MARY J BLIGE 'LOVE@1ST SIGHT' REMIXED BY RISHI RICH

A quantum leap forward and a welcome return to her roots, "Love & Life", also reunites Mary and Sean "P. Diddy" Combs, the producer-performer who crowned her the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul. Now a seasoned songwriter (she co-wrote 17 of the album's 18 tracks), Mary co-executive produced the album with P. Diddy.

The team of Combs and Blige helped usher in a stylish, "ghetto fabulous" hybrid of R & B that united gospel and blues-influenced vocals with high-tech funk and rap on Mary's groundbreaking 1991 debut What's The 411? Her style has been reveal the universality of her heartaches "I didn't want to tell my business," she says. "I had no other choice. I wrote it down and people came back to me and said 'You saved my life!' without even knowing that when they listened to me sing, it helped me, too."

Ushering in the 21st century Mary released the triple-platinum No More Drama in 2001. "I always thought my fans were just inner city but people from all over the world and of every color responded to that record. I gave a lot of myself not knowing it was gonna reach so many people."

"Going through all the stuff I went through wasn't in vain because I found out that my job is to give," she concludes. "I was tired of suffering, of the hustle and hassle of everyday life. I figured out that all along, the problem had been pride and ignorance. Right now I'm growing, I'm learning, and I'm listening. I realized that I need to hear the truth and that the truth is setting me free. And what you hear on Love & Life is the truth and my willingness to embrace it."

The 'Love @ 1st Sight' Rishi Rich remix single is out on 15 September.