Mary J. Blige Reacts To Kamala Harris Using 'Work That' After Election Win
By Taylor Fields
February 20, 2021
Vice President Kamala Harris made history after becoming the first woman Vice President of the United States, in addition to the first Black woman and first person of South Asian decent to be elected as Vice President. After the election win, along side President Joe Biden, Harris stepped out on stage to deliver a victory speech to the tune of Mary J. Blige's "Work That," and Blige herself is now sharing her reaction.
During the first-ever iHeartRadio Living Black! show, Mary sat down with iHeartRadio's Angie Martinez, and she explained after hearing that Kamala used her song to walk out to:
"I was buggin', I was so surprised because people was calling me, I didn't know what the hell was going on. I spoke to my sister the next day, she was like, 'Yo! Kamala Harris just came out to 'Work That.'' I said 'Work That?!' 'Work That' which wasn't a single. But, it was a song that I wrote from my heart. I didn't know she was a fan. She didn't even pick 'Just Fine,' she picked 'Work That.' 'Work That,' which only the fans know. So, I would say, thank you, Kamala. She is one of my heroes, for real, today."
Kamala Harris takes the stage to Mary J Blige's Work That after being introduced as vice president–elect pic.twitter.com/RjwcbYbN5E
— BuzzFeed News (@BuzzFeedNews) November 8, 2020
"Work That" is from Blige's 2007 album Growing Pains, and features inspirational lyrics like, "Just because the length of your hair ain't long/ And they often criticize you for your skin tone/ Wanna hold your head high 'cause you're a pretty woman/ Get your runway stride on and keep going/ Girl, live your life."
And during her speech after winning the election with President Biden, Kamala echoed the song's sentiment as she talked about her mother, who came to America from India at 19 years old, "I am thinking about her and about the generations of women, Black women, Asian, white, Latina, Native American women, who throughout our nation's history have paved the way for this moment tonight." She added, "Women who fought and sacrificed so much for equality and liberty and justice for all. Including the Black women who are often, too often, overlooked. Who often prove they are the backbone of our democracy."
iHeartRadio Living Black! can also be viewed via Venues on Oculus Quest to watch the show in VR through February 27th. Subscribe at http://ocul.us/iheart-livingblack.
Photo: Getty Images