Mary J. Blige on Reuniting with Fabolous for New Song 'Breathing' and Her Rock & Roll Hall of Fame Performance (Exclusive)

In an interview with PEOPLE, the R&B icon also opened up about her role in the new drama 'Rob Peace'

Mary J. Blige finally feels like she can breathe again.

Eight years since she filed for divorce, the R&B icon, 53, is reflecting on how far she's come with her liberating new single "Breathing," which saw her reunite with Fabolous.

Blige's latest single is a taste of her forthcoming album, which is due later this year. "It's going to be out soon, probably the end of September, early October," she says of the record. "But there'll be two singles out before then."

Blige maintains that the album will reflect her singular approach to R&B. "Everybody that's out there, I don't look at what they're doing and do what they're doing," she says. "I do what Mary J. Blige does, and that's it."

"Breathing," which is out Friday, also coincides with the release of her new film Rob Peace, a heart-wrenching tale about a gifted Black student who battles economic difficulties from childhood through Yale. In the movie, Blige — who also executive produced the film through her banner Blue Butterfly — portrays his hardworking mother, Jackie."This young man got into Yale and he was living in Newark, in those bad parts, and she worked very hard, the mother," the "Family Affair" singer says of her role.

In an interview with PEOPLE, Blige opens up about her upcoming Rock & Roll Hall of Fame performance and reflects on the 30th anniversary of My Life.

Tell me the story behind your new single "Breathing."

The story behind the track is what I'm doing finally, which is living, breathing, enjoying my life and celebrating the happiness and freedom I have that life brings. That's why it's called "Breathing." I finally get to exhale and inhale and then exhale and enjoy life, enjoy love.

Related: What Mary J. Blige Does Every Morning That Changed Her Life: 'I Didn't Love Myself'

When did you feel like you were able to do that?

Maybe in 2017, because in 2016, I got a divorce, and I was not breathing. I was dying, and I didn't have this love for myself the way I have for myself now. It took a lot of work — a lot of self-work — to get to this point to where there's not a human being that I depend on to make me feel good about myself. I depend on me. I depend on God, and that's it, to make me feel good about me. And at the end of the day, I'm the one that has to make sure I'm OK. I've been doing that, and I'm strong in that. That's why I'm able to breathe because I'm taking care of Mary J. Blige. That's it.

You and Fabolous have collaborated before. What was it like teaming up again?

Fabolous has been my friend for years. I mean, every time I need Fabolous or Jadakiss, they're there for me. And anytime they need me, I'm there for them. They're family. So it's always a pleasure working with the amazing Fabolous.

Your new album is due later this year. Is there an overall theme to the record?

The overall theme is enjoying life and understanding that, again, life is what inspires me, whether I take the good with the bad. I look at every lesson as a blessing and I understand that I'm not the only one on the earth going through things. I celebrate my triumph, and I work through my hard times. So, the album is going to be fun in that perspective. There'll be things that are real and serious, but you'll be able to dance to it or sing to it. There's a bunch of different things — ballads, world music. There's some good s--- on here.

You're starring in the new film Rob Peace as the mother of the titular character. What drew you to the film?

What drew me to the role as Jackie is the fact that it's a true story of a woman living in an inner city raising her child who was brilliant, and she figures out how brilliant he is and she works tirelessly to make sure he goes to college. My mom, she brought us up in the projects, worked three jobs, made sure we ate and did everything for us. She made sure we went to school, she wanted us to go to college and she wanted us to do all these things, but the inner city and life can just really get you down. So what drew me to that role is my mom being that same woman, raising her child in the inner city and wanting more for her children.

How are you feeling about being inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame this fall?

I feel amazing. The Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, that's a whole other level. That's my peers on another level recognizing my legacy and all the work that I've put in. So I'm beyond grateful and very happy to have been inducted. I mean, I was blown away.

Can you reveal any details about your performance at the ceremony?

I'm performing. There's people performing with me. I don't want to say who right now, but you'll find out. But it's going to be a good time.

Related: Mary J. Blige Wants to Show Women They Can 'Thrive' as She Brings Empowering Music Festival to N.Y.C. (Exclusive)

It's obviously the 30th anniversary of your sophomore studio album My Life. How do you remember the LP now?

That is one of the most important albums of my career. That was the turning point to me choosing life. Even though it was hard and I was going through it for years, I still chose life during that time because it was during a time where I didn't want to live. I was going through it, but something made me choose life, and it created a movement of people that wanted to choose life. My fans, they wanted to choose life. They were going through things. They was like, "Well, if Mary can get through it, we can get through it." And that's what started that movement.

Looking back, are there any songs that you don't connect with anymore?

Well, those are the songs are really painful. I believe that music wasn't created for just me — it was created for my fans and people that need that kind of song or therapy to get through something. So I have to perform it. And some things are painful, but I have to do it. I have to do it because if those fans didn't buy that album or if those people weren't listening to that music, I wouldn't be here doing what I'm doing right now. So my gift to them is to feel all that over again so they can heal. I don't know how I do it, I just do it.

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