You never know who actually had a song first, especially in the world of pop music. Songwriters will initially create and record demos around a song, sometimes having a particular artist in mind for them. Sometimes, it works out seamlessly, records fitting out perfectly for the first artist. However, other times, they get passed around until it eventually lands in another artist’s lap. This is the case for Mary J. Blige, who turned down a massive hit that eventually ended up with Rihanna.
During a January 2026 episode of 7PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony, the NBA legend asked about ‘the one that got away’ in terms of songs. Ultimately, the R&B icon felt like she always had a keen understanding of records that fit her palette. But that doesn’t mean she doesn’t imagine the success she could’ve had with a record.
Mary J. Blige recalled working with star producers The-Dream and Tricky Stewart at the time. She was still riding high from the success of The Breakthrough in 2005, with the monster hit, “Be Without You”. As a result, Dream and Stewart presented her with “Umbrella” before Rihanna succeeded with it. In the end, it never felt natural. There was this gut feeling that her fans wouldn’t appreciate the record.
Why Mary J. Blige Turned Down “Umbrella”
“Dream and Tricky came to me with ‘Umbrella’, and all I heard was [the vocalized refrain] ‘aye, aye,’ and I was like ‘Yo, my fans is gonna bug out on me if they hear me talking about ‘aye aye, aye.’ So I was like, ‘I got a lot going on. So I’m going to pass,’” Mary J. Blige recounted. “Then, when I heard Rihanna do it, I was like, ‘See, it was for Rihanna. It wasn’t for me.’ I’m not afraid to pass on something that’s not for me. It got away, it got away, but it wasn’t for me in the first place.”
Britney Spears was also in the running to land “Umbrella”, but Rihanna eventually came home with the smash hit over her and Mary J. Blige. And indeed, it worked out perfectly. The song fit Rihanna’s voice and delivery, and it carried her all the way to the top of Billboard’s Hot 100. Mary ended up with a hit of her own later that year with “Just Fine” from the 2007 album Growing Pains.
The post This Rihanna Classic Almost Went to Mary J. Blige, but She Turned It Down: ‘My Fans Is Gonna Bug Me Out’ appeared first on VICE.
