Album Review: Mary J. Blige, Good Morning Gorgeous

Mary J Blige

Good Morning Gorgeous (released February 11, 2022)

Shout out to my 80s babies. There’s a good chance that you can trace your love of R&B back to the origins of Mary J. Blige.

I know I can.

Though it may seem quaint today, when MJB dropped “Real Love” in 1992, it was a MOMENT. I remember my friend stopping by my house and raving about how it was the best song he ever heard. We stared at MTV until we caught the video and once I saw the video for myself it was hard to argue with his hype.

Mary, well, married, hip-hop and soul in a way that appealed to a whole new audience. A queen was born.

In the years since, she’s obviously enjoyed a legendary career, which is why we can’t wait to celebrate her during Sunday’s Super Bowl halftime show, along with fellow game-changers like Dr. Dre, Snoop Dogg, Eminem and Kendrick Lamar.

But y’all know me – you come here for honesty, so that’s what you’re gonna get.

If you peruse Mary’s stacked discography – which features more than one 5-star album, by the way – you’ll see that it’s been a long time since we’ve gotten a memorable release. Don’t misunderstand me Mary stans, there is no such thing as a BAD MJB album. But outside of her matchless 90s run and a couple of later standouts (2005’s The Breakthrough comes to mind), her later work is solid – strong enough to get good reviews from critics like yours truly – but lacks the memorable moments and classic singles that define her career. Don’t ask me to name anything from Stronger with Each Tear or Growing Pains or Think Like a Man Too, I’m gonna draw a blank.

That’s why hopes were high for Mary’s 14th studio album to reverse that trend … until we heard those singles. More on that later.

Halfway through the 38-minute LP, MJB explains the origins of the album title. When she rises each morning, those three words, Good Morning Gorgeous, are her daily affirmation to herself, a way to shut out the negativity that has constantly clouded her life.

Mary has been R&B’s life coach for three decades now. Clearly that’s not slowing down.

Mary promoted Good Morning Gorgeous with three singles that were met with VERY mixed reviews:

• The album’s title track, a gospel tinged message of empowerment that never quite hits the second gear.

• “Amazing,” yet another in a million interchangeable rap-sung tracks that takes Mary way out of her element and clearly feels like a ploy for streams. DJ Khaled ruins ANOTHER ONE.

• And “Rent Money,” which still has me very conflicted. The dusty, minimalistic production is interesting and I love the ode to one of my favorite Biggie tracks, but the writing is a bit off, as is Mary’s monotone delivery.

After those three tracks, I was worried GMG was gonna activate my IBS. But despite a shaky start, we do get several wins by the time Good Morning Gorgeous wraps up.

The first half of the album is a bit of a struggle. Opener “No Idea” is a recap of Mary’s journey, reminding the listener that you have no clue where your journey will take you. It’s not offensive but definitely feels like well-worn ground. “On Top” and “Here With Me” suffer from the same sins as the singles – the former is basically “Amazing” Part Two (despite a solid cameo from Fivio Foreign, who is slowly coming into his own) and the latter moves at a snail’s pace while MJB does the choppy rap flow deal. It’s not appealing. However, we do get “Love Will Never,” an impressive offering that features Mary bouncing between tinkling keys. It feels like a natural evolution of her My Life days, instead of the Tik Tok cosplay of “Amazing” and “On Top.”

Once we bypass the so-so singles and early missteps, the album truly takes off on the second half. “Love Without the Heartbreak” is what we’ve been waiting for: “I’ve never claimed to be a genius/I’ve lived long enough to see this/thought it was love but I was dreaming” – Midtempo Mary is BACK, giving us the passion and honesty that is synonymous with her name. I have to grudgingly give London On Da Track props for once – his production on “Failing in Love” brings much needed energy to the album while “Enough” comes through with heaps of defiance and passion. All three feature Mary at her best – fiery, fed up and fervent.

And though the closing duet “Need Love” with Usher probably wasn’t the blockbuster moment some on Twitter expected, it’s a pretty solid way to close out the LP.

Good Morning Gorgeous had me nervous there for a second – I worried this was going to be a quick cash-in to capitalize off MJB’s Super Bowl halftime notoriety. Despite a pretty rocky start, we eventually get to the MJB we know and love.

It’s not a bad start to your day after all.

Best tracks: “Failing in Love,” “Enough,” “Love Will Never”

3.5 stars out of 5