Information AboutMariah Carey |
Mariah Carey (born March 27 1970 ) is an American Singer , Songwriter , Record Producer , Music Video Director , and Actress . Her debut was in 1990 under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola , and she became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. ''Billboard'' Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. According to ''Billboard'' magazine, she is the most successful female artist of the 1990s in the United States.Shapiro, Marc. ''Mariah Carey'' (2001). pg. 145. UK: ECW Press, Canada. ISBN 1-55022-444-1. Carey took much more control over her image and music following her separation from Mottola in 1997, and she introduced elements of Hip Hop into her album material. Her popularity was in decline when she left Columbia in 2001, and she was dropped by Virgin Records the following year after a highly publicized physical and emotional breakdown, and the poor reception of '' Glitter ''; her film and soundtrack project. In 2002, Carey signed with Island Records , and after an unsuccessful period, she returned to the forefront of pop music in 2005. Carey was named the best selling female pop artist of the millennium at the 2000 ''. RS 617, November 14 1991 . Retrieved March 12 2006 . LIFE AND MUSIC CAREER Childhood and youth Carey was born in Huntington , Long Island , New York . She is the third and youngest child of Patricia Hickey, a former Opera singer and vocal coach of Irish American descent, and Alfred Roy Carey, an Aeronautical Engineer of African American and Venezuela n descent.Shapiro, pg. 16. She grew up in a Roman Catholic family.www.pridemagazine.com As a Multiethnic family, the Careys endured racial slurs, hostility, and sometimes violence, causing the family to frequently relocate throughout the New York area. Carey's parents divorced when she was three years old.Shapiro, pg. 19–20. Carey had little contact with her father, and her mother worked several jobs to support the family. Spending much of her time at home alone, Carey turned to music as an outlet. She began singing at around the age of three, and her mother, Patricia, began teaching her after Carey imitated her practicing Verdi 's opera '' Rigoletto '' in Italian .Shapiro, pg. 18–19. Carey performed for the first time in public during elementary school and was writing her own songs by junior high. She graduated from Harborfields High School in Greenlawn, New York although she was frequently absent because of her popularity as a Demo singer for local recording studios; her classmates consequently gave her the nickname " Mirage ".Shapiro, pg. 31. Her renown in the Long Island music scene gave her opportunities to work with musicians such as Gavin Christopher and Ben Margulies , with whom she co-wrote material for her demo tape. After moving to New York City , Carey worked numerous part-time jobs to pay the rent and completed five hundred hours of beauty school.Handelman, David. "Miss Mariah". '' Cosmopolitan ''. December 1997. Eventually, she became a Backup Singer for Puerto Rican Freestyle singer Brenda K. Starr . In 1988, Carey met Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola at a party, where Starr gave him Carey's demo tape. Mottola played the tape when leaving the party and was very impressed with what he heard. He returned to find Carey, but she had left. Nevertheless, Mottola tracked her down and signed her to a recording contract. This Cinderella -like story became part of the standard publicity surrounding Carey's entrance into the industry.Gardner, Elysa. "Cinderella Story". '' VIBE ''. April 1996. 1990–1992: Early commercial success Carey co-wrote the tracks on her 1990 Debut Album , '' Mariah Carey '', and she has continued to co-write nearly all her material throughout her career. She expressed dissatisfaction with the contributions of producers such as Ric Wake and Rhett Lawrence , whom executives at Columbia had enlisted to help make the album commercially viable.Shapiro, pg. 47, 60. With substantial promotion it ascended to number one on the U.S. ''Billboard'' 200 chart, where it remained for several weeks. It produced four number-one singles and made Carey a star in the United States, but it was less successful elsewhere. Critics rated the album highly, and Carey won Grammy Award s for Best New Artist and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance (for her debut single, " Vision Of Love "). '' concert showed her ability to produce her vocal style outside a studio setting. ]] Carey conceived ''" made Carey the only recording act to have their first five singles reach number-one on the U.S. Hot 100 chart, though the album's follow-up singles failed to match this feat. Carey had been lobbying to produce her own songs, and beginning with ''Emotions'', she would co-produce most of her material. "I didn't want {Link without Title} to be somebody else's vision of me," she said. "There's more of me on this album".Shapiro, pg. 62. She began writing and producing for other artists, such as Penny Ford and Daryl Hall , within the coming year. Although she occasionally performed live, Stage Fright prevented Carey from embarking on any major tours. Her first widely seen concert appearance was on the television show '' MTV Unplugged '' in 1992, and she said she felt that her performance proved her vocal abilities were not, as some had previously speculated, simulated using studio techniques.Shapiro, pg. 69. In addition to Acoustic versions of some of her earlier songs, Carey premiered a Cover of The Jackson 5 's " I'll Be There " with back-up singer Trey Lorenz . Released as a single, the duet reached number one in the U.S. and led to a record deal for Lorenz, whose debut album Carey co-produced. Because of strong ratings for the ''Unplugged'' television special, the concert's set list was released on the EP '' MTV Unplugged '', which '' Entertainment Weekly '' called "the strongest, most genuinely musical record she has ever made ... Did this live performance help her take her first steps toward growing up?".Sandow, Greg. "''MTV Unplugged EP''". '' Entertainment Weekly ''. June 19 1992 . 