Love to Roll to it!
I'm a Soul Skater and love rolling to many of these cuts. MJB has evolved as a person and an artist. I know she was more raw in the early days, but I do like the new happy MJB. My absolute favorite is #10 Fade Away. I do believe that she has more Pop producers on the album, but everyone wants to work with MJB now and she shows what a true range she is capable of.

What Love Is
This is by far the best track on the album and my favorite song by her ever. The piano is so pretty and the lyrics are so real! This is a great album and is up there with the break through! I have never been so impressed with Mary until What love is came out! It needs to be released as a single not Stay down which is one of the wackest songs on the album!

Mary J. Blige is back and upbeat!!!
I love this WHOLE cd...without skipping a song. My favorite song on the whole cd is "Work In Progress." When she breaks this song down it practically brings me to tears. I can definitely relate to every word she sings. My son is almost 15 years old and he loves this whole cd. When he gets in the car he's ready to pop it in too and hit the repeat on several of the songs. Great job Mary and keep 'em coming!!!

Horrible!!!
This has to be the worst album Mary has ever made. I listened to it 1 time then gave it away. What a waste of money

the break what!
if music is about the collaboration of the soul and the beat, mary j. blige's " Growing Pains" is a prime example. on her eighth album, mary blends the rawness of hip hop, smooth r and b, and even ventures to soft rock to emphasize different emotions. for example, "smoke" a song about the insecurities one has in a relationship, is midtempo soft rock ballad that compliments her hesistant but strong voice. " just fine", the lead single from the album, is a one on one therapy session with a life coach that makes you feel good because she's good...fine. with a micheal jaxckson's off the wall feel, you cant help but to get up and celebrate life for what it is. on the other hand, when mary is pissed, we know to run for the boarder with tracks like "roses". however, the track that stands out is " till the morning" which i personally think should be the next single with its tribe called quest inspired beat. overall, " Growing Pains" is the standard for r and b albums for 2008 because it blends , expresses every emotion of love, tries different genres of music and is the truth. beyonce take note!