No one compares to you. Just remember that. There's no one out there - there's only one of you, and that's it. And whatever you believe about you that's great, no one else has it. And I can't look like you, there's no way I can slip into your body and be you, and you can't slip into my body and be me. This is all we're gonna get.
Mary J. BligeNowadays, with the state of the music business, for any artist, whether you're up-and-coming or you've been in it for awhile, you have to explore different revenues and different ways of expressing yourself.
Mary J. BligeMy journey continues, because I've, you know, conquered a lot. And I know how to conquer the rest.
Mary J. BligeIf you're here right now in your life, your journey continues and you've lived to tell the story.
Mary J. BligeIt's challenging to find an identity as a young person if you don't have the sustenance of love, because you're being shipped around.
Mary J. BligeWhen you tell your truth, you are coming from a real place, so you are automatically a leader.
Mary J. BligeMy God is a God who wants me to have things. He wants me to bling. He wants me to be the hottest thing on the block.
Mary J. BligeMy main exercise is cardio. The treadmill is fine, but running outdoors gives me the best results. I try to log 6 to 8 miles a week. I could be in the worst mood, but when I do my cardio, I feel much, much better.
Mary J. BligeI believe that anything man himself can do for me, God can do for me in a greater way. I decided to pray and to seek God on my own. I just stayed in The Word. And it worked.
Mary J. BligeI'm from the element of the streets that says that once you've made it, it's yours. But keep it to yourself.
Mary J. BligeIf you're looking for inner peace from the outside world, you're not going to get that. The inner peace starts with looking at you from the inside.
Mary J. BligeWhen I was a child I didn't care about getting an education, and I didn't finish high school.
Mary J. BligeWhen you're going to do whatever you're going to do, you have to get your, put your mind into it.
Mary J. BligeWhen I`m going to do a Christmas album I had to put my mind in Christmas mode. I had to go back to being a child and remembering all of that. When I go to do a project, I'm serious about it, so I wrap my world around it, and it becomes Christmastime for me and I'm singing songs like it's Christmas day.
Mary J. BligeI think everyone should understand history of segregation the same way we had to go to school and read about George Washington. I believe this generation should know their history and they should know that the struggle's not over yet. For instance, you can't get the cover of a magazine if your skin is too dark.
Mary J. BligeI still get nervous about singing. I drink tea with honey and lemon before every concert. And I need to have scented candles in all of my hotel rooms.
Mary J. BligeAs far as men go, they never gave me a chance to be me; they were always scared that somebody was going to take me.
Mary J. BligeWhen I was five years old I was molested and just, you know. I remember feeling, literally right before it happened, I just could not believe that this person was going to do this to me. That thing followed me all my life. The shame of thinking my molestation was my fault - it led me to believe I wasn't worth anything.
Mary J. Blige...I would be a liar and my fans would hate me if I said to them, 'Oh, we're perfect and everything is great.' We have situations just like everyone else. We're not out in public trying to kill each other, but it's real. We love each other.
Mary J. BligeYonkers made me strong and made me believe in myself, because so many people would doubt you and not believe. There are people that would believe in you, but the environment was so harsh, nobody wanted you to get out, you know?
Mary J. BligeI wouldn't adopt, but what I will do is give my time and go and try to be there for people.
Mary J. BligeMy responsibility to God is to live. That's the gift he gave me. What I do with it is up to me.
Mary J. BligeYou can't get around pain and opposition, but you can try to be joyful in the trial, and thank yourself for the trial, and thank God for the strength to get through it.
Mary J. BligeNegative words are powerful boomerangs so be careful what you say about people and yourself.
Mary J. BligeDon't give up, be positive and if you know someone who knows someone at a record company don't stop beating down their door till you get heard. Don't ever say it'll never happen or it'll never happen.
Mary J. BligeThe important thing is to realize that no matter what people's opinions may be, they're only just that - people's opinions. You have to believe in your heart what you know to be true about yourself. And let that be that.
Mary J. BligeI like to do interior design, I love to quilt, I love to see different colors together, and I love to match things up.
Mary J. BligeI don't know. Only God knows where the story ends for me, but I know where the story begins. It's up to us to choose, whether we win or lose and I choose to win.
Mary J. BligeIt hurts when you have to smile and you don't want to smile, but the best thing to do is to smile.
Mary J. BligeI barely have time for my own children. To adopt more children and not have time for them, that would be poor parenting on my part.
Mary J. BligeI don't want no drama in my life, even though we have a little bit, but no more letting people control you. That's drama, because then you become something that you're not.
Mary J. BligeThis music business can suck all the love out of you, all the compassion for people - you can start to think you're better than them. But I want to continue to let people know that I'm no better and no worse, I'm just like you.
Mary J. BligeI know who I am. I am not perfect. I'm not the most beautiful woman in the world. But I'm one of them.
Mary J. Blige