Thirty years into a career as one of the best R&B artists of her generation — Rock & Roll Hall of Fame honors or not — Mary J. Blige continues to challenge herself and her fans. It’s hard to think of any peers from her early-Nineties peak, whether it’s the “queen of Christmas” Mariah Carey or the under-appreciated Brandy, who would eagerly collaborate with the likes of Fivio Foreign, the hard-edged New York drill act currently making headlines for his protests against Hot 97’s censorious ban on “violent” diss raps. Yet there he is on “On Top,” a track from Blige’s Good Morning Gorgeous that makes good use of a Three 6 Mafia’s “Who Run It” sample, jawing away about “This is my city, I’m giving aggression/None of my shooters getting arrested.”
“On Top” is proof that Blige sees herself as a living legend unwilling to retreat into Black…
