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No More Drama

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Untitled

No More Drama is the fifth studio album by American recording artist Mary J. Blige. The album was released on August 28, 2001 (see 2001 in music) in North America. The album was certified 3x Platinum. According to Billboard magazine, No More Drama has sold over 3,200,000 in the United States alone to date. Critically acclaimed, the album has received positive to favorable reviews from most music critics, debuting at number two on the U.S. Billboard 200, and opening at number one on the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, selling 324,000 copies in its first week[8]. It has spawned four singles that has attained Billboard chart success.

Estimated worldwide sales for the album are at 6,500,000.[9] "No More Drama" has sold 2,225,000 copies in Europe alone.

Conception

The inspiration for No More Drama came largely from Blige's own confused and hectic life. In a later interview she confessed to living a life of alcohol- and drug abuse at the time, and as a result getting involved in a series of abusive relationships. The album was an attempt to break free from this vicious circle, which was a result of a deprived childhood.[10]

Stylistically, the album diverged from Blige's typically blues-soaked R&B into the hip-hop beats and influences that had made her debut, What's the 411?, a hit. This is especially evident in the first single, "Family Affair". Rapper Eve appears on the track "Where I've Been" as well, and urban influences can be heard throughout the album.[citation needed]

Early in its development, the album carried the full title Mary Jane - No More Drama and was to be a sequel to 1999's Mary. Blige's then-manager hinted that the album would be the second in a trilogy and be followed by an album titled Mary Jane Blige.[11] During this time, the first single was supposed to be a song called "Rock Steady" featuring a rap from Jay-Z and Lenny Kravitz on guitar. The song was leaked to mixtapes months before the album was scheduled to be released and subsequently did not make the final cut on the album.[12]

Reception

Robert Marriott of Rolling Stone gave the album three and a half stars out of five, and called it "less volatile and less emotionally jagged than Blige's earlier work". He highlighted "Family Affair", "Steal Away" and the title track as the best songs on the album.[13] At Allmusic, Liana Jonas gave it four stars out of five, saying Blige had "come a long way" since her breakthrough album What's the 411? from 1992, and that she had "blossomed into an all-out R&B diva". She praised Blige's versatile voice, and her ability to write lyrics that people could relate to.[14]

The album debuted at #2 on the Billboard album chart, and stayed the top hundred of that chart for several months.[citation needed] "Family Affair" peaked at #1 for six weeks on the Billboard Hot 100 chart in the early autumn of 2001.[15]

While the third single "No More Drama" climbed the charts, Blige earned two Grammy nominations.Family Affair was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and the album No More Drama was nominated for Best R&B Album, but Blige failed to win either award. In 2002, Mary was nominated once again for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for "He Think I Don't Know" and won.

Rhapsody (online music service) ranked the album #4 on its "Best R&B Albums of the Decade" list.[16]

In Germany, the album was her most successful one in her career in this country, reaching #13 and staying in the German Albums Chart for 35 weeks [17]

Track listing

# Song Composer(s) Time
1 "Love" Mary J. Blige/Kwame Holland/Ron "Amen-Ra" Lawrence/Bruce Miller 2:46
2 "Family Affair" Mary J. Blige/Mike Elizondo/Camara Kambon/Bruce Miller/Andre Young 4:03
3 "Steal Away" Mary J. Blige/Pharrell Williams 4:27
4 "Crazy Games" Mary J. Blige/Kenny Dickerson 3:23
5 "PMS" Mary J. Blige/Al Green/Terri Robinson/Chucky Thompson/Tillman, Tara 5:33
6 "No More Drama" Perry Botkin, Jr./Barry de Vorzon/James Harris/Terry Lewis 5:26
7 "Keep It Moving" Mary J. Blige 4:15
8 "Destiny" Benny Benjamin/Mary J. Blige/Gloria Caldwell/Sol Marcus/Brian Reeves 4:14
9 "Where I've Been" Mary J. Blige/Eve 5:11
10 "Beautiful Day" Bruce Miller 3:33
11 "Dance For Me" Mary J. Blige/Bruce Miller/A. Miller/Sting 4:47
12 "Flying Away" Mary J. Blige/Brenda Russell 5:00
13 "Never Been" Henri Charlemagne/Jerry Cohen/Missy Elliott/Gene McFadden/John Whitehead 4:03
14 "2U" Mary J. Blige 4:45
15 "In The Meantime" Mary J. Blige/Terri Robinson 4:14
16 "Forever No More" (Poem) Mary J. Blige 1:41
17 "Testimony" Michelle Bell/Mary J. Blige/Kenny Dickerson 5:00
18 "Girl From Yesterday" (Japan Bonus Track) Mary J. Blige 4:37

