Carey 'really happy, for the first time'
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9:33 PM EST Updated by Lynn
The title of Mariah Carey's new CD, The Emancipation of Mimi, raises several compelling questions: 1) What? 2) Why? and 3) Who?
Let's tackle the third one first. Winding down in her hotel suite, Carey explains that Mimi is a nickname "that just sort of developed, mainly used by a few people who are really close to me."
"I guess it evolved out of a need for, when we were in a private place, not to have people going 'Mariah!' Someone called me Mimi and it stuck. (Related story: Carey frees her spirit, names it Mimi)
"This is a really personal moment for me," she says, "but I didn't want to call it The Emancipation of Mariah Carey. That would have had connotations of the whole celebrity thing, and all the misconceptions and baggage that come along with that."
Carey's choice was affirmed by her label chief at Island/Def Jam, L.A. Reid, also her co-executive producer on the album.
"When L.A. was listening to it and helping sequence it, he was like, 'I really feel your spirit here,' whereas with a few of the old records, he heard my voice but didn't necessarily feel me."
Though his name doesn't come up, the singer is clearly alluding to some of the material she recorded under her previous boss, and ex-husband, former Sony Records chief Tommy Mottola. Referring to her self-titled 1990 debut, Carey, 35, says she is still "frustrated that we had to schlock it up, to add all those bells and whistles."
With Emancipation, in contrast, "the idea was that it's better to keep it more raw. Most of the ballads were done completely live, with me singing at the same time the musicians were in the room."
Sessions for Emancipation, which includes guest appearances by Carey's longtime collaborator Jermaine Dupri and other hip-hop buddies such as Snoop Dogg, Nelly and Twista, also were more relaxed for Carey, who in the past has preferred not to have anyone in the studio when she's laying down vocals.
"It ended up being this party, where Nelly was in one room and Snoop in the other, and we made a couple of records together."
Having always cherished her own autonomy in creative matters, insisting on writing or co-writing her songs and struggling to define her own image, Carey says she is feeling more in control of her private life these days. Less than four years after the widely publicized collapse that accompanied critical and commercial record/film failure Glitter, she is "really happy, for the first time, both personally and professionally."
Carey won't say if or whom she is dating, but admits she doesn't know whether she would marry again.
"My first experience wasn't necessarily representative of what marriage is supposed to be like. And my own parents divorced when I was 3. So other than my grandfather and his second wife, who I wasn't around that much, I never had a template for a healthy relationship."
Asked if motherhood might be an option, she says, "I think about it. I'm not at the freakout point yet, so it's about making sure I'm with someone who would be a great father, and that the situation would be right for my child. Because being the child of someone who's in the public eye would probably be difficult."
For now, Carey dotes on her Jack Russell terrier, Jack. Like any good showbiz mom, she fudges the dog's age "He's eternally 2" - and boasts that he has two Web sites devoted to him.
"I think he knows he's a star, because he's very dramatic. And whenever a camera is pointed at him, he always shows his good side. He has a good side, too," she says, alluding to her supposed past preference for having just one profile photographed.
Carey's canine-diva routine may be a goof, but the sunny disposition behind it isn't. "Nothing that's ever happened has taken away the optimist in me," she says. "It's always, 'Whatever - let's go to Disneyland.' Yes, I have my bleak, tortured-artist moments, but you have to hold on to what's positive."
By: Elysa Gardner
Source: USA Today |
Carey frees her spirit, and it's named 'Mimi'
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9:27 PM EST Updated by Lynn
Mariah Carey has seen only a couple of American Idol episodes and couldn't name a single contender. Still, the hit-making diva has a close and personal connection to the diva-making TV hit: Randy Jackson.
The more civil of Idol's two male judges not only worked with Carey as a producer, but also "has been in my life since before my first record, when I was an aspiring singer with a demo," she says. "When they were putting the first couple of (Idol) shows together, in fact, he told me, 'All these kids are coming out and trying to do your songs you've got to see it.' "
If imitation is the highest form of flattery, it also can make for stiff competition. As she prepares to release her latest CD, The Emancipation of Mimi, on Tuesday, Carey, 35, is re-entering a market full of Idols and other younger stars from Beyonc to Alicia Keys who have enjoyed greater commercial success in recent years. (Related story: Mariah Carey, finally feeling free)
But Carey maintains that she is pleased with radio's response to It's Like That, an early track from Emancipation that peaked at No. 14 on Nielsen BDS' national radio airplay audience chart. That made it her biggest radio hit since 1999. Before her disastrously received 2001 film, Glitter, took the gleam off a platinum-laden career, she had netted 16 No. 1 pop hits in the '90s.
