Mary J. Blige reveals that she passed on one of Rihanna’s most famous songs

Rihanna has many chart-topping hits, but one of her most famous and instantly recognizable is her 2007 track, “Umbrella.” The track came with a verse from Jay-Z and a viral music video, which has over 1.2 billion views on YouTube at the time of this publication. But it turns out she wasn’t the first singer it was offered to.

Christopher “Tricky” Stewart, Terius “The-Dream” Nash, and Kuk Harrelt originally wrote the song with Britney Spears in mind, but because of her personal life, they had Mary J. Blige and Rihanna in mind. 

The 9-time GRAMMY winner and Oscar nominee was a guest on 7 PM in Brooklyn with Carmelo Anthony when she was asked if there was a song or beat that got away from her. She revealed it was “Umbrella,” explaining, “It’s not something that got away from me.” “It’s just that I know what’s for me and what’s not for me,” she added. 

The reason Blige wanted to turn it down is probably what made it so infectious – the “ella ella” line. “I heard was [the vocalized refrain] ‘eh, eh,’ and I was like ‘Yo, my fans are gonna bug out on me if they hear me talking about ‘eh eh, eh,'” she explained. “So I was like, ‘I got a lot going on. So I’m going to pass.”

© Jeff Kravitz/FilmMagic

But there are no regrets. When the “Family Affair” singer heard Rih’ on the track, she said she knew it was always meant for her. “I was like, ‘See, it was for Rihanna. It wasn’t for me,” she said. “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.”

“Umbrella” was on Rihanna’s 2007 album Good Girl Gone Bad and is regarded as the song that made her a superstar. It became a full-blown force, racking up wins and nominations at award shows across the globe, earning Rih her first GRAMMY. 

© Grosby Group

It took home Video of the Year at the MTV Video Music Awards, won Best Rap/Sung Collaboration at the Grammys, and was crowned Song of the Year at the Barbados Music Awards. The track also scored major wins at the VH1 Soul VIBE Awards, Swiss Music Awards, and MuchMusic Video Awards, while earning nominations from the Teen Choice Awards, MTV Europe Music Awards, NAACP Image Awards, and multiple Nickelodeon Kids’ Choice ceremonies.