The Queen of Hip-Hop Soul has taken her talents across the pond.
Mary J. Blige has spent the past month in the UK working on her upcoming album, The London Sessions, a compilation of songs she recorded during her time in the city. In an interview with The Guardian, Blige took note of the new “British invasion” of U.S. pop charts, from Sam Smith and Adele to the late Amy Winehouse.
“The music is free over here the way it used to be in the States,” she said. “Artists are just free to do what they love. Listening to the radio you can hear the freedom. The music is living and breathing – you can hear that from Adele’s last album. It was massive – a big deal.”
The London Sessions will include songs from some of Blige’s favorite British talents including Smith, Disclosure, Naughty Boy, and Emeli Sandé, in addition to American producer Rodney “Dark Child” Jerkins. “Our idea was to become part of London,” she said. “To really embrace the culture – to really live in it. To make records from the London-scene perspective.”
Mary J Blige: The London Sessions will be released in November. Blige recently gave fans a behind-the-scenes look at this new chapter of her life.