That's why I went spinning out of control after I got into the music business.īefore I dropped out of high school, the principal once asked me why I'd gotten in trouble. Life was about surviving-getting money any way you could. The people I knew sat around drinking and cursing and living in denial. In the neighborhood where I grew up, I was surrounded by drug dealer chicks who spent their money on cars and clothes. If I saw someone with a hot hairdo, a ring, some boots, that's what I wanted. Oprah: Were you trying to live up to the kind of image you'd seen in music videos?
They encouraged me to drink, to be promiscuous. Mary: The very people who are not in my life right now. Oprah: Who did you surround yourself with? So the second I got some cash, I spent it on every pair of shoes I never had. But no one had taught me how to invest my money or that I should buy property. What went through your head when it soared to the top of the charts? Oprah: "Family Affair" was one of your first hit songs on that album. It wasn't until No More Drama in 2001 that I knew I had made it. After my first album, What's the 411?, I didn't even know I was successful. Oprah: But you didn't imagine all that comes with it. Mary: As a kid, I dreamed about being onstage. Oprah: Back when you first started singing, did you have any idea you'd become an acclaimed artist? They knew that as long as I stayed high and drunk, I'd keep handing out the Rolexes. Mary: Everyone around me was looking for a quick paycheck. When you were on the show talking about your most difficult years, you said something that resonates with me so strongly: Nobody tells you the truth.
I've gotta love me more than anybody else loves me.
My breakthrough came when I stopped feeling sorry for myself and took responsibility for every part of my life. In the inner city, there's a mentality that the government owes you something. I finally understood: Even if you feel someone has wronged you or owes you something, no one is going to give you anything for free. One day I realized that I wasn't getting anywhere by blaming other people for my circumstances. Oprah: I love that your CD is called The Breakthrough.
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