I remember this video from Mary's 6th album and I remember BET doing an 'Access Granted' episode about it, but then not much was said about this or much of any of the singles from the 'Love & Life' disc. I found out the reason why.....
On August 26, 2003, Blige's sixth album
Love & Life was released on
Geffen Records (which had absorbed MCA Records.) Blige heavily collaborated with her one-time producer Sean Combs for this set. Due to the history between them on
What's the 411? and
My Life, which is generally regarded as their best work, and Blige having just come off of a successful fifth album, expectations were high for the reunion effort.
Despite the album debuting at number one on the
Billboard 200 and becoming Blige's fourth consecutive UK top ten album,
Love & Life's lead-off single, the Diddy-produced "
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Love_@_1st_Sight", which featured Method Man, barely cracked the top ten on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs, while altogether missing the top twenty on the Hot 100 (although peaking inside the UK top twenty). The following singles, "
Ooh!", "
Not Today" featuring
Eve, "
Whenever I Say Your Name"featuring
Sting on the international re-release, and "
It's a Wrap" fared worse. Although the album was certified platinum, it became Blige's lowest-selling to date. Critics and fans alike largely panned the disc, citing a lack of consistency and noticeable ploys to recapture the early Blige/Combs glory. Blige and Combs reportedly struggled and clashed during the making of this album, and again parted ways upon the completion of it.
The album became Blige's first album in six years to debut at number one on the
Billboard 200, selling 285,298 copies in first week. At anyrate, here is one of those 'lost' videos from that disc:
'Ooh'-Mary J. Blige
The album version included a rap from 50-cent & G-Unit
