Mary J. Blige Says Ex-Husband Threatened To ‘Destroy’ Her

Anyone searching for the 411 on Mary J. Blige’s divorce from her husband and manager Martin “Kendu” Isaacs won’t need to dig too hard.

The soul legend’s emotional wounds are on display for all to hear on her superb new album, “Strength of a Woman” (released last Friday). On Tuesday night, she expanded on the painful details in an emotional 45-minute interview with Angie Martinez at the iHeartRadio Album Release Party (held in the iHeartRadio Theater in New York). The conversation was followed by a three-song performance.

Most gut-wrenching of all was when Blige divulged Isaacs’ alleged verbal abuse toward the end of their 13-year marriage. According to the singer, Isaacs told her, “Your fans are tired of you . . . You timed out, and s - - t like that.”

Blige said that when Isaacs’ purported affair (strongly rumored to be with the singer’s protégé Starshell) came to light, he threatened to “sink” and “destroy” Blige’s career. During divorce proceedings, Isaacs reportedly asked for more than $100,000 in spousal support.

The “Real Love” singer also described her marital breakdown, divorce and subsequent recriminations as “nasty” and “humiliating.”

On at least one occasion, she appeared to be close to tears. “You found out you wasn’t . . . what this person wanted, for all these years. And that somebody [else] was better. That’s wounding.”

She added, “Every day is so hard. I want to put a smile on people’s faces. So if I do crack and break down, I’m sorry.”

When the Power 105.1 FM DJ asked Blige what saved her during this period, she simply replied, “Prayer.”

Although Blige’s love life is rendered in eye-opening detail throughout “Strength of a Woman,” she does cite another muse for one track. While recording the song “Survivor,” Blige confessed to being stricken more by flu than by heartache.

“I had the shakes,” she told Martinez. “But I needed to sing ‘I’m a survivor’ to get through that cold!”

“Strength of a Woman”: The key lyrics

“Tell me how you figure that you made me/And you gave me what I had before I meet you/Ain’t gon’ have it when you’re gone.” (“Set Me Free”)

“Who’s gonna love you like I do?/Who will you trust?/I gave you too much/Enough is enough.” (“Thick of It”)

“And how you fix your mouth to say I owe you/When you had another bitch and taking trips and s - - t/With my money for so long.” (“Set Me Free”)

“Gave my heart to you/Went to war for you/I got scars for you/Would have did time behind bars for you.” (“Thank You”)

“There’s a special place in hell for you/You gon’ pay for what you did to me.” (“Set Me Free”)



Mary J. Blige put her estranged husband’s alleged mistress, Starshell, on blast in her “Strength of a Woman” doc that premiered on VH1 on Tuesday night.

“All these years have come to this, like you didn’t even pick me, you picked somebody else. That s – – t is humiliating. It hurt real bad. But . . . they got beds, we gotta lay in it,” she told Ne-Yo of her ex Martin “Kendu” Isaacs, whom she’s divorcing after 13 years of marriage. “And just so we’re clear . . . Do not let her anywhere near what you’re doing for me, because she’s the reason for all of this s – – t. That’s my Becky with the good hair!” she told Ne-Yo, who produced tracks on her new album.

Several sources have come out alleging that Isaacs had an affair with Starshell, who was once signed to Blige’s record label. A college pal said that Starshell always craved fame.

“She’s not remorseful. She’s just a poor girl from [outside of] Boston who slept her way to the middle,” the source said. Starshell denied any allegations in the documentary. “This is absolutely not true.”

Isaacs did not respond to Blige’s doc.

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