Opening Act: Sean Paul
Special Guest: Da Brat

01. It's Like That
02. Heartbreaker
03. Dreamlover
04. My All
05. Shake It Off
06. Vision of Love
07. Fly Like a Bird
08. I'll Be There
---"B" Stage:
09. Fantasy
10. Don't Forget About Us
11. Always Be My Baby
---End "B" Stage
12. Honey
13. I Wish You Knew (Snippet)
14. One Sweet Day (Snippet)
15. Hero
---Encore:
16. We Belong Together
17. Butterfly Reprise

Audio Files (MP3):
01. "Life Can Be Kinda Like A Rollercoaster Ride"
02. It's Like That
03. Heartbreaker
04. Dreamlover
05. My All
06. Shake It Off
07. DJ Clue Intermission #1
08. Vision of Love
09. Fly Like a Bird
10. I'll Be There
11. Trey Lorenz Solo Medley
12. Fantasy
13. Don't Forget About Us
14. Always Be My Baby
15. Honey
16. DJ Clue Intermission #2
17. I Wish You Knew (Snippet)
18. One Sweet Day (Snippet)
19. Hero
20. We Belong Together
21. Butterfly Reprise

From The Daily Herald: Carey's R&B puts her voice at center stage

Did you realize life is like a rollercoaster? Like, it has its ups and it has its downs - get it?

That clichéd gem came courtesy of Mariah Carey in the opening segment of her show at the United Center Monday.

"Whatever kills you makes you stronger," she added. She should know. The show was a survivor's comeback, not the personal kind, but of commerce.

The 36-year-old singer was counted out earlier this decade when she suffered both an album and movie flop, a reported emotional breakdown that resulted in concert appearances best described as train wrecks. It's not everyday when record conglomerates write checks to make their stars go away but that's what happened in 2002 when Virgin Records handed Carey $28 million to break her contract.

Then arrived "The Emancipation of Mimi" (Island/Def Jam), an album that happened to be very good. It became the best-selling album of 2005.

Carey was in an up mood Monday and her confidence glowed. Unlike previous tours designed to fawn on her celebrity lifestyle, this was a stripped-down R&B affair. Backed by a four-piece band and three backup singers, Carey created an entertaining evening that focused on her essential talent: her voice. Over ballads and uptempo gospel revelry, Carey bounced between opposite extremes, from gruff, scratchy tones to bird chirping highs. Despite her legendary dexterity, she never worked the songs like a showoff; she dug into her best material - from the Jackson 5's "I'll Be There" to the recent dancefloor jam "It's Like That" - with pacing that found pleasure in the songs and brought it forth with sumptuous depth.

The show was slim by most standards - 16 songs in 95 minutes - with plenty of time allowed for costume changes, four total. Yet this suited the singer who operates best in segments with little opportunity to go off track. The show emphasized her ballads and older, more carefree hits rather than the jittery, club thumping hip-hop of her current album. Chicago rapper Da Brat made two cameos but they were brief. Pulling back rather than setting off bombast is not typical diva behavior, but Carey demonstrated that a more subdued backdrop makes her vocal torch brighter.

Not to say Carey shrank into humility. Here was a singer with a roadie whose sole job was to bring her tissues. She played things big without the anxiety of her earlier days - what other singer can strut around in just her underwear and a cape and still have a childlike charm on songs like "Heartbreaker?"

Unlike most divas, Carey stands out due to her common touch. Although her flag-waving tribute to Sept. 11 seemed perfunctory at the end, she was more in element up to that point. During the disco of "Don't Forget About Us," Carey stood alone on a second stage positioned in the center of the stadium floor, a disco ball shining above her head. Even though it was an illusion, the wall between singer and audience briefly vanished and both were united in having a very good time.


From Chicago Tribune: It's Maximum 'Mimi'

In 2003, the last time Mariah Carey played Chicago, she walked the stage in a haze, her reputation still on the mend following one of the more public career meltdowns in recent memory, her mind somewhere else. A few years down the line, she's once again thriving commercially, with "The Emancipation of Mimi" the top-selling album of 2005, at six million and counting. By any measure, it's been one heck of a comeback.

As demonstrated by her efficient and mostly just-right set at the United Center on Monday night, Carey's definitely back on track. Yes, the smile permanently stretched across her face was sometimes creepy and cold rather than warm and inviting, and her stage moves occasionally seemed more about hitting her marks than connecting with the crowd. But Carey also looked comfortable and confident, a feeling no doubt bolstered by the near-capacity crowd.

Of course, divas being divas, Carey couldn't just leave it at that. The stage often felt cluttered with dancers, band members, singers, video screens and giant light-up "Mimi" marquees, while indulgent sets by her deejay and backup singer Trey Lorenz took up valuable set time while Carey changed into a series of barely-there outfits. It's Carey's voice that made her famous, not her body, and fans deserved a real performance that spotlighted that instrument. Instead, they got the predicable Vegas-style glamour-and-glitz-gone-bling show.

Maybe that was the idea. That famous voice, always a thing of virtuosity but not necessarily a thing of beauty or soul, was not always in peak form. If Carey somehow hit the freakishly high notes in "Heartbreaker," she had a rougher time with the mid-range material, often betraying a bit of a rasp. All those stage distractions served as convenient misdirection, allowing her to step briefly out of the spotlight (or away from the mic) when she needed to catch her breath or recover from a vocal blast.

