Photo Cred: Mary J. Blige Instagram
R&B star Mary J. Blige’s ex-husband, Kendu Issacs, has been under a lot of hot water in recent years following comments Mary made about his “obsession” with her fortune. Mary went as far as to call him a “con artist”.
Mary has been doing quite well in recent years. But back in 2017, things weren’t nearly as peaceful for the “Family Affair” hitmaker. The year before she divorced her then-husband in 2018, Mary came out with some concerning accusations against Kendu.
Who is Kendu Issacs?
Kendu Issacs is an American record producer and manager. He entered the music-management space in 2001 for the German company K.I. Management. In just a few years he made a name for himself and even appeared on the “Ellen DeGeneres Show”. He jumped from company to company for some time. Kendu also produced films, such as “Betty And Coretta” and “Tamar And Vince”.
He was married and divorced before he began dating Mary J. Blige in 2000. The pair were married in 2003. Mary filed for divorce in 2016, and the divorce battle went on for a whopping two years. Mary alleged that Kendu had an affair with an artist he was managing professional, which launched the arduous divorce process.
Why Did Mary and Kendu Divorce?
In a 2017 interview with Variety, Mary was promoting the film “Dessie, Pariah” and had the opportunity to speak about the end of her 12-year marriage to Kendu. In the interview, she said she was “doing OK” but also said that she was not happy about how things turned out.
“I thought someone loved me, right?” Mary said in the interview. “Turns out, he was a con artist and he didn’t, and now he’s coming after me for all my money.”
Back when Mary was going through the process of releasing the album “Strenght Of A Woman”, the divorce proceedings were notoriously tough. A judge ordered her to give $30,000 per month to Kendu for alimony. Mary went on to say that she realized that she was never the one and Kendu was always after her money. Initially, Kendu asked for upwards of $100,000 each month to keep up his personal and “charitable” lifestyle.
“When you come out of something like that, you realize you were never the one,” Mary told Variety. “There was someone else who was his queen. I got played. I got suckered. I have to keep smiling and keep my spirits up because this is designed to kill me.”
Her divorce was highly publicized. Though “Strenght Of A Woman” was released right in the middle of the battle, the album reached the Top 3 of the Billboard 200 and other charts. Their divorce was completely finalized in June of 2018. It’s not clear if Mary is still paying spousal support to Kendu.
Since the divorce, Mary seems to be doing quite well. She lent her voice to a number of animated films in 2018. In 2019, she took on a few different acting roles in “Scream” and “The Umbrella Academy”. She maintains her sobriety and has said she enjoys being child-free.
