This post was updated Nov. 17 at 9:00 p.m.

Mary J. Blige’s latest album is an LP that her fans can be mostly grateful for.

The “Queen of Hip-Hop Soul” released her fifteenth studio album “Gratitude” on Friday. The 12-track LP follows 2022’s “Good Morning Gorgeous,” for which the deluxe version was nominated for Album of the Year at the 65th Annual Grammy Awards. Blige’s discography stretches back to her debut LP “What’s The 411?” in 1992, and earlier this year it was rumored that her fifteenth album could be her final full-length musical project. Although the album does not reach the heights of some of the nine-time Grammy winner’s past work – and might not be the ideal album for the singer to potentially conclude her career with – “Gratitude” provides listeners with a handful of harmonious tunes on par with Blige’s undeniable classics.

The album starts out on a somewhat rocky note with its lead single, “Breathing.” The extended introduction of the track by featured rapper Fabolous means that Blige does not begin singing until almost a minute of the song has passed. Some of Blige’s past albums – including her best LP, 1994’s “My Life” – have begun with an intentionally long introduction, but the first minute of “Breathing” is largely ineffective in building anticipation because Fabolous’ verse is so forgettable. Once Blige’s portion of the song begins, the track becomes a much more enjoyable listen thanks to her passionate croons and the backing of exuberant horns.

After “Breathing,” the album settles into its strongest four-track stretch, starting with the excellent Jadakiss collaboration “Need You More.” The superb hip-hop-tinged production is reminiscent of the music Blige started her career with on “What’s The 411?” The song has a fun, swaggering rhythm that pairs seamlessly with Blige’s vocal performance, which expresses her desires for her partner while maintaining a flirtatious edge.

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It is the LP’s fourth track – the uplifting number “You Ain’t The Only One” – that might be the album’s finest offering. The beat is immediately reminiscent of Blige’s blissful 1992 hit “Real Love,” but the song is lyrically closer to themes of 2007’s “Work That” and “Just Fine.” Blige sings compassionate lyrics such as: “You ever feel so low that all you feel is doubt? / You’re so lost you can’t find your way out / You ain’t the only one.” Despite these heavy emotions of dejection, Blige’s delivery and the song’s bouncy production give the track a surprising degree of levity and even celebration. Nowhere else on the record does Blige sound more grateful or joyous, and “You Ain’t The Only One” would naturally fit in a playlist with Blige’s past hits.

Rounding out the three best songs on the album is “Never Give Up On Me,” featuring a delightful funky bassline and production from Grammy-winning producer Dernst Emile II, better known as D’Mile. While not a full-blown uptempo, the song’s immaculate production makes it the most dance-ready number on the album, and its buoyant lyrics further these exultant vibes: “I can see the joy through my pain / I won’t give up on me.” Over more than three decades, Blige’s career has been built out of dozens of groovy self-love R&B anthems in the same vein as “Never Give Up On Me,” but crucially, the track still feels fresh, original and lyrically genuine.

Compared to these songs with head-bobbing rhythms and optimistic messages, “Gratitude” falters in its slower moments. “Nobody But You” falls comfortably into the realm of background music, but “Here I Am” halts the track list’s momentum with its thematically dry repetition of the lyrics, “But here I am loving you.” Blige’s voice, while pleasant to the ear, lacks the emotional expressiveness on “Here I Am” to inject the track with the vitality or listenability that so many of her other songs possess.

A couple of tracks later, “Superpowers” fails to inspire any true sense of romantic passion. Blige puts her all into giving a rousing vocal performance, but corny lines such as “Boy, I want all the flowers / Because of my superpowers” are so humorously inane that it is difficult to buy into the track’s treacly message. Fortunately, “Superpowers” is followed by the comparatively compelling “Can’t Wait For You,” which – despite its repetitions of the titular phrase – serves as a convincing kiss-off of a suitor thanks to its moody production and Blige’s charismatic delivery.

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The LP closes with two slightly confusing collaborations with conflicting themes. On the Fat Joe team-up “God’s Child,” Blige shifts toward discussing faith and its impact on her success with lyrics such as “All that it took was hard work and dedication / And some faith, I feel like God really looking out.” Perhaps if Blige had brought more conviction to the post-chorus, the track could have felt more transcendent. By comparison, closing track “I Got Plans” with FERG is focused on Blige’s own pleasure and enjoyment with carefree lyrics such as “Bring that back / I got plans for the weekend, I do.” While “I Got Plans” ensures that “Gratitude” ends on a note of prioritizing Blige’s happiness, the summery jam’s placement is puzzling when following “God’s Child.”

As a whole, “Gratitude” does not come close to reaching the pinnacles of Blige’s discography found in some of her best albums such as “My Life.” Likewise, the title of the album seems to be a bit of a misnomer, as tracks like “Can’t Wait For You” exemplify Blige’s dissatisfaction in some of her relationships. There are no dance floor bangers resembling her 2001 chart-topper “Family Affair,” and none of the ballads or slower songs stack up to Blige’s best. Within Blige’s catalog, the LP is probably closest to its predecessor “Good Morning Gorgeous” in terms of overall energy and composition, which is not a bad place to be in.

All of this said, “Gratitude” is still a worthwhile listen, especially when looking at what it accomplishes in its brisk 41-minute runtime. Blige’s take on R&B in 2024 might be more rooted in the soundscapes of the 1990s than in current mainstream approaches to the genre, but her nostalgia-based style is more than welcome when songs such as “You Ain’t The Only One” prove to be just as good as her earlier work. Despite lagging in the middle and ending on an awkward thematic note, “Gratitude” mostly succeeds because of its consistently melodic production and Blige’s presence as a stupendous vocal storyteller.

With more than three decades of incredible songs to her name, Blige’s latest album gives her fans a new set of tracks that are worth appreciating.