I got this from Mary's message board:

Release Date
Summer 2003(June or mabye Augest)

Label
MCA Records

First Single
TBD

Hype Single
"Hooked"

News Stories
Mary J. Blige Teams Up With 50 Cent, P. Diddy To Discuss Love And Life - MTV.com

Rumored Production
P. Diddy
Chucky Thompson
Dr. Dre
The Neptunes
Andre Harris and Vidal Davis
Terry Lewis & Jimmy Jam
Gerald Isaac
Kenny Green


Rumored Artists
Method Man
Mos Def
50 Cent
P. Diddy

Rumored Tracklisting
Intro (f/ Mos Def)
Love At First Sight (f/ Method Man)
Let Me Be The One (f/ 50 Cent)
Feel Like Making Love
When We
Not Today
Finally Made It
In The A.M.
Oooh
Willing & Waiting
Don't Go
Work It Out
All My Love
Our Love
Special Part Of Me
Friends
It's A Rap

Posted by Vernez @ Maryluvs.com

I can't wait for some new Mary!

I am so excited to hear this. I bought her last 3 LPs on the day they came out, but discs like the Dance For Me remix compilation don't do nothin for me, so I've been waiting for 2 years since No More Drama first dropped.

Chucky Thompson and Mary work magic in the studio (ie. My Life album, "Time (Is Not On Our Side") so I'm definitely looking forward to that. I'm not so wild about the "Hooked" track based on 50 Cent "In Da Club" because if you're like me, you've heard that beat enough times now. Glad it's not on the tracklist.

As for the other producers, the Love & Life lineup sounds pretty much like No More Drama, except I don't see Missy up on that.

I wonder if "Feel Like Making Love" is a Roberta Flack remake or just the same title. I've heard people talk shit about her remakes, like "Sweet Thing", but I think she's the only one who can actually pull these off quite well. "Day Dreaming", for instance -- hot!

Thanks for bringing this info to the org, Harlepolis!

I'm definitely watching Diva's live...Mary J., Whitney and Chaka...lawd...

CinisterCee said:

Anytime sweetness, glad to know there's another fanatic of the sistah like myself.

I heard that she recorded a duet with The Gab Band's former memeber Charlie Wilson under the production of Chucky and it was supposed 2 be in NMD but 4 some reason it got shelved. Word on the street also say that she did another track with L-Boogie(along with All That I Could Say) which also rumored to be in NMD but they shelved it cuz according to them "they don't wanna put the same high-profile name on her NMD LP again" maybe on later releases.

Aside that project-She recorded another 2 duets with Aretha Franklin, a duet with Chaka Khan 4 her upcoming LP(which is rumored to be a Rufus reunion) and a duet with Angela Winbush on her upcoming LP,,,I can't wait to hear how she sounds with Miss Winbush.

Rhondab said:

Mariah & Beyonce are rumored to join in!

I also wonder if "Let Me Be The One" is a cover of Expose. I love that song!

TRON said:

A lot of those songs have titles that sound familar but I doubt they are covers. For example, "Work It Out" was a recent Beyonce song. A song called "Our Love" was a semi-hit for Donna Summer back in 1979. There are several well known songs with the title "Friends".

I kind of doubt that "Let Me Be The One" is an Expose cover. But how fucking cool would it be if it was. I relaly like Mary but and I don't know why I don't have any of her albums. I would assume that her best is "My Life", right? If I do start buying her albums, which one should I get last (of her studio albums, not the remix albums or the live disc)?

Hands down, THE most overrated vocalist in the music industry. Mary's voice is no better than Ashanti's. The only difference is Mary yells and Screams more. Mary can't touch Aretha, Patti, Glady's, or Whitney, yet she is often placed in that category.

