As a career-oriented mother of two, I always try to take bits and pieces from other mothers who have successfully balanced careers and motherhood. The nature of my job allows me to chat with high-caliber celebrity women who have managed to push the culture forward while raising children. Monica Denise Arnold is one of them. How the “So Gone” singer has made chart-topping classics, raised four kids, and gotten finer with time should be applauded and studied. 

Monica has been the soundtrack to love for decades. She made her debut in 1995, stamping her name in our R&B lexicons with music that sounded like our struggle. Monica has always been relatable and it’s one of the reasons she is so successful. 

When I spoke to Monica I was soothed by her warm voice as we talked about everything from motherhood, having to fight to get “So Gone” released, to the man in her life who makes those lyrics feel like a distant memory. Monica has put so much of herself into her music – her trials and tribulations have been socially documented in classic discs like the Missy Elliott-produced After The Storm. All of which makes her our best friend in our head. If it feels like we’ve grown up together, it’s because we have. 

Our Mother’s Day cover is so special because it is a stunning portrait of Monica and her children serving lewks the only way they know how. As she continues to sing the house down in Gag City on the “Pink Friday 2, tour, we’re putting the beloved artist and matriarch centerstage while we give her flowers. Enjoy!