After Mary J. Blige released her debut What’s the 411? in 1992, she was quickly crowned “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul” and she has never relinquished that title. Since then she’s penned 13 platinum (plus) albums and has won nine Grammy awards. In 2024 Blige was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame. On Wednesday night at Little Caesar Arena, the New York City native combined those 33 years of musical achievements into a 100-minute set via her “The For My Fans” tour.
Before Blige graced the stage, singers Mario and Ne-Yo warmed the crowd up with their own individual brands of R&B music. Both crooners proved to be the perfect tablesetters to Blige as they both have trophy cases full of platinum plaques and Grammys as well.
Blige wasted no time making her presence known, appearing on the north stage promptly at 9:20 p.m. singing “Take Me as I Am” dressed in a long ruffled white shirtdress and thigh-high white boots. As the song blended into “A Dream” she boarded a crown-shaped chariot which carried her overhead to the LCA’s south stage, where she was then accompanied by six-piece band, background singers, dancers, and stage-set that consisted of two colossal hands holding up a crown.
From that point on, the Mary J. Blige experience was in full effect. She thanked Detroit and gave a special shoutout to the gospel group the Clark Sisters (though it hasn’t been confirmed if they were actually in the building that night). “You Remind Me” and “Be Happy” were sung with equal amounts of jubilance and nostalgia, and Blige performed “Love No Limit” through an awesome display of cryo effects.
One of Blige’s most beloved songs, “I’ll Be There for You/You’re All I Need to Get By,” a duet with rapper Method Man, was played (and not sung) while Blige’s dancers took turns doing short solo sets. The track won the Grammy award for Best Rap Performance by a Duo or Group in 1996, and it was refreshing to see it implemented within the show. Blige gave her best vocal performances on songs “My Life” and “No More Drama,” periodically did the “drunk auntie dance” social media loves to poke fun at her about, and let an audience member sing a verse on “I’m Going Down.” Detroit queen of hip-hop Kash Doll also dropped in to perform a song, and a sparkly pyro waterfall fell over her as Blige sang “Be Without You.” The display was the most visually stunning moment of the night.
At times it seemed like Blige leaned on the audience a bit much as she held the mic out to the crowd while they sang “Everything.” She did this throughout the night, but it didn’t take away from her performance as it was embraced by fans. Blige ended the night with energetic performances of her more upbeat hits, “I Can Love You,” “Just Fine,” “You Bring Me Joy,” and “Family Affair.”
Blige earned the title “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul” because of the swagger and vocal dexterity she brought to both hip-hop and R&B tracks alike. After Wednesday night’s performance, it’s safe to say she will be retaining her crown for many more years to come.