VelvetJ said:

I wanna be civil and say you're entitled 2 yo opinion but all I could say is "Ignorance Is NOT A Bless"

Lawd have mercy on you 4 sure! clean yo ears, you might tell the difference!

glad She is Back with Chucky&Puffy.I often wonder just how Bad Boy Might have turned out had she stayed in the Puffy fold? but anyway while it's been Years since I've liked a whole album by Her I still dig Her first two Albums the Best&quite a few singles since.I'd like to Hear Her working with Jo-Jo again.I wish She could vibe with Barry White or Rick James since I can hear alot of there Influence on her Style.I wonder what is up with her version of the Mary Jane Girls? maybe they will appear on the New Album? for the first time in a long time I can say that I'm looking toward a New Album from her.

mistermaxxx said:

-In the Wendy Williams show, she said that she's still on the work of making the group. It will be done sooner or later!

-As far as Chucky goes? See thats why I'm "hammering" you so you could check her "after the My Life LPs" Chucky was growing musicaly and plus most of his production weren't based on samples. BTW you might she her version of The Gab Band's classic "I'm In Love" in her "Mary" LP. It was produced by Chuck.

-JoJo will neva join her anytime soon as far as her music concern, I'm assuming that you already know the reason.

-I'm scared that Puffy will ruin her music's production by all that sampling. Puffy was a baaad mofo b4 he went mainstream, sure he used alot of samples back in the day but unlike now he used them with very smart moves. The reason I'm saying this is becoz we're getting used at the "Sophisticated yet street Mary" and I just don't wanna see another "Str8 from the ghetto Mary" again.

More info:

-Mary J. Blames Drugs, Bad Business Sense

Dr. Dre recently reconnected with Mary J. Blige and produced a track for her album Love and Life, but it's the singer's reunion with another studio Svengali that has M.J.B. and the faithful fans that have supported her for over 10 years smiling the most.

"My whole mission was to touch the audience that made me, the My Life audience, the What's the 411? audience," Blige explained on Thursday in New York. "In doing that [I wanted] to bring back my partner, my brother in this music business, Sean "P. Diddy" Combs. I can't say that something came and told me [to work with him]. It just was all in the universe and he gave me a call letting me know that it was in the universe for him, too.

"He called, he said he wanted to co-executive my next album with me," she added. "I said fine, because Puffy and I have always worked great together."

M.J.B. isn't just tooting her own horn — she's speaking the gospel if you ask many hip-hop and R&B fans. Her first two albums, which Diddy oversaw, are hailed as classics. In fact, Mary said she didn't stop working with Diddy after 1994's My Life because of anything that happened in the studio: It was because of her reckless lifestyle.

"The reason we split up is me not understanding the business the way I needed to understand it at the time," she explained. "He had a label, he had a female artist, he had Biggie, but during the time I was really dogging myself. I was a mess on drugs. Any smart man or businessman would have moved away from me. It felt like he was becoming distant, but looking back, I now understand why. I wasn't delivering properly. I wasn't taking care of my health, so how can he roll his dice on me?"

The separation from Diddy worked in Mary's favor in a roundabout way. She gained a sense of independence and took more control of her musical direction, which didn't stick solely with Puffy's hip-hop/R&B hybrid theory.

"I never doubted myself, but I've always been insecure with my ability to do certain things because I lose some of my vocal abilities from smoking and drinking and doing drugs," she continued. "It was like, 'You know what, I'm going to go ahead and do it without you.' It was easy, but the streets and everybody's opinions is what made things so hard — 'Oh, she's not with Puff no more, she can't do it without Puff no more.' "

Obviously both Mary and P.D. have been successful without each other, but both started to think about joining forces again after recording a remix to Mary's "No More Drama" in 2001. During her No More Drama tour the same year, she started to notice how strong a reaction she would get from audiences while performing her hits off of her debut and sophomore LPs and when special guest Diddy would join her onstage.

"The response they gave us let us know we needed to do it again," Mary said. "[Working on the album] was just, 'Hey, I'm back and I understand you now. I've always loved you and I'm glad you're back in my life.' It was like nothing has ever changed. We still think the same but we have grown up. We still have the same arguments but now we understand how to [better resolve them]" (see "Mary J. Blige Teams Up With 50 Cent, P. Diddy To Discuss Love And Life").

