Earn Your Leisure Podcast

Episode: Mary J. Blige on Tax Issues, Strength of a Woman, Divorce, Paying Alimony, Acting, Music & Business
Date: March 2, 2026
Hosts: Rashad Bilal & Troy Millings
Guest: Mary J. Blige

Episode Overview

This episode features an in-depth conversation with Mary J. Blige, exploring her journey as a legendary artist and entrepreneur, and the financial, personal, and creative lessons she’s learned. Topics include her Strength of a Woman Festival, overcoming tax and financial challenges, navigating divorce and alimony, the importance of financial literacy, her ventures in wine, acting, business, and her reflections on mentorship, legacy, and self-empowerment.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Creating the Strength of a Woman Festival

Theme: Empowerment, Legacy, and Community

• Inspiration: Born from seeing the impact her music had on women and wanting to create a movement of self-love, awareness, and entrepreneurship.
  • "It came from just performing and just watching the women in the audience...my music is a movement that has touched so many women and saved so many lives." – Mary J. Blige (04:36)
• Execution: Began as a rooftop meeting at the Waldorf Astoria, grew rapidly with support from partners like Pepsi and Live Nation Urban.
• Vision: Uplift, encourage, and bring women together for growth and self-discovery.

2. Transition to Business & Production

Theme: Control of Narrative, Representation

• Motivation: Desire to be not just in front of the camera but to control stories behind it, especially for Black women.
  • "I wanted to be a producer...so we can tell stories like the Clark Sisters...to have us as Black people uplifted in a better light." – Mary J. Blige (07:10)
• Blue Butterfly Productions: Created for telling authentic stories, focusing on diversity and uplifting narratives.
• Film Projects: Discussed recent Lifetime movies, expanding content that represents a broader Black experience.

3. Acting vs. Singing

Theme: Growth & Challenge

• Differences: Singing comes naturally; acting requires delving deep and translating words into layered character performances.
  • "Singing is something I've been doing all my life...But acting is hard because you have to take something that's on a piece of paper...and turn them into a character." – Mary J. Blige (09:31)
• Approach: Seeks respect as an actress, distinct from her singing identity.
• Mentorship in Acting: Receives support from peers like Taraji P. Henson, Queen Latifah, Angela Bassett, Tasha Smith.
  • "When I call them, I say, yo, I need help. They give me all the tools." – Mary J. Blige (11:14)

4. Entrepreneurial Ventures: Wine & Jewelry

Theme: Organic Opportunity & Community

• Sun Goddess Wines: Sparked by a dinner with Maxwell and Italian winemakers, launched successfully during COVID.
  • "We sold it on wine.com. It was sold out...they gave me the courage, the confidence to keep going." – Mary J. Blige (13:23)
• Sister Love Jewelry: Further extension of her brand.
• Business Philosophy: Grows projects organically, one at a time, relying on inspiration and team execution.
  • "For me, it's not like, oh, it's time to do something. When it comes, it comes. It's always creative." – Mary J. Blige (14:48)

5. Financial Literacy: Divorce, Alimony, and Taxes

Theme: Lessons Learned & Empowerment

• Divorce & Alimony: Faced massive alimony payments; now advocates for prenups and legal/financial protection.
  • "I would have never let a person have that much power over my money, my life, over anything ever again." – Mary J. Blige (16:59)
  • "Get a prenup. Because I didn't have one, and that's why I ended up having to just give everything away." – Mary J. Blige (21:41)
• Tax Issues: Overcame millions in tax debt, stresses the need for a strong business team and constant oversight.
  • "I owe so much money, I never thought I was ever gonna get out of debt. I'm out of debt now." – Mary J. Blige (18:44)
  • "Now I look at my payroll. That's not my money. My taxes are not my money. My tithes are not my money." – Mary J. Blige (19:29)
• Education & Trust: Emphasizes not blindly trusting others—lack of knowledge led to vulnerability.
  • "It was a lack of education and also just trusting people to help you when you don't know." – Mary J. Blige (17:40)