1993–1996: Worldwide popularity Carey and Tommy Mottola had become romantically involved during the making of her debut album, and in June 1993 they were married. ''. September 6 1993 . Retrieved March 4 2006 . In response to such comments, Carey said, "As soon as you have a big success, a lot of people don't like that. There's nothing I can do about it. All I can do is make music I believe in."Shapiro, pg. 78. Most critics slighted the opening of her subsequent U.S. Music Box Tour .Shapiro, pg. 84. After a hit duet with ''. Retrieved March 17 2006 . It became the most successful Christmas album of all time.Healey, Mitchell. "Carey On". '' V ''. January 20 2006 . In 1995, Columbia released Carey's fifth album, '' for twelve weeks, " One Sweet Day " (a duet with Boyz II Men ) spent a still-record-holding sixteen weeks at number one in the U.S., and " Always Be My Baby " (co-produced by Jermaine Dupri ) was the biggest song on U.S. radio in 1996 (according to ''Billboard'' magazine). ''Daydream'' generated career-best reviews for CareyShapiro, pg. 94–96. and publications such as '' The New York Times '' named it one of 1995's best albums; the ''Times'' wrote that its "best cuts bring pop candy-making to a new peak of textural refinement ... Carey's songwriting has taken a leap forward, becoming more relaxed, sexier and less reliant on thudding clichés".Holden, Stephen. "Mariah Carey Glides Into New Territory". '' The New York Times ''. pg. 76, October 13 1995 . The short but profitable Daydream World Tour augmented sales of the album, which received six Grammy Award nominations. 1997–2000: New image and independence Carey and Mottola separated in 1996. Although the public image of the marriage was a happy one, she said that in reality she had felt trapped by her relationship with Mottola, whom she often described as controlling.Shapiro, pg. 97–98. They officially announced their separation in 1997, and their divorce became final the following year. Soon after the separation, Carey hired an independent publicist and a new attorney and manager. She became a major songwriter and producer for other artists during this period, contributing to the debut albums of Allure and 7 Mile through her short-lived imprint Crave Records . " (1997), Carey's first heavily Hip Hop -influenced single, presented a more overtly sexual image of her than had been previously seen. ]] Carey's next album, ''. September 16 1997 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . The '' Los Angeles Times '' wrote, " {Link without Title} is easily the most personal, confessional-sounding record she's ever done ... Carey-bashing just might become a thing of the past."Johnson, Connie. '' Los Angeles Times ''. pg. 58, September 14 1997 . The album was a commercial success, and " My All " (her thirteenth Hot 100 number-one) gave her the record for the most U.S. number-ones by a female artist. Towards the turn of the millennium, Carey was developing the film project ''. May 14 1998 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . By the following year, she had entered a relationship with singer Luis Miguel . '' Rainbow '', Carey's seventh studio album, was released in 1999. It comprised more R&B/hip hop-oriented songs, many of them co-created with Jimmy Jam And Terry Lewis . " Heartbreaker " and " Thank God I Found You " (the former featuring Jay-Z , the latter featuring Joe and boy-band 98 Degrees ) reached number one in the U.S., and the success of the former made Carey the only act to have a number-one single in each year of the 1990s. A cover of Phil Collins 's " Against All Odds (Take A Look At Me Now) " went to number one in the UK after Carey re-recorded it with boy band Westlife . Media reception of ''Rainbow'' was generally enthusiastic, with the '' Sunday Herald '' saying the album "sees her impressively tottering between soul ballads and collaborations with R&B heavyweights like Snoop Doggy Dogg , Usher ... It's a polished collection of pop-soul".Virtue, Graham. "''Rainbow'', Mariah Carey". '' Sunday Herald ''. November 7 1999 . '' VIBE '' magazine expressed similar sentiments, writing, "She pulls out all stops...''Rainbow'' will garner even more adoration","Mariah Carey, ''Rainbow''". '' VIBE ''. pg. 258, December 1999. but despite this it became Carey's lowest selling album up to that point, and there was a recurring criticism that the tracks were too alike. When the Double A-side " Crybaby "/" Can't Take That Away (Mariah's Theme) " became her first single to peak outside the U.S. top twenty, Carey accused Sony of under promoting it: "The political situation in my professional career is not positive ... I'm getting a lot of negative feedback from certain corporate people", she wrote on her official website.Shapiro, pg. 134. 