We all love Mary J. Blige. The artist and actress has shown us time after time that she won’t be pigeon-holed into anyone’s one definition of success. Between her acting, music, and just plain Aunty vibes, who does it better than Mary J. Blige?
Today, GARAGE Magazine reveals the second of two covers for its nineteenth issue, featuring Mary J. Blige by Hood By Air, the radical fashion collective that birthed “luxury streetwear.” Photographed by Renell Medrano in an exclusive portfolio for the magazine, the cover and accompanying editorial depict Blige wearing various looks from the Hood By Air archive, in celebration of the brand’s 13th anniversary and highly anticipated relaunch.
In a wide-ranging conversation with Deidre Dyer, Blige and Hood By Air’s Shayne Oliver discuss what pushes them to succeed, their responsibility to the public, and Black futures.
“How much wider are our eyes, and how important is it that we use them to see and be seen? How powerful and beautiful are our voices, and how awesome and boundless is the work that we can do when we use them in unison? These were the thoughts driving us, as we put together this issue,” explain GARAGE’s Fashion Director Gabriella Karefa-Johnson and Editorial Director Laia Garcia-Furtado.
“A magazine issue is a time capsule, and this one is a reflection of the people, the art, the music, and yes, the fashion that we returned to again and again in the past six months. We were emboldened by our icons and idols—those who could bring us a vague measure of hope as the world became more apocalyptic around us. The work within is a result of all of us authentically engaging with a real and honest intersectional approach to diversity, simply because it is who we are. This is not our Black issue. This is the issue this team would make, at any point in time, with the people we see as the future of this industry.”
“Bounce-backs. Comebacks. Rebounds. Whatever you call them, Mary J. Blige and Shayne Oliver have accomplished them, time and time again. Since the release of her debut album, What’s the 411?, in 1992, which introduced the world to a particular flavor of hood-saucy and headstrong woman, Blige has brought her soul-baring, uncompromising energy to the music industry,” says Dyer. “Similarly, over a decade ago, Oliver’s Hood By Air absolutely upended the fashion world with a vision that eschewed gender norms and deconstructed fashion, and that is only now becoming widespread in the industry. Today they are both innovators and elder statesmen, and have earned the right to do exactly as they please.”
GARAGE’s latest issue continues its tradition of pairing the boldest names in contemporary culture, resulting in unique collaborations between artists, photographers, actors, models, musicians, dancers, writers, and thinkers. Blige and Hood by Air join the magazine’s lineage of inventive cover collaborations, including Michaela Coel by artist Liz Johnson Artur, Zendaya by artist Simone Leigh, Billie Eilish by artist Takashi Murakami, Rihanna by artist Deana Lawson, and Beyoncé by artist Urs Fischer, among others.
ABOUT GARAGE MAGAZINE
GARAGE is a global leader in contemporary art, fashion, and luxury, committed to bringing to life the most original and ambitious collaborative projects in those fields. GARAGE publishes biannual print editions, and, since its digital relaunch in October 2017, cutting-edge daily content online under the aegis of VICE Media Group. The magazine was launched in 2011 by Dasha Zhukova, taking its name and spirit from Garage Museum of Contemporary Art in Moscow, the major international art institution founded in 2008. Since its inception, GARAGE has worked with many of the world’s most celebrated creators and initiated an array of global artistic dialogues. Among the contributors to have created exclusive content for the magazine are Jeff Koons, Cindy Sherman, Damien Hirst, Richard Prince, John Baldessari, Urs Fischer, Aya Takano, Mark Grotjahn, Deana Lawson, and Takashi Murakami.