Her 2002 album Charmbracelet failed to generate any significant hits or much positive momentum, but if new single We Belong Together matches It's Like That's airplay achievements and Emancipation sells well, Carey could be back among the elite.
She gives kudos to some of her successors, notably Keys, whom she praises as "talented and very much involved in everything she does musically."
And Carey doesn't pretend to be unaware of the influence that her ornate, technically dazzling vocal style has had on many of Idol's female contestants or a lot of their peers on the pop and R&B charts, for that matter.
"There are definitely moments when I hear things that I've done, very specifically, repeated on record," she says. "And I'm like, 'Hmmm, that's interesting did I get publishing (credit) on that?'"
But Carey quickly adds, "We've all been influenced by other people. None of us would sound the same if Aretha Franklin hadn't ever put out a record, or Whitney Houston hadn't.
"If Minnie Riperton never existed, would I have even thought of singing in that (upper) register? I doubt it."
If all goes well with Emancipation, Carey might take it on the road.
"A lot of these songs are tailor-made to be sung live, so it would be great."
By: Elysa Gardner
Source: USA Today |
Diva in tune with Kiwi harmonies
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8:39 PM EST Updated by Lynn
Kiwi R&B duo Adeaze have an influential new fan - American pop diva Mariah Carey.
A sample from their New Zealand number one single A Life With You features in Your Girl on her new album, The Emancipation of Mimi. The chorus is based on a few bars of Adeaze's vocal harmonies, only their singing has been accelerated.
Adeaze's South Auckland record label, Dawn Raid, says it's the first time an artist of Carey's calibre has sampled New Zealand hip-hop or R&B.
"It's a great big deal for us," says Dawn Raid's Danny Leaosavaii, aka Brotha D. "Just seeing Adeaze's name on the album cover is amazing in itself. Mariah would have had to sit down and listen to the whole song."
The label agreed to license the track to Carey a year ago after meeting Scram Jones, one of her producers. Jones performed at their Christmas Party in 2003 and a deal was struck.
Leaosavaii won't be drawn into discussing the nature of the deal except to say that it will generate "a little bit of money for the boys".
Source: The New Zealand Herald | Bobby Corbett |
The Return of the Voice on 'GMA'
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5:30 PM EST Updated by Liron
Don't Miss Mariah Carey Performing in Times Square on Tuesday, April 12Pop star Mariah Carey is back with a new album, "The Emancipation of Mimi." The album hits stores Tuesday, April 12, and to coincide with its release, Carey will be performing live in Times Square on "Good Morning America." She'll be singing songs from the new album, including "It's Like That" and "Fly Like a Bird," as well as digging into her catalogue to perform a classic or two. Carey emerged in the early 1990s and has won two Grammy Awards and eight American Music Awards and Billboard Magazine's "Artist of the Decade" Award. She has had 15 number one hits over her career. Carey's vocal abilities and songwriting are again on display on "The Emancipation of Mimi." She has co-written every song she's released, and she is calling this album her first since 2002 her most revealing and personal yet. Don't miss Mariah Carey on Tuesday, April 12 at 8 a.m., only on "Good Morning America." For more information on Carey and her new album, "The Emancipation of Mimi," visit www.mariahcarey.com.
Source: ABC News |
News Tidbits & International Updates
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3:01 PM EST Updated by Liron
-- The New York Times has conducted an interview with Mariah after the taping of "Save The Music" which will be featured in Monday's Arts Section front page. -- From Damon Dash Music Group: Tune into BET Monday April 11th at 4:00 pm ET for a special State Property 2 edition of Rap City featuring clips from the film and interviews with Damon Dash, Oschino, Sparks, M.O.P., Juelz Santana, Jim Jones, and N.O.R.E. Then at 7:30 pm ET on BET catch a special program on the making of State Property 2. Go behind the scenes on the set of the movie with Beanie Sigel, N.O.R.E., Damon Dash, Cam'ron, ODB, Kanye, M.O.P., Freeway, Young Gunz, Mariah Carey, Jim Jones and more! -- From Sunday Herald: As the most succesful female recording artist everand Major Superstar, Mariah Carey is all billowing hair, high heels and big, bouyant bosoms. But, as she tells Sylvia Patterson, showbusiness is just a facade and, despite her reputation as one of the industry's stroppiest - and loopiest - madams, she's just a fun-loving girl at heart... Click here to read the rest of the article, based on Sylvia Patterson's interview with Mariah. "MIMI" AROUND THE WORLDUK"The Emancipation of Mimi" debuts at No. 7 on the official British album charts. This is a great improvement after "Charmbracelet" only managed to debut at No. 52. "It's Like That" drops only two spots to No. 6 on the UK singles chart. UK Fans - please remember that when buying multiple