The "voice of the '90s" takes on the millennium
The career
Mariah Carey was just 18 in 1988, a middle-class girl from Long Island, when she signed a deal with Columbia Records. She wrote all of the lyrics on her self-titled debut and watched her first five singles soar to Number One - a feat that had been accomplished by no other artist ever.
Now at 29, Mariah is flying high. Her track records reads like that of an old pro: she's had 13 Number One singles - more than any '90s artist - and she's sold more than 115 million albums worldwide. Mariah has had three songs debut at Number One - also more than any other artist. She's spent more weeks at Number One than any other female artist in history. In fact, combined, her songs have spent more than a year at Number One.
Two years ago, Mariah flew to the top with her seventh album, Butterfly. Now she's back to shine again with Rainbow. And boy, it's awesome to have her back on the scene. Of course, it's only fitting that the star who brought pop music into the '90s, will bring it into the new millennium. You've probably been groovin' to her first single, Heartbreaker, which pairs Mariah with the always awesome Jay-Z. But now you can also check out Mariah in her film debut, The Bachelor. She plays an ex-girlfriend of Chris O'Donnell's character, a man who must marry within 24 hours in order to claim a fortune. The personal life
Mariah Carey - her real name - was born March 27, 1970 in New York. She was named after the song "The Call The Wind Mariah" from the movie Paint Your Wagon. Mariah's mother, Patricia, was an opera singer - that's where Mariah gets those high notes. Her father was an aeronautical engineer. They divorced when Mariah was three. She was raised by her mother.
Mariah began practising arias with her mom when she was a toddler, and she always knew she was going to be a star. When her teachers asked her to do homework, she'd tell them it was unnecessary - after all, a person doesn't have to go to college to be a singing superstar. When her mother asked her to clean her room, she'd simply reply that when she was famous, she'd have a maid. It seems as though Mariah was psychic.
In high school, Mariah's nickname was "Mirage," because she'd often have to skip school due to late-night singing gigs in New York City, where she began to play clubs at age 15. In her teens, all of her free time was spent writing and recording demos. After she graduated from high school, she moved to New York City to attend beauty school and look for a record deal.
Her first break came as a back-up singer for Brenda K. Starr, who originally recorded Mariah's recent git, "I Still Believe." Brenda took Mariah under her wings and helped her meet record executives. One night, Mariah handed her demo tape to Columbia Records' president Tommy Mottola at a party. He listened and was blown away. Within a month, she was in the recording studio with a contract. Not too long after that she became Mrs. Tommy Mottola.
Mariah followed her debut with Emotions, MTV Unplugged, Music Box, Daydream, a Christmas album and her greatest hits collection of smash singles, appropriately titled #1's. In that time, she also lived on a huge estate with husband Tommy, got a divorce, moved to New York City, teamed up with baseball's Derek Jeter and later with Latin superstar, Luis Miguel. With the release of Rainbow, Mariah begins a new musical adventure, independent as ever, with record-breaking success in sight once more. (Entertainmenteen, November 1999)
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