Mary J. Blige Sued for $9 Million on Mortgage Notes

HACKENSACK, N.J. (CN) - Accusing Mary J. Blige of falling behind on mortgage payments for two New Jersey homes, Apex Bank brought a $9 million complaint Friday against the star and her ex-husband.

Tennessee-based Apex Bank filed suit against The Prudence Group, Mary J. Blige and Martin Isaacs in Bergen County Superior Court a month after Blige and Isaacs, who goes by the name Kendu, settled what had been a bitter divorce in Los Angeles.

Stuart Gold with West Orange, N.J.-based firm Mandelbaum Salsburg represents Apex Bank.

The bank says Blige and Isaac purchased a mansion in Saddle River, N.J., under the corporate entity The Prudence Group LLC back in 2008. At the time, Bank of America gave them a $8.1 million note, which was assigned to Apex in May 2015, according to the complaint.

Apex says in the complaint it modified the agreement with the couple through the LLC twice, once in June 2016 and again in January 2017.

Saying that Blige and Isaacs defaulted on the note in February and March of this year, Apex wants the court now to accelerate payment under the note totaling over $7.6 million.

Apex additionally claims in a count against just Blige individually that she received a $2 million note for an investment property in nearby Cresskill, N.J., from 2005. Apex says it took over that note in August 2015 and also modified it twice.

That note is also in default, with $1.5 million still due to the bank, Apex says. All in all, the suit claims $9.1 million is due to the bank on mortgage notes.

Blige’s representatives with the ADA Agency did not return a request for comment. A nine-time Grammy Award winner, Blige was married to Isaacs, her former manager, for 13 years before filing for divorce in July 2016.

The couple’s divorce settled the night before the Academy Awards where Blige was nominated for two Oscars for Best Original Song and Best Supporting Actress for the film "Mudbound." Later this month, she is set to induct Nina Simone into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame during a ceremony.

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