singles or albums, only separate transactions will count for more than one record sale. Australia"The Emancipation of Mimi" debuts at No. 13 on the ARIA Album Charts and number 3 on the ARIA Urban Album Charts. This is Mariahs highest position on the Album charts since "Glitter", back in 2001. Also on other chart news, "Its Like That" only falls two places to number 11, falls one spot on the Urban Chart to number 4, and 2 places on the Club chart to number 22. With a top ten hit single, and a top 15 hit album, this surely indicates Mariah's return to the Australian Music scene. Again, well done Mariah and welcome back! Philippines"We Belong Together" is currently No. 4 in Wave 89.1's soul review, being the highest jumper from last week's position of #10. The video to "It's Like That" is No. 15 on MYX. Japan"It's Like That" is No. 1 on Tokyo's #1 radio chart, the Tokio Hot 100. The song moved up 4 places from last week's position of #5. Continue voting for "It's Like That" by clicking here - click on the blue "vote" button for "It's Like That" on the left side of the page. Then click the "vote" button at the bottom of the page. In addition, "It's Like That" is No. 1 on the following charts: Zip hot 100, Sapporo hot 100 and Kyushu hot 100. Scans from various Japanese magazines can be found on Ayako's fansite - Pip and Pow. Below is a message Mariah's left for the Japanese show "Music Station" after her appearance there: 
Source: Mariah Daily | Tom | Jake | MariahOZ.com | James | Pip and Pow | Carlo |
Scandinavia Loves 'Mimi'
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2:10 PM EST Updated by Liron
Sweden
Published in "Svenska dagbladet"
Written by Dan Backman
Grade: 4/6
Great Soul!
Heartfelt music even if you don't want it to be...
Mariah Carey's artistic career has been in a downward spiral during the last few years. Personal crises combined with a giant ego and ridiculous demands have given her the headlines but have also resulted in bad sales, at least compared to earlier years. What's interesting though is that she has musically been on par with the development of the black music scene. Out of all of her albums, it's only Rainbow from 1999 that feels a little bit uninspired. Glitter, as well as Charmbracelet can measure up to Music Box, Daydream or Butterfly but they were unfairly overlooked. It would be a shame if Emancipation of Mimi would see the same fate since also this album shows the same appealing mixture of tough Hip Hop and classic soul added with sugarcute choruses and heavenly vocals over five octaves.
It's easy to forget but the fact remains that Mariah has and always will be one of the great soulsingers. She may not have the same force as say, Aretha Franklin or Chaka Khan, but she is vocally more confident and passionate in a way that makes you think of Minnie Ripperton. She has since long left her formal rival, the tragic Whitney Houston, behind.
The new album contains, as usual, collaborations with carefully selected producers, songwriters and producers. Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis aren't on it but are represented by Big Jim Wright on the oldschool soul ballads Circles, I wish you knew and the finishing track Fly Like a Bird. The Neptunes have produced the futuristic Say Something that's also is influenced by the 80's with guest-rapper Snoop Dogg. Kanye West is behind one of the best tracks that actually samples Betcha By Golly Wow (this is the kind of wonderful doo-woopy soul ballads that Mariah always does). To build Get Your Number on a sample from Just An Illusion doesn't feel fresh but at least it isn't as strange as her cover of Bringin' On The Heartbreak by Def Leppard.
As usual, we have to take the good with the bad. We have to accept her photoshopped image and those pretentious cheesy explanations about Emancipation. I'm reluctant to like someone who speaks about herself in the third sense-Mimi is her nickname-but I still can't resist to be touched by her voice. One can be rich and successful and still feel pain...
Norway
Published in "VG"
Written by Stein Ostbo
Grade: 4/6
On this album Mariah rehabilitates partly.
Rarely has a career been lower than Mariah Carey's during "Glitter" in 2001, but now it's time to emancipate Mimi. A desperate try with "Charmbracelet" didn't help much, but now Carey is taking a U-turn and she's practically worshipping the R&B side of herself. She's doing it to an extent that she's looking like a visual copy of Beyonce on the cover! Her collaborations with Jermaine Dupri are the best ones. "It's Like That" has that theme in the chorus that you easily get hooked on. Neptunes-produced "To The Floor" is another club-hit. Carey uses her voice more carefully that she has previously, and makes a few examples of smooth 70's soul ("Mine Again") like no one else can follow vocally. She's also getting a plus for using Imagination's "Just An Illusion" on "Get Ur Number". This is a step forward for an artist who apparently is hard to break down.
Published in "Daglabet"
Written by Sven Ove Bakke
Grade: 4/6
Yes Mariah!
"Daydream" is her latest decent album, she debuted in 1990 and her peak was in 1993 with "Music Box".
