Editor’s Note: From Albumism’s inception back in 2016, we’ve remained unabashedly and unequivocally passionate about our mission of celebrating the world's love affairs with albums past, present and future.

But while our devotion to the album as an art form has remained steadfast, as evidenced by our deepening repository of individual album tributes and reviews, we’ve admittedly seldom taken the opportunity to explicitly articulate our reverence for the virtues of artists’ complete album repertoires as a whole.

Hence why we’ve decided to showcase what we believe to be the most dynamic discographies of all time in this recurring series. In doing so, we hope to better understand the broader creative context within which our most beloved individual albums exist, while acknowledging the full breadth of their creators’ artistry, career arcs, and overall contributions to the ever-evolving musical landscape.

We hope you enjoy this series and be sure to check here periodically for the latest installments.

MARY J. BLIGE

From pain springs the greatest art and never has it been truer than with Mary J. Blige’s life and career. After a childhood filled with trauma and teenage years endured while being the victim of abuse and consequent self-medication, she blew the doors off soul music and poured torrent after torrent of personal hurt to forge a deep and lasting career.

Her debut album What’s the 411? ushered in a new era of street tough soul music, heavily influenced by hip-hop beats, but given voice by her remarkable vocals and delivery. The follow-up My Life is a stone-cold classic that defined an era and helped solidify Blige’s status as the “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul.”

Whereas others might have become restricted by the title, Blige continued to pour her heart out and transcend the boundaries of the epithet and that moment in musical history. Instead, she became synonymous with feeling. Sure, there may be other singers with a greater range, but no one emits such emotion with their voice—you are not left in any doubt as to what she’s feeling as she sings. Every ounce of heartbreak, pain or (occasional) joy is wrung from the material.

Of course, she has even smashed the boundaries of music to become an award nominated actress, but still her innate ability to find the feeling of a lyric and communicate it to the listener in a way no other can remains undefeated. She is, put simply, a great soul singer—one steeped in church traditions and with a willingness to share the deepest, darkest corners of her being via her astonishingly emotive voice.

Patrick’s 3 Favorite Mary J. Blige Albums of All Time:

1. My Life (1994)
2. What’s the 411? (1992)
3. Mary (1999)

VISIT Mary J. Blige’s Official Store

LISTEN & WATCH: