The Evolution of Mimi

Happy Birthday, Mariah! Today, on March 27, 2010, it is Mariah Carey's 40th birthday, but she likes to refer to her birthdays as anniversaries and believes she is eternally 12, and as much as people might start thinking she's trying to act young when really, she's already lived for four decades, in truth, Mariah really is eternally young as much as she is mature.

A real case of a woman trying to act young is Madonna and her recent album covers.


40 years of Mariah Carey also means 20 years of her music career. She started out in 1990 and has become one of the most successful artists of all-time, with so many records and achievements set and made in the past 20 years.

Let me go through every year from 1990 all the way till today, 2010, in the life and world of Mariah Carey!

This is Mariah Carey when she was younger. I don't know the exact age, but it's very obvious that it's her because you can recognize those facial features.

Mariah was named after the song, "They Call The Wind Mariah", and is definitely the most successful Mariah in the world (since there are a few).

I think people who pronounced Mariah as mah-ria are "intelligent". Her name pronunciation is mer-rai-ah.

Anyway, it's been said that she already was a good singer at a young age, which makes me agree that if you want to be talented, you start working on your talent when you're a child and when your age is still single-digit. After that, it's very hard for you to excel formidably if you're already in your teens, because you don't have the innate talent.


1988 - 1990: The beginning & Mariah Carey
Let's make a jump to Mariah's young-adult years. In 1988, Mariah had become a back-up singer for Brenda K. Starr, whoever that is, and one night while performing at a club, Brenda K. Starr passed a demo tape Mariah made to a music executive, Tommy Mottola, who later when into his car to hear it. When he found it good, he returned back to the club only to realise Mariah had left. Kinda like Cinderella right? Tommy Mottola tracked Mariah down, and convinced her to be part of his record label, Columbia Records. Mariah was actually going to sign with Warner Bros., but she eventually signed with Columbia instead.

According to my Billboard Book of No. 1 hits, Columbia is the record label with the most #1 songs ever in the US. Don't know if that record has been beaten.

So, move to 1990! I was not even born. My brother also. Anyway, Mariah worked on her debut album, Mariah Carey, which is self-titled, and released her debut single, Vision of Love, which became an iconic hit. It was #1 in the US, which is an achievement for a new artist.

Mariah released her album along with three other singles, Love Takes Time, Someday and I Don't Wanna Cry, for the remainder of 1990 and through the early half of 1991. She made history as an artist with her first four singles to ALL reach #1 in the US. The first artist ever to do that was the Jackson 5 (starring Michael Jackson and his brothers before MJ later went for a solo career). Also, her debut album climbed to the top and became a US #1 album.

1991: Emotions
Mariah already had 4 #1 singles, which is something even today's artists cannot achieve. They usually have Top 10 or Top 5 hits, but it's really difficult to clinch that one spot on the chart which you find on top.

Mariah won 2 Grammy awards in 1991 for her success in the previous year. She was the Best New Artist and won the Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for Vision of Love.

So, Mariah made a follow-up to her first album. Her second album, originally titled The Wind but later changed to Emotions, did not do so well and only made it to #4. However, Mariah made history again as the first artist to have her first 5 singles ALL reach #1.

The title track, Emotions, topped the Billboard Hot 100, and it is to me, the most difficult song to sing, ever, because it is flooded with whistle notes and belts. Belts are handle-able if you have the stamina, but whistles are a technique not everybody has. Both these singing techniques are Mariah's signature styles.

Mariah also released other singles which made it into the Top 5. Can't Let Go was #2, and Make It Happen was #5, which means she now has seven Top 5 hits.

1992: MTV Unplugged
Mariah always had stage fright. She was unable to perform comfortably in front of an audience even though she has been so successful for her first two years.

People were criticising that she is a studio singer: one who can only sound good in the studio and on tracks, but not a singer who can do the same live.

Hence, Mariah released MTV Unplugged with the help from MTV. It was a live album of Mariah performing all her current hits, including the super-difficult Emotions. Mariah proved to the world that she could do it live. In fact, she did something today's artists cannot do.

Her live performance of I'll Be There, a cover of the Jackson 5 original, went to #1 in the US. A live performance you know! Not a studio-recorded song! You can hear a little of the audience cheering behind. When was the last time a live performance hit #1 in the last decade of 2000 to 2009?





1993: Marriage to Tommy Mottola & Music Box
Remember Prince Charming? The guy who discovered Mariah and turned into a superstar? That Columbia Records boss? Yep, Mariah and Tommy Mottola had developed such a mutual relationship, they got married.

1993 was an iconic year for Mariah, and I am merely one year from being born. Other than her first marriage to Tommy Mottola, whom was the first person Mariah slept with (she revealed this years later), Mariah released Music Box, her third studio album.

It was phenomenal. It sold 10 million copies alone in the US and was certified Diamond the RIAA. As of today, the last album to reach Diamond was Usher's Confessions in 2004, which is six years ago, so you probably know how difficult it is to reach this certification. Usually albums get to Platinum, which means 1 million copies sold. Platinum 2x means 2 million, and Platinum 9x means 9 million. Only when you've reached 10 million do you upgrade to the highest rank, Diamond, and Mariah achieved it with this new album of hers.

Also, the lead single, Dreamlover, was #1 in the US for 8 weeks. That's two consecutive months! It's her biggest album ever. Follow-up singles included Hero, which I believe is Mariah's most popular song today because an average civilian would answer Hero if you ask "what Mariah Carey song do you know?"

I wouldn't answer that because I do not really enjoy the song, even though it reached #1 on the final week of 1993 and remained there for the first few weeks of 1994.

1994: Without You & Merry Christmas
After the success of Hero, which was a song Mariah actually written for a movie (after that movie failed, Mariah was advised by Tommy to put that on her album instead since it was too good), Mariah released a cover song, Without You.

If I am not wrong, it is Mariah's most successful single internationally because it was #1 and Top 3 in several countries. It was #3 in the US, and this is my mom's favourite Mariah Carey song.

Do you know I have an original copy of Music Box because either my dad or mom bought the album? If you buy the album today, it's definitely a re-release that they keep producing once every few years, with updated packaging all. However, mine is that 1993 version, so it's the most valuable Mariah Carey album of my collection.

In the mean time, Mariah also released her fourth studio album, Merry Christmas, which is her first and currently, only holiday albums. The album was #3 in the US and spawned the hit single, All I Want For Christmas Is You, which as of today, is still a smash hit. Everytime at the end of the year when Christmas approaches, this song is the best-selling Christmas song. I've seen it on iTunes. I've seen it on so many news channels. People refer to All I Want For Christmas Is You as a Christmas classic.

1995: Daydream
With so many accolades already, it's about time Mariah stopped. After all, she's been doing it for the past five years. However, Mariah released Daydream, her fifth studio album.

It was certified Diamond again, selling 10 million copies in the US alone. Daydream was Mariah's first album with R&B influences, because she always loved R&B and wanted to use it as a key element in her music.

Initially, it was not well-received by her record label, because they feared there would be disastrous effects. Mariah had already succeeded as a pop singer, so to start experimenting with R&B would be dangerous.

However, they were proven wrong by Mariah when Fantasy came out. One of my favourite Mariah Carey songs, Fantasy is the first single by a female artist to debut at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. The song was #1 for 8 weeks (matching the record set by previous lead single, Dreamlover.) Fantasy was genius to sample Genius of Love, because it made the song so much more fun.

As 1995 concluded with the rapid sales of Daydream, Mariah released her second single from the album. It was entitled One Sweet Day.

1996: One Sweet Day & Always Be My Baby
One Sweet Day began charting at the end of 1995. It was a debut with Boyz II Men, a boyband who made history when they had two singles reach #1 for 12 weeks and 14 weeks each. That's hell a lot!

One Sweet Day was going to do even better than that. The song made Billboard history as the song with the most weeks at #1. It topped the charts for 16 consecutive weeks from end-1995 to early-1996. That's 4 months consecutively! Also, the song debuted at #1, making it Mariah's second single to do that and made her the first artist to have 2 debuts at No. 1.