Ever since we've gotten a stream of albums that are obviously professional but also of no consequence, with weak melodies and her voice hasn't really shined.
But now we've gotten "The Emancipation of Mimi", and besides the hilarious title and hideous cover - THIS is finally the comeback - the album we've been promised for years.
Mariah is back with a modern R&B album that includes club songs, ballads, hip-hop and more traditional soul. She's showing more suppleness than we ever dared to hope for.
Most importantly is that her melodies have finally rose to a higher level. Only 50 minutes long, this is actually possible to listen to. You can also listen to it several times without risking your life.
This album looks like a world championship when it comes to guest artists, but it also sounds more natural and less calculated than what we're used to from Mariah.
In other words; Mariah is back with an album that's possible to listen to. Truthfully it's nice, but also a surprise!
Published in Stavanger Aftenblad
Written by Kjetil Wold
Grade: 4/6
She still has the 5 octaves
Mariah has stopped making huge hits. But she has also stopped making complete flop albums like "Glitter" and "Charmbracelet".
"The Emancipation of Mimi" continues in the same tempo as "Charmbracelet", which means vocal based mid tempo music. Carey in 2005 makes soft R&B and pop-soul, where the star's voice, which is technically impressive, is the center of attention.
Carey is a star who's known for not sharing the spotlight with someone else. She's known for thinking of herself before anyone else and for her diva behaviour. She's also known for the quote "I don't do stairs."
But she can sing.
And after the creative and commercial flop "Glitter," she has slowly but surely built herself up. But she's far away from the huge creative and commercial success she had in the 90's. She doesn't have any new "Dreamlover" or "Hero". But songs like "Stay The Night", "Mine Again", "Circles" and "One And Only" (the latter features the rapper Twista), are good pop songs. Well she's still not exciting. But with a voice like hers she will make her younger pop sisters, like Christina Aguilera, embarrassed because Carey sure can sing!
Sometimes I even feared the windows were going to shatter. Carey goes high - higher than the sky, her voice still has 5 octaves. But I fear this album won't sell. It looks like the audience has abandoned Carey. She still delivers soul as soft as silk, and R&B tunes that are a lot better than Destiny's Child's.
Most poorly done are the club songs. It's so obvious to see that Mariah is 35, and that she doesn't go out to town anymore.
Below is a scan of the above review. Thanks to Cathrine for the scan and for the articles' translation from Norwegian.
Source: Groovenet | Andrea | Mirage | Cathrine |
New York Post Reviews "The Emancipation of Mimi"
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3:15 AM EST Updated by Lynn
The Emancipation of Mimi/Mariah Carey/Island By: Dan Aquilante  While Mariah Carey's last disc, "Charmbracelet," helped ease the welt that the "Glittter" soundtrack left on her reputation, it failed to resuscitate her recording career. With "The Emancipation of Mimi," the multi-octave crooner has turned her world around, ditched the sticky kid stuff of pop purveyors and crafted a bold, classy R&B album that will appeal to both adults and kids. The disc is fat with smooth- groove ballads that are surprisingly subtle when you consider Carey once squeezed the word "All" for seven seconds in her now classic "Vision of Love." Theses new ballads are stripped down and easy on the ear. (She can still hit the notes that only dogs can hear, though, as on the closer, "Fly Like a Bird.") Since Carey has always written her own material, you can't help but look for clues to her personal life in the lyrics. If this record says anything, it's that she's optimistic, upbeat and uncharacteristically happy. You hear it in the words to "We Belong Together," "Stay the Night" and "One and Only," which features Twista. In her R&B duets, Carey has chemistry with Jermaine Dupri on the sexy "Get Your Number." They click so well together, you want them to cover an old Marvin Gaye/Tammi Terell hit. Carey stays connected to the street with a couple of harder tracks, like the hip-pop collaborations with tokin', smokin' Snoop Dogg on "Say Something," and on"To the Floor," where she and Nelly mix it up to a Neptunes beat. This is the best album Carey has made in years. Download this: "To the Floor" and "Fly Like a Bird"
Source: New York Post |
Mariah Wins Her Wings
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2:54 AM EST Updated by Lynn
The singer returns with a new sense of freedom - and a record that reflects it. For every high note she has hit and every record chart she's topped, Mariah Carey has had a basin full of heartbreak. She struggled through a hard-knock childhood, a stifling marriage and turbulent divorce, a movie flop, a record-label dismissal and an emotional breakdown that landed her in hospitals in Connecticut and California in 2001. However, with the release of her CD "The Emancipation of Mimi" on Tuesday, the 35-year-old singer sets out to prove she has freed herself of her dramas and taken life by the reins. "This album is about being emancipated from feeling compelled to second-guess everything that I do, to edit myself too much, to just feel insecure about my gut instincts," she says. "There was nobody looking over my shoulder telling me I had to write 'Hero' part seven" - a nod to her self-affirming No. 1 single from 1993. "This is the record I have always wanted to make." "Emancipation" is the first collection of original songs Carey has delivered since 2002's tepidly received "Charmbracelet." Typically, it's packed with power ballads and club-banging collaborations with hip-hop heavyweights Nelly, Snoop Dogg, the Neptunes, Kanye West, Twista and Jermaine Dupri. Carey has always written her own songs, including those on her first demo, which she famously slipped to future Sony