The result could have been disastrous, but Carey handled the rocky octave shifts and unnecessary sojourns to a satellite stage well. If anything, the subtle cracks in her singing brought her further down to earth, lending songs such as "Vision of Love" and "Fantasy" a grittier quality than their too-eager-to-please studio counterparts.

The only time the set threatened to topple into self-indulgence came when Carey shifted the night into the obligatory 9/11 tribute, but it was a modest one. Maybe the next time out she'll shrink everything else down too. After all, what better way to make yourself look larger than life than to make everything around you disappear, until all that's left is that big, big voice.


From Chicago Sun-Times: Mariah sets her chart toppers in glamor

Mariah Carey's globetrotting "Adventures of Mimi" tour arrived at the United Center on Monday night with the glitz of a top-dollar Las Vegas spectacle.

The split-level stage was smartly decorated with an oversized staircase and butterfly railing, along with tiered platform risers for the musicians and a star-spangled velvet backdrop. Following a filmed montage which described Carey's true-life adventures as a roller coaster (apparently, the merely platinum-selling "Glitter" provided a particularly harrowing plunge earthward), Carey entered in a matching black silk cape and bikini, determined to prove that glamor wasn't confined to the set decorations.

The show featured four segments in total, each punctuated by new costumes, and at least two of Carey's seventeen Billboard Hot 100 chart toppers.

Carey began with "It's Like That," a declaration of personal renewal from 2005's comeback effort, "The Emancipation of Mimi." "Heartbreaker," a No. 1 single from 1999's "Rainbow" album, followed. With the album version's overlapping vocals dialed back, a song emerged exhibiting similarity to Tom Tom Club's 1981 dance hit "Genius of Love" (itself the basis of "Fantasy" from Carey's 1995 "Daydream" CD).

Though noted for sheer vocal strength, Carey restrained her prowess for the intimate and lovesick "My All," the first act's most affecting performance. During "Shake It Off," Carey's nickname, Mimi, descended from the rafters in enormous, brightly lit letters, a la Elvis Presley's '68 Comeback Special.

Following an intermission overseen by DJ Clue, Carey returned in a sequined yellow gown to sing her 1990 debut single "Vision of Love." Sixteen years later, the song remains a showcase for Carey's range as a pop-soul belter, with minimal emphasis on vocal gymnastics (at least until the song's coda). Carey's flamboyant skills were unleashed during songs like the glass-shattering gospel chorus of "Fly Like a Bird." Enormous cheers erupted anytime Carey approached her stratospheric high notes. Longtime backup singer Trey Lorenz joined Carey for a duet on the Jackson Five's 1970 hit "I'll Be There," a partnership featured on 1992's "MTV Unplugged" album. Lorenz then took a brief solo turn, during which he encountered difficulty finding his pitch while covering Luther Vandross' "A House Is Not a Home."

During act three, "Honey" seemed more like an exercise in hip-hop production than a coherent song. Those hip-hop elements, however, have been increasingly important to Carey's music since this single from 1997's "Butterfly" album hit No. 1. Carey began fusing pop with hip-hop ahead of the pop radio trend -- a significant factor in her remarkable return to chart prominence following the dual commercial flops of "Glitter" and "Charmbracelet."

Carey's embrace was recognized and reciprocated last Thursday in Atlanta, as she claimed five honors at Billboard's 2006 R&B/Hip-Hop Awards, including best overall artist.

The set concluded as Carey remembered the fifth anniversary of the 9/11 terror attacks. "One Sweet Day" offered the promise of loved ones reunited in the hereafter. "Hero" was dedicated to those who saved lives or perished during attempts to help as the World Trade Center fell. Despite the grim topic, the memorial seemed a genuine expression of community, and appropriate to the occasion.

By greekmenrule:
WOW..My Sis and I just got home..Mariah Was Unbelievable! To All The Fools who INSIST on saying she is Lippin, Well, It is OBVIOUS They havent seen this tour..I was FRONT 6th Row and I saw every pore on the womans face and she was blowin, ad-libbing and trilling like there was no tommorrow! Da Brat was there and did HB Remix w/ MC, and Scottie Pippen was in the audience, dancing, and L.A Reid along w/ Mark Sudac, who was taking pictures of MC..I kid you not, On a break, I literally Ran INTO Mark Sudac and he is very good looking in person..anyway, the @#%$ was tight!!!

By coolbruh:
I went to the concert too last night and it was spectacular!!! I was so amazed when she sang more of One sweet day. It was heavenly!

My best friend went with me again, and he said that to him this show was even better than the one at the Palace. He commented on Mimi's voice sounded better on certain songs. Of course I couldn't wait for VOL to see what she would do with it since I know she basically does it different almost everytime. And the wait was well worth it. She tore that song to pieces!! She also did a wonderful job with DFAU, ABMB, FLAB, IWYN, MA and Hero. Her voice was on point last night.

The crowd was incredible!! And the arena was almost packed if not packed. The energy, the excitement...everything was amazing! I am certainly glad I had the opportunity to see Mimi twice on this tour.

I made a sign for last night's venue thanking her for singing Melt Away at the Palace. It read..."Thanks Mariah Meltaway guy." I think she saw it but didn't get a chance to comment on it as there was like 3 to 4 other signs on the opposite side of the B stage. But that one sign about Jack was hot tamale!!

I can't see her getting any negative reviews for this concert. It was just incredible!! Words can't even begin to express the amount of fun I had. I'm still on a high that will probably last awhile.