Mary J. Blige has teamed up with Jill Biden and the American Cancer Society to host national meetings on breast and cervical cancer.
According to Billboard, the cancer society agreed to host the events after Jill and her husband, President Joe Biden, helped bring back “cancer moonshot” initiatives in 2022, which aim to provide more money for cancer research.
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Blige, who for years has promoted mammograms and other cancer screenings, joined the initiative because of her personal experience of losing aunts and other family members to cervical and lung cancer.
On Monday (October 24), the Super Bowl LVI Halftime performer spoke on misconceptions that Black women have around mammograms, explaining that “the practice of not wanting other people in our business” was a cause for disparities in breast cancer outcomes between white people and Black people. She noted her family would have had “a different outcome today” had they been diagnosed sooner.
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The first lady, whose son Beau lost his fight to brain cancer in 2015, then held Blige’s hands for a few minutes before thanking her for “lending your powerful voice to this cause.”
Blige commemorated the moment with a heartfelt Instagram post. “Woke up this morning feeling fulfilled and grateful after spending time with @flotus at @whitehouse to kick off an important #CancerMoonshot initiative and visiting @breastcareforwashington, a recipient of funding from my partners @Hologic, which provides screening to women in need living in Ward 8 in DC,” Blige wrote.
“So grateful for the chance to meet with staff and patients and learn more about the important work being done to reduce racial disparities in women’s health.”
This is hardly the first time the R&B singer has fought to raise awareness about breast cancer. Most recently in 2021, she joined forces with the Black Women’s Health Imperative to promote cancer screenings among Black women.
“I’m very candid: I don’t want to die,” Blige said at the time. “Somebody has to say something, especially for my community.”
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Mary J. Blige is currently in the throes of her Good Morning Gorgeous Tour, which features Ella Mai and Queen Najia and kicked off in Greensboro, North Carolina on September 17.
The tour will wrap in Atlantic City, New Jersey on October 29, but Blige’s Brooklyn stop saw her bring out numerous special guests, including Diddy, Fabolous,Jadakiss and Funk Flex, the latter of which wasn’t too thrilled with how Brooklyn’s Barclays Center handled the event.
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“MAN… I APPRECIATE MARY J BLIGE AND SHELBY TO THE FULLEST FOR PUTTING ON A TREMENDOUS AMAZING CONCERT! 20,000 Deep!” Flex wrote on Instagram. “BUT IM SO DISAPPOINTED IN THE BARCLAYS FOR THE WEAK SOUND… RUDE ENERGY AND ALL AROUND LACK OF TAKING PRIDE IN YOUR ASSIGNMENT WAS HARD TO WITNESS! I WASNT GETTING PAID A DOLLAR TONIGHT! I LOVE WHAT I DO AND PROMISED MARY I WOULD BE THERE!”
Mary J. Blige’s Good Morning Gorgeous dropped on February 11 and debuted eat No. 14 on the Billboard 200 with 25,000 equivalent album units. The project features appearances from Dave East, Fivio Foreign, Anderson .Paak, Moneybagg Yo and others.