After the success of One Sweet Day, Mariah released Always Be My Baby, which was again, #1. For 2 weeks it topped the charts, and for 9 weeks it was at #2.

Realise that all three singles from Daydream reached #1, the same as when all four singles from Mariah's first album reached #1. At the end of 1996, Mariah already has eleven #1 hits.




1997: Separation from Tommy Mottola & Butterfly
The new year began for Mariah Carey without much to celebrate about, because she officially separated from Tommy Mottola. They married in 1993, so their marriage lasted for 3-4 years.

Mariah said she felt very over-controlled by Tommy Mottola. It was almost as good as holding her like a prisoner. Tommy Mottola decided everything Mariah did, including what she wore.

After the separation, Mariah worried for her career. Her contract with Tommy' Mottola's record label, Columbia, was still existing. I could be wrong, but it's probably an 8-album contract, so Mariah still has to release 3 more albums before finally cutting everything off from Tommy Mottola.

One of my favourite looks of Mariah Carey comes from 1997. That's because, after the separation from Tommy Mottola, Mariah could finally decide for herself what to wear. Her new music video for the year, Honey, which is probably my favourite R&B song ever, featured her in more revealing clothes.

People thought the music video for Honey was a metaphor for Mariah's relationship with Tommy Mottola, because she was captured in an Italian mansion in the beginning of the music video, and jumps off a balcony into a swimming pool (critics said it represents her cleansing her soul from Tommy Mottola. =.=)

Honey was Mariah's third song to debut at #1, and hence, makes her the only artist with three #1 debuts. That's crazy a lot, because debuting at #1 is not easy to accomplish today. The song was #1 for 3 weeks.

1998: #1's & When You Believe
Soon after the success of Honey, Mariah released My All, which was #1 as well. My All made Mariah the female artist with the most #1 hits, beating the record by Madonna and Whitney Houston (they had 12 #1 singles then).

Mariah also released her first compilation album in 1998. It was entitled #1's, which consists of her 13 No. 1 singles and a few new tracks (most of which are covers). The lead single from this compilation, a cover of Brenda K. Starr's I Still Believe, was #4.

Mariah also collaborated with Whitney Houston to release When You Believe, an iconic Grammy-award winning song from the movie, The Prince of Egypt. When You Believe is the very first song I heard that Mariah Carey sang.

At the same time, Mariah was also having short relationships with other guys, and was developing a film project, All That Glitters.



1999: Rainbow
Mariah would release her final album under Columbia Records, and that it was it. Bye bye Tommy Mottola personally, and bye bye Tommy Mottola professionally.

That's why Rainbow came out. Mariah was having a rough time with that separation, and the rainbow is a symbolism of happiness and hope after the rain.

Her lead single from this seventh studio album of hers, Heartbreaker, featured Jay-Z. Jay-Z earned his first #1 hit with this song, while Mariah earned her fourteenth #1 hit with it.

With the chart-topping of Heartbreaker, Mariah has had at least one #1 song for EVERY year of the past decade (1990 - 19991), as seen through:

1990: Vision of Love, Love Takes Time
1991: Someday, I Don't Wanna Cry, Emotions
1992: I'll Be There
1993: Dreamlover, Hero
1994: Hero (continued)
1995: Fantasy, One Sweet Day
1996: One Sweet Day (continued), Always Be My Baby
1997: Honey
1998: My All
1999: Heartbreaker

At the end of 1999, Mariah brought home the most prestigious award of Artist of the Decade from the Billboard Awards.

2000: Thank God I Found You
Actually, that above list of Mariah's #1 hits for ten consecutive years should include,

2000: Thank God I Found You

Because her next single from Rainbow also went to #1. It is a collaboration with Joe and 98 Degrees and topped the chart for one week.

Mariah had embarked on her Rainbow World Tour, and that picture of her with a pink dolphin is actually her at the Dolphin Lagoon in Sentosa, Singapore.

That's right, Mariah came to Singapore to perform in year 2000 while I was only six years old. This was the only time she ever came to Singapore, and it has already been 10 years.