6. Artistic Independence & Catalog Ownership

Theme: Freedom & Value of Legacy

• Now Independent: No longer owes a label, can release music freely.
  • "I feel like I'm flying sometimes because I was so low...now I don't owe a label nothing." – Mary J. Blige (23:07)
• Catalog Sales: Refuses to sell her music catalog.
  • "Absolutely not. No. It's too valuable...Once you sell it, you're gonna spend that billion dollars and you'll never be able to get those babies back." – Mary J. Blige (23:49, 24:08)

7. Partnerships & Brand Alignment

Theme: Authenticity

• Selecting Partners: Looks for brands who deeply understand her identity and legacy.
  • "Do you know me? Because you can't help me sell me if you don't know me." – Mary J. Blige (24:51)

8. Reflections on “Verzuz” and Competition

Theme: Self-Confidence, Avoiding Comparison

• No Verzuz: Not interested in competing or comparing catalogs publicly.
  • "I just don't care about no Verzuz. I don't need to say I had the hot...I know I have some of the hottest records." – Mary J. Blige (25:45)

9. Mentorship & Influence (Puff Daddy, Artist Development)

Theme: Pivotal Relationships

• Puff Daddy's Role: Instilled confidence, ambition, and a relentless pursuit of success.
  • "He wanted the success more than we wanted it...he gave me a lot of confidence." – Mary J. Blige (27:48)
• On Signing New Artists: Only takes on new talent when fully able to support them financially—advises patience.
  • "I don't want to have people come and be on my label, and I'm selling you a dream...now I have the money to make their dreams come true." – Mary J. Blige (32:58)

10. Vision for the Future

Theme: Expansion & Empowerment

• Festival Growth: Envisions Strength of a Woman reaching 70,000 attendees, helping women launch businesses, and growing in impact.
  • "I want women to walk away and having their own businesses...and learning how to love ourselves and self awareness." – Mary J. Blige (34:29)
• Upcoming Ventures: Launch of a boot line.

11. Life & Business Lessons

Theme: Vigilance & Self-Care

• Biggest Lessons Learned: Prioritize self-care, oversight, and being hands-on in business.
  • "Take care of yourself. Go behind everybody, check in on your business, check in on yourself." – Mary J. Blige (32:21)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Business Independence:
  "Now I'm in control of my business, I'm in control of my life, and it's mandatory that I learn more about finance, business, so I don't ever have to be robbed again by, you know, maybe somebody you think you can trust."
  – Mary J. Blige (02:19, 16:59)

• On Taxes:
  "I owe so much money, I never thought I was ever gonna get out of debt. I'm out of debt now..."
  – Mary J. Blige (18:44)

• On Not Selling Music Rights:
  "Once you sell it, you're gonna spend that billion dollars and you'll never be able to get those babies back. Like, those are my babies...right now, I wouldn't do that. No."
  – Mary J. Blige (24:08)

• On Healing & Strength:
  "I'm just falling and getting back up. That's it...So, I say, when people, like, you saved my life — well, you really need to give that credit to God for giving me the strength to get back up."
  – Mary J. Blige (29:44)

Timed Highlights

• Strength of a Woman Festival origin: 04:36
• Entering production & control of stories: 07:10
• Acting vs. singing: 09:31
• Mentorship in acting: 11:14
• Launching Sun Goddess wine: 12:18–13:23
• Philosophy on diversifying business: 14:48
• Learning from divorce & financial mistakes: 16:59
• Paying alimony & need for prenups: 21:41
• Independence as an artist, refusing to sell catalog: 22:58–24:08
• Brand partnership criteria: 24:51
• Refusing Verzuz battles: 25:39–25:45
• Mentorship & Puff Daddy’s influence: 27:48
• Reflection on impact and responsibility: 29:44
• Vision for festival & new ventures: 30:51, 34:29
• Biggest business lesson — vigilance: 32:21
• Signing and supporting new artists: 32:55–32:58

Conclusion

Mary J. Blige’s conversation with Earn Your Leisure is not just a look behind the curtain of an iconic career, but a masterclass on ownership, self-worth, resilience, and evolving through business and life’s challenges. Bracing honesty about mistakes and triumphs, her wisdom on financial autonomy, asset protection, and building sustainable legacies offers invaluable guidance for entertainers and entrepreneurs alike.