Entertainment CEO Tommy Mottola at a party when she was 18. Mottola, of course, became her mentor and husband, and her career soared. This time around, she spent a year and a half composing "Emancipation" during late nights at her Tribeca penthouse, on holidays by the ocean and during those rare moments she had alone talking walks or in the bath. While Carey takes pride in being acclaimed as a performer, it frustrates her when people don't recognize her other talents. "So many people, after all of this time, are like, 'Oh, you write your songs?' It is so irritating, I'm just like..." She finishes the sentence with a growl. "I mean, I do play into the diva thing because it is fun to dress up, put on a gown, and sing a song," she continues. "But if Elton John wanted to dress up" - a not unusual event - "he would still be recognized as the artist he is. "When it comes to females," she explains, "it's different. Unless you're sitting behind a guitar or a piano, people don't look at you as a producer, an artist, a writer." Carey's lyrics often provide insight into her state of mind. Uptempo party jams, like her current single "It's Like That," tell the world where Carey's happiest these days - in the clubs, hanging with friends, having fun. Laments about no-good players - such as "Shake It Off," "Stay the Night" and "One and Only" - reveal her wariness about romantic relationships. "There are a lot of trust issues that I have with men," she says. She greets a question about her current relationship status with a small laugh. Supposedly single, she recently claimed she has slept with fewer men than she has fingers on one hand. "A lot of people want to hang around with you, whether it's to be with a celebrity, eat and drink for free, or go to a club and get a good table," she comments. "I am very sensitive to that, and cautious about men. But trust has always been an issue for me, and not [only] since I have been in the public eye. I think it's because of the way my life was as a child." TROUBLED MARRIAGEShe was raised in Long Island by her mother, a singer who was rarely able to make ends meet. "I had divorced parents from the time I was 3, I moved around 13 times, I was feeling unsafe in a lot of ways," Carey says. "If I go too deep into it, my mom gets mad at me and writes me a [long E-mail]. I will say that, also, the relationship I had right out of adolescence would not promote trust for other people." With two Grammys under her belt but little experience with love, Carey married Mottola when she was 23 and he was 43. They bought an opulent mansion in Bedford, NY. Carey paid half the $10 million cost to maintain her independence, but she still felt confined there. Meanwhile, Mottola steered her career with controlling zeal. She has said she was unable to dress and behave as she liked. "It's hard for me to talk about my life without talking about the eight-year period I was in a relationship with someone we all know," she says. "I was doing well with my career but living vicariously through the [happy] girl in the videos. In my private time, I was really miserable. I was, like, you have this career, your dream, so if you are unhappy and not fulfilled at home, whatever. Deal with it." Instead, she broke free. After the couple divorced in 1998, Carey had relationships with Yankees shortstop Derek Jeter, then Mexican crooner Luis Miguel, with whom she spent 3? years. In 2000, Carey signed a record-breaking five-year contract with Virgin Records that made her $117 million. She seemed on top of the world and embarked on her first lead actress role in the semi-autobiographical rags-to-riches movie "Glitter." But the movie tanked. "Maybe she bit off more than she could chew in doing 'Glitter,'" says actor Terrence Howard, who appeared with her in the film. "But I think that had more to do with the direction. She did her job, and I believed her in that role." He also admired her energy. "When she talks to you, it's like five people talking to you at once - that is the magnitude of her presence," Howard says. "She's probably made one of the biggest impressions on me above anybody else I've ever met." In July 2001, Carey was hospitalized for exhaustion. She was clearly out of sorts. Two months before, she had reportedly tussled with co-star Mira Sorvino on the set of "Wise Girls." Then she performed a questionable striptease, revealing a skimpy tank top and shorts, on MTV's "Total Request Live." Just before entering the hospital, an anguished Carey wrote on her Web site that she was in "a bad place." Reps denied rumors that she had tried to commit suicide. The failures of the film and its soundtrack album led to a second hospital spell that September. In January 2002, Virgin terminated her record deal with a $28 million payoff. "All of a sudden, she's tired and doesn't have a hit and the world called her crazy," says Michaela angela Davis, an executive editor at Essence magazine. "People wanted to dismiss her. Nobody said, 'Hey, you work hard. Take a rest.'" While some stars lose their shine once they're pegged as unstable, some musicindustry insiders feel that Carey's honest response to her trials has positioned her for a strong comeback. "Mariah has acknowledged the things she has done in the past, and Americans love that confrontation," says Michael Paoletta, senior writer and reviews editor at Billboard. "They can say, 'I have been there, too,' and it makes her more human, it makes kinship. This album puts her in a good spot; it showcases what she's about." BATTLING THROUGHAs Carey declares on "Fly Like a Bird," the CD's closing track, she's determined to overcome the odds - and trusts she'll get some divine help. As she says: "If I didn't have the ability to say, 'Okay, God, get me through this,' I wouldn't have gotten through it - the rumors, the speculation, the criticism and ups and downs, whether I am battling a record company, an ex-husband, this, that and the third! I'm not trying to get on a soap box and preach. It's just important for people to know where I am coming from."
