Don't give up, be positive and if you know someone who knows someone at a record company don't stop beating down their door till you get heard. Don't ever say it'll never happen, or it'll never happen.

— Mary J. Blige

God comes first - if I don't love him, I can't love anybody, and if I can't love me I can't love anybody.

— Mary J. Blige

I always want to be a messenger, a person that, you know, that's not afraid to pass on wisdom.

— Mary J. Blige

I barely have time for my own children. To adopt more children and not have time for them, that would be poor parenting on my part.

— Mary J. Blige

I didn't know how to show my self-love, and I didn't want anyone else to hurt me. So my tough girl attitude was like, 'I'm not having it.'

— Mary J. Blige

I don't know. Only God knows where the story ends for me, but I know where the story begins. It's up to us to choose, whether we win or lose, and I choose to win.

— Mary J. Blige

I don't listen to people's opinions. I have people around me who I can trust, but most of all I listen to myself.

— Mary J. Blige

I don't think there's anything they can say about me that I haven't said about myself already. And I would be an absolute total liar, and my fans would not respect me, if I said that my life and my marriage are perfect. But we absolutely love each other; we have fun together - it's great.

— Mary J. Blige

I had to learn how to trust my gut. Trust what I know to be right... not right, but not waver on who I am. Know who I am, know what I want, and know it. Not waver on it and be secure in that. And I still struggle with it. But I really... I can't be moved. You can't move me, and that all comes with loving myself, and I'm like my best buddy.

— Mary J. Blige

I just want fans to walk away knowing that no matter what's going on, no matter how happy you are, no matter how sad you are, we did it. We're strong in this. We've come a long way, and life is not just one thing.

— Mary J. Blige