance backing strangely fit in very well. I am sure you have all heard it as it is played a lot, if you haven’t make sure you do give it a lesson!!

Written By: James Harris III, Terry Lewis, Barry Devorzan and Perry Botkin Jr.
Produced By: Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige

100 out of 10!!

Keep It Moving
This song is slightly more upbeat and has a happier vibe to it than the previous song! It is quite a simple song which contains a lot of layered vocals, it is like many Mary songs very catchy! It fits its placing on the album and is a track I listen to often. It is all about people moving on with their negative attitudes, which sounds like a typical Mary song to me!

Written By: Mary J Blige and Bruce Miller
Produced By: Rockwilder
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10

Destiny
A song, which is given away by the title about Mary’s destiny!! Again I love the song, although its not one I skip to listen to. For a single I don’t think it would be that successful.

Written By: Mary J Blige, Bryan Reeves, Bennie Benjamin, Sol Marcus and Gloria Caldwell.
Produced By: Kiyamma Griffin
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige

8 out of 10

Where I’ve Been (featuring Eve)
This is a song, basically telling Mary’s life story! All about her ups and downs, getting into street gangs and having to look after her 6 brothers and sisters. She also sends out a really positive message to youth, especially in the same situation Mary was in. I really like this song, but it needs a few listens to really get into it. The rap by Eve is also excellent, would defiantly be a great hit as the chorus is very catchy and it has a good steady beat.

Written By: Mary J Blige
Produced By: Ruff Ryders
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige and Eve
Rap By: Eve

10 out of 10

Beautiful Day
This reminds me of a gospel song, not necessarily the music but the lyrics. Also the style Mary performs the song is very strong and happy!! It’s not really what you would expect from Mary but the song really works well.

Written By: Bruce Miller
Produced By: Kenny Flav
All vocals: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10

Dance For Me
The second release from the album after Family Affair, it wasn’t as successful as Family Affair but I feel it is as good. It is a upbeat dance type track with great vocals and again a really catchy chorus. The video is simple but effective; basically the song is being played in a club, which it should be to get its full potential!! It also features a rap at the beginning and end of the song, he isn’t a well known rapper, but he doesn’t rap that bad at all!!!

The song contains a sample of “The beds too big without you” by Sting.

Written By: Bruce Miller, Mary J Blige, Akhim Miller and Sting
Produced By: Dame Grease
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige
Rap By: Akhim Miller

10 out of 10

Flying Away
This song is another great track, its slow and sweet. It’s a very romantic song and that’s probably why I like it so much!! It has a really soft beat and slow vocals. It’s a great song to relax to and can be listened to over and over and still doesn’t get worn out. As a single I think it would be a success as it is catchy and mellow. When I first listened to No More Drama I instantly liked it, the same happened with this song.

Written By: Mary J Blige and Brenda Russell
Produced By: Kiyamma Griffin
All Vocals By: Mary J Blige

10 out of 10

Never Been
I could tell instantly this track was produced and written by Missy Elliot. It has her distinctive electronic beat and her rap adlibs in the background!! It is a really sexy song and is catchy. It is a mid slow song with a steady tempo. Another strong song on the album.

Written By: Missy Elliot, Henri Charlemagne
Produced By: Missy Elliot
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige and Missy Elliot

10 out of 10

2U
This is one of the slower songs near the end of the album. It is again a really great track, which was written by Mary herself. Her voice is amazing on the track, which fits in with the song. I am not too sure if the song would do well as a single as it needs several listens before you being to like it. You will like the song if you are a Mary fan, Im not sure if you will if you are not!!

Written By: Mary J Blige
Produced By: Kiyamma Griffin
Lead Vocals: Mary J Blige
Background Vocals: Mary J Blige and Montina Cooper

Forever No More
This is a poem, which was written by Mary. It is a poem all about (my interpretation) the change Mary went through, when she toned down her fiery temper and ups and downs. From this album we can see Mary really wants her calmer self to be known.

Written By: Mary J Blige

“No More uncontrollable eruptions of emotion depression”

The album booklet is very classy, it is printed on shiny paper with lots of pictures of Mary and track information. The front cover includes a picture of Mary with a beige coat on.

I really like this album as I am a keen (as you may of realised) Mary fan!!! Although there is a lot of Mary style songs, there are also a few that everyone is sure to like.

www.mjblige.com

 

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