Source: New York Daily News |
Screamin' Mimi
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2:38 AM EST Updated by Lynn
Everyone knows Mariah Carey is crazy. She's the kind of diva who shows up late for her own birthday party - because she broke a nail; who expects the red-carpet treatment, even at 2 a.m.; who has filled Page Six for years with tales of love gone wrong, outlandish business contracts and her short-lived career as a Popsicle vendor.
Yet Carey is also one of the most technically talented singers in music, with a range that can scrape baritone or hit notes that break glass.
She's beautiful, sexy and a shrewd negotiator whose dream of stardom rescued her from poverty and propelled her to an estimated net worth of $300 million.
So it's fitting that her new album is titled "The Emancipation of Mimi," which Carey says signifies freedom from her past and the shackles of other people's expectations. Mimi is the name that only Carey's closest friends and family call her.
The singer says L.A. Reid, chairman of her record label, Island/Def Jam, understood that the album, out Tuesday, was about shedding baggage.
"L.A. said he thought he heard the real me on this record, the person my family knows. He heard uninhibited Mimi," Carey told The Post in an exclusive interview.
"So that's what we ended up with when we sat down and worked on the title. It was easy after suggestions like 'Daydream,' 'Butterfly' and 'Rainbow' came up. I thought, what's next, 'Unicorn?' That would piss the critics off," she adds wryly.
THE BREAKDOWN
Carey, who just turned 35, doesn't say it, but she also hopes to be emancipated from the twisted wreckage of her disastrous "Glitter" era.
Artists make mistakes, and the public and industry forgets and forgives - usually.
In the case of Carey, though, forgetting has been hard.
She was the best-selling female artist of the '90s, moving a whopping 140 million CDs for Columbia. Then, in 2000, she signed the biggest record contract in history - an $80 million deal with Virgin Records.
But the stakes were too high. At the height of her popularity, she began to implode. Her troubles culminated in suicide messages on her Web site and an unsettling appearance on MTV's "TRL" - where, dressed in just a T-shirt, she babbled and distributed Popsicles to the audience.
Things went from bad to worse when the movie "Glitter," released in 2001, tanked and became a critical whipping horse. Thanks to weak sales of less than 500,000, the album was her first - and last - disc for Virgin, which released her from her contract and gave her $28 million just to go away.
After recuperating at her home on the Mediterranean island of Capri with her pooch, Jack, Carey, richer and wiser about the music business, faced the world again with "Charmbracelet" for Island, her new label. The 2003 disc did well and bolstered her shaken confidence.
The new record, "Mimi," is stripped of glitter, allowing the singer to get back to her R&B roots. It's also a slap in the face to the Virgin boys who didn't have the guts to stick with the singer when times got tough.
When "Giltter" crashed and burned, it wasn't as much the singer's fault as Virgin's, which didn't understand her, Carey says. The label wanted another pop tart to compete with Christina and Britney, and Carey had moved on.
With the passion of a wrongfully accused woman, Carey insists, "I never saw myself as a pop singer."
It's a strange statement, considering Carey owned Top 40 radio all through the '90s.
But the truth is, her breakthrough single was the power ballad "Vision of Love" - which first hit on the R&B charts.
"I was really surprised it went anywhere in pop, because 'Vision' was very raw, very R&B," Carey says. "A lot of rap artists I've worked with mention 'Vision of Love' as a song that really meant something to them. It was a ballad, but I think it showed how rooted I am in urban music."
HIP-HOP HOORAH
Carey isn't kidding about her urban roots. Her interracial parents broke up when she was 3, and Carey was raised with her older brother and sister by her mom, who struggled to make ends meet. Carey often has said hip-hop music was her refuge from a tough childhood.