2001: Virgins Records, Glitter & Greatest Hits
Remember that film project Mariah was working on a few years ago. It developed from All That Glitters into Glitter, which would be a movie Mariah starred in, and would be accompanied by Mariah's eighth studio album, Glitter, which works as the movie's soundtrack.

Mariah signed on with Virgin Records. However, it was not good.

Virgin Records overworked her. They kept bringing her all around the world for interviews and promotions. She could have 10 consecutive interviews in one day, all back-t0-back, and with each lasting so long, she was getting more and more exhausted.

Mariah released Loverboy, her first single from her upcoming album. The song did not do well. It was #60, and only after Virgin Records slashed the price of the single, the song skyrocketed to #2 for two weeks before falling off again.

Mariah was then going to release Never Too Far. Virgin Records wanted her to film a music video for it, but by then, she was already physically and mentally exhausted. She tried to call her record label to tell them to postpone the music video shoot, but she could contact no one. Mariah left upset messages on her website, but they were blown out of proportion by the media, referring to them as "suicidal messages".

Mariah then fainted while she was at her mom's house. She was sent to a hospital for 2 weeks, and when she was discharged, she awaited the release of the Glitter film.

It was not received well. The movie earned less money than the amount used to make it, hence being a box office bomb. The film was criticized harshly, rated terribly, and Mariah's acting skills were condemned till she won the Worst Actress award at the Razzies.

If Mariah's filming couldn't succeed, maybe she could still succeed on music. However, when the Glitter album, it only charted at #7, which was an all-time low for a Mariah Carey album chart performance.

Mariah released her Greatest Hits album at the end of the year, including a Never Too Far/Hero medley which she recorded as a charity single due to the events of 9/11.

2001 was not Mariah's year. Would 2002 be?

2002: Charmbracelet

The failure of Glitter caused Mariah to be dropped from Virgin Records. They paid her $25 million to delete the conditions of their signed contract, asking her to leave.

Mariah then signed with Island Records and wanted to leave Glitter behind. She quickly came out with Charmbracelet while dealing with the deterioriating heatlh of her father, Alfred Roy Carey, wom Mariah knew little about because her parents divorced (and she was with her mom since).

Charmbracelet was supposed to be Mariah's comeback album. Mariah had made her own record label, MonarC, hence considering Charmbracelet an album of two record labels. However. its lead single went nowhere. Through The Rain peaked at #81, which was really terrible. When Charmbracelet finally came out, it debuted at #3 and did not go further. Still, #3 was an improvement compared to Glitter's #7.

Critics harshly critized Mariah for being unable to sing anymore, saying her voice resembles a stream of paint colours that bleed into a puddle of brown or something like that.

Prior to the release Charmbracelet, Mariah had a role in the film, WiseGirls, still determined to prove that she could act. The movie was received a lot better than Glitter, but it was not a blockbuster film that garnered worldwide attention.

2003: I Know What You Want & The Remixes
Mariah subsequently released Boy (I Need You), which did not chart on the Billboard Hot 100. She also released Bringin' On The Heartbreak. It also failed to chart. Both songs had music videos. Unfortunately, they did not help.

2003 was a continuation of Mariah's career darkness, until she was a featured artist in I Know What You Want by Busta Rhymes. The song became #3 and was Mariah's highest-charting single in many many many many months.

Mariah embarked on the Charmbracelet World Tour, which is to date her most expensive and longest-running world tour. Quite ironic eh, since it was promoting one of her least-successful albums.

The Remixes, her first remix album, was also released, featuring two discs of remixes of her hits.






2004: U Like This (Megamix)
There's not much of Mariah in 2004, but I'm sure she was already working on her tenth studio album.

In the mean time, Mariah released the U Like This (Megamix) as a single from her remix album. It did not chart anywhere I think, since it was a remix and they usually go nowhere.














2005: We Belong Together & The Emancipation of Mimi
2005 is the year of Mariah Carey again. It was the year when the sensational songbird came back and really destroyed everyone.

