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A video of Taylor Swift rapping "Family Affair" recently went viral, and now the song's original artist, Mary J. Blige, is sharing how it all came together.
"Just to let you know how it happened, Taylor called me," Blige, 54, revealed in an interview with People posted online on Tuesday, January 28. "She was like 'I want you [to come on tour.'] I was shocked. I was like, 'Oh, Taylor Swift likes Mary J. Blige?!'"
Blige joined Swift's 1989 World Tour as a special guest at her Los Angeles show in August 2015. Along with tackling "Family Affair" together, the duo sang the hit "Doubt" from Blige's album, The London Arena, released the year before.
The experience helped transform Blige into a true Swiftie. "When I went to do the [songs] with her, I thought she was a really down-to-earth person," Blige recalled. "I mean, so nice, so sweet. And I think what connects is exactly that."
Blige also noted that she and the 35-year-old "You Belong with Me" singer share a similar approach to making music. "I think her ability to express herself through her songs and what she's dealing with is what is our connection," Blige said. "Because I do the same thing."
Nearly a decade after their onstage collaboration, Swift's rendition of "Family Affair' resurfaced on Instagram, quickly grabbing social media's attention. The short clip, posted on December 31, 2024, has racked up nearly 200,000 likes, with many praising Swift's talent as she raps the lyrics to Blige's iconic song.
"She actually sounds really good here," one person commented.
Another added: "I think this is the best she's ever sounded and I'm not joking."
"If she made music like this, I'd actually listen to her," one person wrote, before admitting, "She ate this."
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