"I grew up listening to it. I loved it. Some people came to hip-hip when it developed mass appeal. I started with the Sugar Hill Gang. I know and respect what hip-hop artists do, and they know that," she says.
The admiration is mutual. The artists who've clamored to work with Carey form a Who's Who of hip-hop's royalty, including Jay-Z, Ludacris and Busta Rhymes.
One of Carey's earliest direct connections to rap was in '96. "I was dying to work with O.D.B. [of the Wu Tang Clan] on a remix of 'Fantasy,' may he rest in peace.
"I pulled the wool over my record company's eyes, because they had no idea what or who I was talking about when I mentioned O.D.B.," she says. "That record was also the first time I worked with Puffy. It was a turning point for me because it was an official street record. I'd be walking around New York and hear it blasting out of Jeeps."
These days, even the dullest record executive recognizes the value of rap/pop smash-ups. On "Mimi," songs like "To the Floor," featuring Nelly, and "Say Something," with Snoop Dogg, aren't afterthoughts. They are songs that will be the mainstream releases.
Carey is quick to point out that it was luck and timing that created both of those songs.
"I'd never worked with Pharrell [Williams] before, although we've been friends for a while. This was the first chance we had to record together. We got into a studio in L.A. and Nelly was in the next room working on his record and Snoop was in another room working on his, and somehow we all ended up in the same studio together. It became a big party."
That in itself is unusual for Carey, who in the past demanded secure solitude when recording. The L.A. "party" sessions stand as another indication of her emancipation.
"It was a little weird because I'm used to doing my vocals alone, but it was fun to party with these guys."
Longtime fans will discover a new looseness to this record, a first for Carey, a notorious perfectionist.
On the midtempo ballad "We Belong Together," Carey fretted so long over the background vocals that she ran out of time for cutting the lead. "That forced me to treat that session as if it were a live performance."
'GLITTER' MAKE UP
When it comes to her romantic relationships, Carey remains tight-lipped. She's reluctant to speak about her marriage to and divorce from the former Sony Records honcho Tommy Mottola, or her romantic ties with Bronx Bomber Derek Jeter, Latin crooner Luis Miguel or Detroit rapper Eminem.
Yet it's easy to see that she's her own woman now, and doesn't want to be tied to any man - Svengali or not.
"Being female, I notice so many people want to guide me," she says. "I'm cool with being collaborative, but I don't want to be led.
"This whole record is looser and I had more fun making this one than I've had in a long time. When you record an album, no matter who you are, people try to tell you what to do and what sounds best for you.
"This record was about me experimenting with my voice. It came close to what it was like when I started out," she says.
It's all about the music for Carey, but even after taking her licks for "Glitter," she plans a return to film.
"The problem was 'Glitter' was about a diva moment. It was too close to my life," she says.
"Another thing that people don't remember about 'Glitter' is that it came out the week of 9/11. The movie became a pressure release for everyone dealing the intensity of the attacks. 'Glitter' was the safe joke of the day."
Carey's has had better luck in a less-than-diva role - playing a small-town waitress in the indie flick "Wisegirls."
"That made me see how good an experience movies can be," she says. "When we showed it at Sundance, we got a standing ovation. Too bad nobody remembers the good movie, they just remember the great debacle.
"Sean Penn came up to me at a party after Sundance and told me he saw and enjoyed 'Wisegirls,' and not to give up just because of one bad movie," Carey adds. "I was thrilled. You can't get better praise and advice in the movie business."
She was also quick to define the difference between the two films.
"In 'Wisegirls,' I was acting. That character couldn't be farther from my life. I got to go to work and not be Mariah Carey. It was like a vacation.
"It was a great release."
