On Sunday evening, at the 2022 Billboard Music Awards, Mary J. Blige was honored with the coveted Billboard Icon Award.
Janet Jackson, the 2018 winner of the same title, presented the award to Blige. Upon receiving the statuette, the rapper admitted that Jackson was one of her “biggest inspirations growing up.”
“What an icon means to me is overcoming obstacles to accomplish the unthinkable and be widely admired for having influence over a multitude of people, and that is what I’ve always represented,” the nine-time Grammy-winner told the crowd.
“The message in my music has always been that we are not alone in our struggles. And I’m not alone now,” she added. “For so long, I was searching for a real love, but I finally found my real love. And that real love is me.”
The Icon Award marks Blige’s eleventh Billboard Music Award win.
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