On Sunday night at the Billboard Music Awards, Janet Jackson made a rare public appearance to honor Mary J. Blige.When she stepped onto the stage to deliver the Icon Award, the audience at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas gave her a standing ovation.
"How do you define an icon?" Is it the ability to invent, explore, and practically invent a whole musical genre? Is it the millions of devoted followers who breathe your art every day? The same fans to whom you continuously express your gratitude? Is it a multi-decade career filled with songs that make you feel something when you hear them?" she wondered. "The answer is all of the above, and the answer is Mary J. Blige, tonight's recipient of the 2022 Billboard Icon Award."
Before accepting the award, the No More Drama singer received video tributes from Missy Elliott, Queen Latifah, Taraji P. Henson, and Gabrielle Union, according to Entertainment Weekly.
"Right now, I'm in a dream," she explained. "To me, being an icon means overcoming barriers to achieve the unfathomable and being immensely admired for having influence over a large number of people, and that is what I've always represented.
"I've been on this path for quite some time." One who did not always appear as you perceive me now. One that was full with heartbreak and anguish. But God guided me in channeling those feelings and experiences into my music."
Pink, Stevie Wonder, Cher, Prince, Mariah Carey, and Jennifer Lopez have all been honored as Icons, with Janet Jackson receiving the accolade in 2018.
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