While on her Charmbracelet World Tour, Mariah worked on her new album. She soon released her first single after announcing the mysterious album title, The Emancipation of Mimi, which definitely is a conversation starter.

The first single, It's Like That, was #16 in the US, pretty good compared to her recent failed solo singles from 2001 through 2004.

Then, Mariah released her second single from her upcoming album. Entitled We Belong Together, it blew everyone away by going to #1 and becoming Mariah's first #1 single in five years. Her previous #1, Thank God I Found You, was in 2000. We Belong Together made history when it was #1 for 14 weeks, making it the song with the most weeks at #1 for the whole decade (2000 - 2009). We Belong Together was so good, it became the 9th best song on the Billboard Hot 100 of all-time, which comprises of 50+ years of music.

We Belong Together blocked Pussycat Dolls' Don't Cha and Rihanna's Pon De Replay from the top spot. It also blocked Mariah's third single, Shake It Off, from #1, so Shake It Off was #2. However, this means that Mariah is the first female lead artist to occupy both #1 and #2 simultaneously in a week.

Mariah finally released The Emancipation of Mimi. What to say? It was #1. It sold 6 million copies in the US alone. It became the best-selling album of that year.

To celebrate this, Mariah re-released the album under the title The Emancipation of Mimi: Ultra Platinum Edition, spearheaded by the next single, Don't Forget About Us.

That song was Mariah's 17th #1 hit when it became the final No. 1 song of 2005. With 17 #1's, Mariah ties with Elvis Presley for the solo artist with most #1 hits in the US.

2006: Grammy awards & The Adventures of Mimi Tour

The Emancipation of Mimi won Mariah three Grammys to begin 2006 - Best Contemporary R&B Album, Best R&B Song, Best Female R&B Vocal Performance.

Mariah released Say Somethin', a collaboration with Snoop Dogg as her final single from The Emancipation of Mimi. The song charted at #79, probably due to under-promotion. Ironically, Island Records had intended Say Somethin' to be the lead single from the album. Luckily Mariah followed her instincts and insisted on It's Like That, which did far better with it's Top 20 peak.

Mariah also began The Adventures of Mimi tour. It featured songs from The Emancipation of Mimi, such as We Belong Together, Don't Forget About Us, It's Like That, Shake It Off, Fly Like A Bird and I Wish You Knew. It also has several songs from the previous decade, including Vision of Love, her first single. Mariah did not perform any song from Glitter and Charmbracelet.




2007: The Adventures of Mimi DVD
Mariah did not release any new music in the year 2007, most probably because she was working on a follow-up to smash success, The Emancipation of Mimi.

At the same time, she was doing several advertisements due to her return to the top of the celebrity world.

Mariah released a DVD of the Adventures of Mimi tour.












2008: Touch My Body & E=MC2
Mariah knew it would be a challenge trying to release a follow-up to The Emancipation of Mimi, knowing that the previous album was successful and the world was awaiting even better music, if not the equivalent.

3 years after Mimi came out, Mariah released her eleventh studio album, E=MC2, which stands for Emancipation = Mariah Carey to the 2nd power. It works as a sequel to Mimi, and if Mimi was dinner, then this album would be dessert.

The album was first promoted through Touch My Body, which became Mariah's 18th #1 hit. This made history as Mariah finally beat Elvis Presley's record of most #1 hits by a solo artist. Touch My Body was #1 for 2 weeks and gave Mariah her 79th total week at #1, thus making her the artist with the most weeks at #1.

When E=MC2 was released, the album was #1 for 2 weeks. It was successful and saw it's next single, Bye Bye, reach the Top 20. However, subsequent singles I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time and I Stay In Love did not chart well.

Also, Mariah married Nick Cannon this year. They met at the Teen Choice Awards 1-2 years back. For your information, Nick Cannon is 10 years younger than Mariah, but "age is just a number", they say.

2008 was the year when I started to discover Mariah's music slowly. I bought E=MC2 and by the end of the year, I probably have 10+ Mariah carey songs in my computer.