2002 re-release

  1. "Love"
  2. "Family Affair"
  3. "Steal Away" (featuring Pharrell)
  4. "He Think I Don't Know"
  5. "PMS"
  6. "No More Drama"
  7. "Rainy Dayz" (featuring Ja Rule)
  8. "Where I've Been" (featuring Eve)
  9. "Beautiful Day"
  10. "Dance For Me" (featuring Common)
  11. "No More Drama (Bad Boy Remix)" (featuring Diddy)
  12. "Flying Away"
  13. "Never Been"
  14. "2U"
  15. "In The Meantime"
  16. "Forever No More"
  17. "Testimony"
  18. "Dance For Me (featuring Common)" (Plutonium Mix) (International bonus track)


Japanese bonus tracks:

18. "Girl From Yesterday"
19. "Checkin' For Me"

Charts

  • Albums
Chart (2001) Peak
position
Australian Albums Chart 2
Austrian Albums Chart 42
Belgian Albums Chart (Flanders) 32
Belgian Albums Chart (Wallonia) 24
Canadian Albums Chart 5[18]
Danish Albums Chart 10
Dutch Albums Chart 12
French Albums Chart 8
German Albums Chart 13[19]
New Zealand Albums Chart 31
Swedish Albums Chart 2
Swiss Albums Chart 7
UK Albums Chart 4
U.S. Billboard 200 2
U.S. Billboard Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums 1
  • Singles
Single[20] R&B US UK DE US dance
"Family Affair" (2001) 1 1 8 10 –
"No More Drama" (2001) 16 15 9 – –
"Dance for Me" (2001)[21] – – 13 – –
"Rainy Dayz" (2002) 8 12 17 – –
"He Think I Don't Know" (2002)[22] – – – – 15

References

  1. ^ link
  2. ^ link
  3. ^ link
  4. ^ link
  5. ^ link
  6. ^ link
  7. ^ link
  8. ^ http://www.hitsdailydouble.com/sales/archcht.cgi?cht760
  9. ^ "Mary J. Blige". Fan of Music. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  10. ^ Brown, Helen (2008-07-02). "Mary J Blige: Proud to shout it out without selling out on 'Growing Pains'". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  11. ^ Reid, Shaheem (2001-04-03). "Mary J. Blige Wants 'No More Drama' On Fifth LP". MTV.com. Retrieved 2009-02-24.
  12. ^ "Blige May Cut Leaked Jay-Z/Kravitz Track From Album". MTV News.
  13. ^ Marriott, Robert (2001-08-20). "Mary J. Blige No More Drama". Rolling Stone. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  14. ^ Jonas, Liana. "No More Drama". All Music. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  15. ^ "Artist Chart History - Mary J. Blige". Billboard. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  16. ^ "Best R&B Albums of the Decade" Retrieved 12 January 2010.
  17. ^ http://www.musicline.de/de/chartverfolgung_summary/artist/Blige%2CMary+J./?type=longplay
  18. ^ [1]
  19. ^ [2]
  20. ^ "Mary J. Blige". Top40-Charts.com. Retrieved 2009-07-21.
  21. ^ UK only release
  22. ^ "He Think I Don't Know" released to promote remix album Dance for Me, and only to urban and dance radio.
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