Source: New York Post | Geoff |
Emancipation Proclamation
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2:11 AM EST Updated by Lynn
Mariah Carey vocalizes with critic Lorraine Ali about the high (and low) notes on her new CD. Newsweek, April 18 issue - Mariah Carey has a nick-name, Mimi, and a new theme-freedom. The singer's eighth album, "The Emancipation of Mimi," is an attempt to leave behind all her baggage (i.e., an oppressive marriage and some commercial failures) and head for the nearest party. The 35-year-old now sings more club-savvy numbers and does it with rap heavyweights like Snoop Dogg, Nelly and Twista. Multitalented producers including Jermaine Dupri, the Neptunes and Kanye West keep spirits high. MARIAH CAREY: Is this one of those things where you attack me, and I have to defend why I made the album the way I did? LORRAINE ALI: It won't be that vicious. I'll talk about your new albumwhat I like and what I don't likeand you'll get a chance to talk back to a critic.This could get very abusive. Look at it this way: all we have to talk about is music. No tabloid stuff.Ohhh, we like that. Overall, this album is really vibrant and free. The emancipation theme works right from the first track, "It's Like That."That's great, because I've never felt so free making a record, though I was worried about even putting the lyric "This is Mimi's emancipation" in there. I worried that it was too corny. Now it's the album title. It works because this is such a fun, confident record. But there is one recurring theme that becomes a sort of buzz kill: cheating men. I'm never going to trust one again after listening to this CD. There are so many dogs here!But it's true. I don't want to sound sexistin print, at leastbut honestly, you know how it is when you talk to girlfriends. Everybody has a story that's really depressing. It's not like I set out to make it that way. I think there's a lot of optimism on the recordbut there's a lot of cheaters, too. My favorite song here is "Say Somethin'." Pharrell and Chad, of the Neptunes, make the most unique tracks out there. This song has an Asian-influenced melody and jazzy beats, but it will be a huge hit with hip-hop fans. This is so far from anything I've heard you do.You're right. It is a totally different approach for me musically. When I heard it at first I thought it was a cool and interesting track, but I didn't know if it was very me. But you're totally comfortable here, and even a little slap-happy with the lyrics.Thanks. I wrote that line "Something like volcanic/You and me seems organic/Just like stars and planets." It's nonsense, but I love it. Then Snoop comes in right after your celestial bit and drops the megaromantic line: "This track is from the Neptunes. Baby, follow me to the restroom."[Laughs] I know. It's so sentimental, isn't it? "We Belong Together" is a pretty ballad, and I like that retro, slow-jam feel, but it's so sad that it hurts.It does? Like in a bad way? Yeah, it's pretty depressing.But look at my past songs, like "Heartbreaker" or "Fantasy." You may think those songs were happy little ditties but, truthfully, they were steeped in misery. "We Belong" is sad, but some people really love it and make me play it over and overlike four times. In the beginning it wasn't my favorite, either. The ballad I love is "Fly Like a Bird." There's so much going on. It has some classic '90s-era Mariah, as well as your new, more urban soundplus a choir. It's such an uplifting song, and your voice sounds just amazing.Thank you. Usually, I'll have an introspective bleak-outlook-on-life song. In the past it's been "Petals" or "Close My Eyes." Those were the ones that the hard-core fans related to most. But this has a hopefulness to it. That's why it's one of my favorites, too. And, lyrically, it lives outside the...The love world? And the world of romance in restrooms.[Laughs] Don't forget the world of mistrusting men eternally. Twista plays the role of one of those bad men on "One and Only." The song sounds good, but here's my problem. Lyrically, he's the playa and you're the girl who'll be around no matter how badly he treats you. And I just don't believe it. You're too powerful to take that crap.Well, I look at it like he's a featured artist, not like we're having a true love affair. It's only a record. You mean you two are not really a couple?!Ha! When I wrote the song it was like you saidit was one of those you'll-never-trust-a-man-again. That was the initial vibe. I don't know. Maybe I gotta look at it again. I didn't mean to suggest I'm following Twista all around like a sick puppy. You mean you two are not really a couple?!Ha! When I wrote the song it was like you saidit was one of those you'll-never-trust-a-man-again. That was the initial vibe. I don't know. Maybe I gotta look at it again. I didn't mean to suggest I'm following Twista all around like a sick puppy. I can see the tabloids now: The Twisted Relationship of Mariah and Twista.Of course, darling, I'm in a relationship with everybody. The playa song here that does work is "Get Your Number," with Jermaine Dupri. It's so over the tophe brags about the "Cris on ice, the Benz." It's like a cartoon, and it's fun. In fact, the only other song I don't like is the ballad "I Wish You Knew." It's so melodramatic, and there's the fake audience in the background. It's cheesy.I know, but that was the pointto make it really retro and funny, and I even talk to the audience. We just got carried away. It doesn't work for me.Well, there are people who like this kind of thingsomething to sing at the karaoke bar on that one night a week they get out and wear that special dress. So is it safe to say this is your first karaoke-inspired track?If you must put it that way, OK, fine. So I think we've covered most of the album.At least I didn't have to explain the lyric "Them chickens is ash and I'm lotion." Aha! I forgot to ask you for a translation.And I almost escaped without explaining. Can we leave it up to the reader to see if they know what it is? C'mon.See, I did it as an empowering thing, so the girls could know they're hot, or pip, or whatever. See, they're not the chickens, they're the lotion. [Laughs] Never mind. You realize you're going to have to include a decoder ring with this album.I totally am. [Sighs] It's just one more thing I have to remember to do.
Source: Newsweek |
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