Just when we think we know the unmitigated glory that is Mary J. Blige, she shape-shifts, leveling up her glamour to unimaginable new heights. This is the only way to describe her latest appearance on the cover of New York magazine, where she somehow seems to channel both Marlene Dietrich and Marilyn Monroe, but mostly an iconic diva who is inimitably, undeniably Mary.
Even if you didn’t fall for her in the era of What’s the 411?—or in the decades since—you must give Blige her flowers in this awards season because she is the undisputed belle of every ball. With her performance in Mudbound garnering nominations for the Golden Globes, Critics Choice Awards, Screen Actors Guild Awards and now an Oscar, this runaway success from the Schlobohm housing projects of Yonkers, N.Y., reminds us every day what inspiration really looks like.
Her layout in the spring-fashion edition of New York magazine is no exception, reinventing the “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul” as a screen siren as glamorous as any we’ve ever seen. With glowing skin and her now-trademark platinum hair, Blige is in a league with Hayworth, Horne, Bacall and Dandridge; immortalized as a classic beauty, the likes of whom the world had better get used to.
All that (we) can say ... is check out the article, because she only gets better.
The Glow Up tip: Love you some Mary? Check out the “Feminist Friday” playlist she curated for Spotify!