2001–2004: Personal and professional struggles After receiving . August 14 2001 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . '' (2001).]] Critics panned '' Glitter '', Carey's much delayed semi-autobiographical film, and it was a box office failure. The album '' Glitter '', was inspired by the music of the 1980s and featured collaborations with Rick James and Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis; it generated her worst showing on the U.S. chart. The '' St. Louis Post-Dispatch '' dismissed it as "an absolute mess that'll go down as an annoying blemish on a career that, while not always critically heralded, was at least nearly consistently successful",Johnson, Kevin C. "Mariah Carey's New "Glitter" Is a Far Cry from Golden". '' St. Louis Post-Dispatch ''. pg. F.5, September 16 2001 STAR LIFT Edition . while '' Blender '' magazine opined, "After years of trading her signature flourishes for a radio-ready purr, [Carey]'s left with almost no presence at all.""''Glitter''". '' Blender ''. pg. 118, August–September 2001. The lead single, " Loverboy " (featuring Cameo ), reached number two on the Hot 100 thanks to a price cut, but the album's follow-up singles failed to chart. Columbia released the low-charting album ''. February 8 2006 . Retrieved March 12 2006 . Later that year, she signed a $20 million contract with Island Records and launched the record label MonarC . To add further to Carey's emotional burdens, her father, with whom she had had little contact since childhood until that year, died of cancer. Following a well-received supporting role in the 2002 film '' 2002 , iss. 911. Singles such as " Through The Rain " failed on the charts and on pop radio, which had become less open to maturing "diva" stylists such as Carey, Whitney Houston and Celine Dion . ". Retrieved April 7 2006 . She was featured on rapper Jadakiss ' 2004 single " U Make Me Wanna ", which reached the top ten on ''Billboard'''s R&B/Hip-Hop Chart . 2005–present: Return to prominence in 2006.]] Carey's tenth studio album, ''''. December 22 2005 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . The Beatles had twenty number-ones. Carey's singles have, collectively, topped the charts for seventy-seven weeks, which places her ahead of The Beatles (fifty-nine weeks), and behind Presley, who topped the charts for seventy-nine weeks collectively (once the Rock 'n' Roll and the Hot 100 charts are combined). Carey began a concert tour, . June 23 2006 . Retrieved August 1 2006 . and she will be inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame on October 21 , 2007 . According to an interview with ''. November 28 2006 . Retrieved February 7 2007 . ACTING CAREER Carey began to take professional acting lessons in 1997, and within the coming year, she was auditioning for film roles. She made her debut as an opera singer in the romantic comedy ''. November 9 1999 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . Carey's first starring role was in ''''. September 26 – October 2 2001 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . ''Glitter'' was a box office failure, and Carey earned a Razzie Award for her role. She later said that the film "started out as a concept with substance, but it ended up being geared to 10-year-olds. It lost a lot of grit ... I kind of got in over my head." and Mira Sorvino , in '' WiseGirls '' (2002).]] Carey, . February 20 2002 . Retrieved March 17 2006 . Carey was one of several musicians who appeared in the independently produced 2007 . Retrieved June 12 2007 . ARTISTRY Carey has said that from childhood she was influenced by R&B and soul musicians such as ''. March 1991. When Carey began to imbue her sound with hip hop, speculation arose that she was making an attempt to take advantage of the genre's popularity, but she told '' Newsweek '', "People just don't understand. I grew up with this music".Shapiro, pg. 124. She has expressed appreciation for rappers such as The Sugarhill Gang , Eric B. & Rakim , the Wu-Tang Clan , The Notorious B.I.G. and Mobb Deep , with whom she collaborated on the single " The Roof (Back In Time) " (1998). Carey's debut album received criticism for being too similar in style to the work of 's "old-fashioned showgirl" to Carey and Dion, and described them and Houston as "groomed, airbrushed and overblown to perfection".O'Brien, Lucy. ''She Bop II: The Definitive History of Women in Rock, Pop and Soul'' (2002). pg. 476–477. UK: Continuum. ISBN 0-8264-5776-2 (paperback). Carey's musical transition and her use of more revealing clothing during the late 1990s were in part initiated to distance herself from this image, and she subsequently said that most of her early work had been "schmaltzy MOR". Some have noted that unlike Houston and Dion, Carey co-writes all of her own songs, and the ''Guinness Rockopedia'' (1998) classified her as the "songbird supreme".''Guinness Rockopedia'' (1998). pg. 74. UK: Guinness Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-85112-072-5. Voice | |||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
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