2009: Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel & Precious

2009 was a different year for Mariah. She stopped promoting E=MC2 in lieu of a new twelfth studio album, which began with the working title MC3. Mariah used Twitter to reveal the title, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, and began the project by releasing lead single, Obsessed on June 16, 2009.

I remember that day. It was a Wednesday (June 16 is a Tuesday, but because Singapore has an earlier time zone than the US, it was a Wednesday to Singapore when the song came out). I listened to the song online 10 times consecutively.

When I put it into my iPod, I kept listening, and after the 100th time, I really really really really liked it. Obsessed debuted at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 and eventually rose to #7. The song received mixed reviews, but the single itself was certified Platinum, having been sold or downloaded 1 million times in total, and made Mariah the female artist with the most Platinum singles.

When Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel came out, it debuted at #3 behind Barbara Streisand and Paramore. It's next single, I Want To Know What Love Is, which covers the Foreginer original, was #60 in the US. However, it has since spent 21 weeks as the #1 song in Brazil, setting a record.

The third single from the album, H.A.T.E.U, was a commercial failure because it did not chart even with a music video, and this probably began a fall of success in Mariah's nearly-2o-year career.

Mariah decided to embark on a remix album, Angels Advocate, which would remix every song on Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel by adding a featured guest. At the same time, she also had a key role in a film, Precious.

The film was well-received by the public as well as critics, scoring 96% on Rotten Tomatoes.com. Mariah was praised for her acting delivery and received hype for her transformed appearance in the film.

That's why, 2009 was a year where Mariah succeeded in film, but not in music. Meanwhile, it was also the year where I officially became a Mariah fan and put her on the pedestal alongside Rihanna, whom I've supported since 2007.

On the last day of 2009, Mariah began her Angels Advocate Tour.

At the end of the year as well as decade, Mariah was named the 11th best artist of the decade. We Belong Together was named the Song of the Decade.

2010: Angels Advocate tour, Film accolades & Angels Advocate cancellation

Mariah's Angels Advocate tour last for two months. It had mixed reviews, many people upset with her always arriving late, having too many costume changes and other performance deterioriations.

However, Mariah won several film awards for her role of Mrs Weiss in Precious and was speculated to be nominated for a Grammy. That did not happen, although Precious would go on to win 2 Grammys in 2010.

Most recently, Mariah cancelled Angels Advocate due to the failure of its two lead singles, Up Out My Face, which features Nicki Minaj, and Angels Cry, which features Ne-yo.

Up Out My Face charted at #100 for one week and then fell out of the list. Angels Cry did not chart at all. Both songs had music videos, but that did not really help. The weak results of this remix album led to the cancellation, with Mariah said to be working on a completely new 13th studio album.

2010 celebrates 20 years of Mariah Carey's music career and 40 years of Mariah Carey's life. Mariah has had 18 #1 songs. She has sold 175 million albums. She has won 5 Grammys. She has 79 weeks at #1. She has 12 studio albums, all of which are Top 10 and six of which are #1. She is the first artist to have her first 5 singles reach #1. She is the first female artist to debut at the #1. She is the only artist with 3 #1 debuts. She is the Artist of the Decade from 1990 to 1999, and has the Song of the Decade title for 2000 to 2009.

Is there gonna be more of Mariah for the rest of 2010? I'm not sure, and honestly speaking, I hope she'll take a good rest and then come back years later for another Music Box, Daydream or The Emancipation of Mimi -like album: filled with #1s and success, because Mariah deserves the success.

Lastly, Happy Birthday Anniversary again, Mariah! You have been a musical phenomenon and you will be for another 20 years. There are very little Mariah Carey fans in Singapore, because everyone's now about Lady Gaga or David Archuleta or Kris Allen or the recent trendsetters. Even the "Mariah Carey fans" in Singapore only know the We Belong Together and Touch My Body era and know nothing before that.

I personally think I'm the most Mariah Cary-knowledgeable person in my country. I have every Mariah Carey studio album, including Glitter and Charmbracelet. I have every Mariah Carey song.

I am a proud Mariah Carey fan. Her music saved me.

Photo credits to MariahDaily.com.