Mary J. Blige Wins Emotional Receive Icon Award at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards

Mary J. Blige has been an icon for years, but the legendary diva has won a new trophy to confirm it! The 51-year-old accepted the coveted Icon Award on Sunday at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards. She is one of the 11 other artists who have been honored.

While accepting her award presented by Janet Jackson, Blige looked back on the status of the “icon” in culture and the general perception of artists considered to be icons.

“In today’s world, people think that icons are born that way and become legendary overnight, but that’s not the case,” she said. “Achieving greatness requires a lot of time, effort, and a lot of survival and trial and error.”

“What the icon means to me is to be greatly admired for overcoming obstacles to achieving unthinkable things and influencing a large number of people. That’s what I’ve always expressed.” She continued. “I’ve been on this journey for a long time. What you didn’t always see as you see me now. Lots of heartache and pain. But God gave me those experiences and feelings. Helped me lead to the music of. “

“I loved the ghetto and it’s still the case! Very ghetto, very nice, and people were threatened by it, and now everyone wants to make the ghetto great,” Blige said. explained. “The message of my music is that we are not alone in the struggle, we are not alone now. For a long time I was looking for true love, but finally my true love I found — and that true love is me. “

The Icon Award recognizes artists who have achieved excellence on the Billboard charts and have made a lasting mark in the music industry. Blige did just that, winning a total of 10 BBMA awards. She has 14 Top 10 Billboard 200 Studio Albums, 4 Billboard Hot 100 Top 10 Singles as a lead artist in the US, and a total of 16 Top 40 Chart Singles in the US.

Brige has joined the elite class winners such as Pink, Garth Brooks, Cher, Neil Diamond, Celine Dion, Jennifer Lopez, Prince, Stevie Wonder, Janet Jackson and Mariah Carey.

Before receiving the award, Blige panicked in a statement last month.

“My career was an incredibly unexpected journey, including acting, producing, starting a business, and now even my music festival, with many shifts to unimaginable paths.” Brige told Billboard. “Throughout, I’ve always been somehow pulled back to my first love, music. It’s an incredible honor to be recognized this way at the Billboard Music Awards Icon Awards, and I Is really humble. “

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