Mary says she has new love songs for the ladies who have the same type of fights with their boyfriends and husbands that she experienced in her life. "Basically I said 'No More Drama' for myself," she said of her last album's premise and title. "But there is still a lot of drama for a lot of other women. The songs that are on there are about, OK, how long are you gonna let this guy beat your head off? There are songs like 'Not Today,' meaning, 'we're not having it today.' 'All of My Love' is about what I'm gonna give. Everything in me is what I'm going to give, because he's given it to me."

Although a few tracks, such as "When We Make Love" and "Let Me Be the One," which features 50 Cent, have hit mixtapes, Love and Life's official first single will be "Love at First Sight," which talks about her soul mate. The two had a chance to really bond one night while talking at a nightclub.

"The guy I'm with now was love at first sight," Mary explained. "There was something familiar about his spirit. It's almost like you've seen him somewhere before but you have not seen him before. This person connects with you. It definitely was not a physical thing, it was something else there. It was like I was looking at me."

Among the producers on the album are Tony Dofat, Mario Winans, Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie and Dr. Dre, who produced "Not Today," which boasts a guest spot from Eve.

Outside of her LP, Mary wrote two tunes for the upcoming Aretha Franklin album and co-wrote a track with Chaka Khan for her next project. Love and Life is scheduled to drop in AUGUST ...

that was from www.mtv.com

Harlepolis said:

You know, this thread was actually positive so I apologize for posting what I did and this will be the last thing I say, but the fact that so many people think she is a great vocalist and belong in the same category as the people I mentioned ealier says a lot about what has happened to "black" music. A mediocre vocalist who's resume is full of remakes and samples...and I need to clean MY ears out? And further more, have you ever heard that woman sing live? If you have Harlepolis, how in the world can you say I need to clean my ears out?

Harlepolis said:

Mary and Puffy..fine. The only thing I heard in that story was "and co-wrote a track with Chaka Khan for her next project."



Can't wait for something new from Chaka!

More r and b

Rap and bullshit

VelvetJ said:

Actualy dear I DID check her live *twice* and lawd knows that she have more soul & depth than any of them neo-soul fools will eva have in million years.

I apologize 4 my bitchy attempt but you really pissed me off with that tired ass comparision! but reading your reply explains why you don't like her which I think its becoz that she's "commericial" and kinda more into "samples". I dislike that too but there're some points where you over-look these reasons and like I said when you hear her sing(without picking) you'd know what I'm talking about.

Mary is no Whitney nor Mariah, she can't hold notes, she have the raspy Bobby Womack thang going on with her voice but she got more depth than any 2day's female vocalists.

Listen 2 her "Mary" LP which is the least-commercial LP eva done by her and which consists mostly off ballads(Music 4 Grown folks). That LP have Aretha Franklin singing along with that Mary J,,,that alone should tell you something my dear!

Harlepolis said:

I Only dig the MJB&Puffy Era Albums everything for me after that is some Songs here&there&then I'm through.but She&Puffy have a real Strong Chemistry&also I believe there was more going on there but that is another time.anyway glad they are back in the studio again.

Is it the same Kenny Green (of the R&B group Intro) who wrote songs for Mary's "What's The 411?" album? I know he died last year of AIDS. I wonder if he contributed some tracks for this album before he passed?

okaypimpn said:

Yes he's! I haven't heard anything about his death tho!

Harlepolis said:

Yeah, he died last year. Jamie Brown conducted an interview with him right before he died (when he was in the hospital) and he sounded really sad about it. He said he was always bi, but over the course of the last 8 years he only went with out with men. He left Intro becuase the other guys didn't support his sexual preference and they just kind of went their separate ways. He did mention that one of the guys from the group came and visited him, though. It was really sad because he was so talented.

okaypimpn said:

Thats a damn shame that brotha had some classic cuts with MJB. You might as well check his latest work in NMD.

Harlepolis said:

I've got to check my CD credits...what song(s) did he write on NMD?