Mary J. Blige is being recognized for the strides she’s made in music and more specifically, on the Billboard charts. As announced on Thursday (April 14), the singer will be honored with the Icon Award during the live broadcast of the 2022 Billboard Music Awards. The presentation of the award will be accompanied by a performance from the ten-time BBMA winner.
“My career has been such an incredible and unexpected journey that has included many turns into avenues I never could have imagined like acting, producing, launching businesses and now even my own music festival,” Blige said in a statement. “Through it all, I always one way or another gravitated back to my first love, music. To be recognized in this way at this moment, with the Icon Award at the Billboard Music Awards, is an incredible honor and one that I am truly humbled by.”
The Icon Award was introduced in 2011 and is typically presented to musicians who have “achieved excellence on the Billboard charts and have made an indelible mark on music itself,” per Billboard. Blige will be the 11th person to receive the award, joining an elite group of past recipients that includes musical legends Stevie Wonder, Prince, Jennifer Lopez, Celine Dion, Cher, Janet Jackson, Mariah Carey and more.
The forthcoming honor is the latest accomplishment in what appears to be a great 2022 for the queen of hip hop soul. Four months into the year and the singer has already released her Good Morning Gorgeous album, performed at both the Pepsi Super Bowl LVI Halftime Show and All-Star Saturday night and won an NAACP Image Award among other things. Yet, she still has more in store. On Mother’s Day Weekend, for example, she will launch her inaugural Strength of a Woman Festival & Summit, which will focus on themes like music, wellness, tech, beauty and financial literacy. She is also headlining the Roots Picnic in June and is working on a Lifetime movie based on her hit song “Real Love.”
The 2022 Billboard Music Awards will go down on May 15 at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas. The live broadcast will air on NBC at 8pm ET/5 pm PT.
See Mary J. Blige’s post about the honor below.