The joke on the internet is that Mariah Carey only springs to life around the holiday season - she is the reigning Queen of Christmas, after all - but it's shaping up to be quite a busy September for the legendary singer.
Earlier this month, Carey was one of the star performers at the 2025 MTV VMAs, where she received the special Vanguard Award. "I was very happy," Carey tells Vogue of the honor. "MTV had not yet given me any award at all. Can you believe it?" (We cannot.) And this Friday, she releases her 16th studio album, Here for It All.
Featuring everything from upbeat bops (like her lead single, "Type Dangerous") to powerful ballads, the record taps into a soulful and euphoric mood, with assists from the likes of Anderson .Paak, the Clark Sisters, Kehlani, and Shenseea. The songs, centered around themes of empowerment and prioritizing yourself, offer up a new sound for Carey in the process - a difficult thing to do, 16 albums in.
"I really enjoyed making this album," says Carey. "I really went with the flow and let it shape on its own. From start to finish, I didn't know how it was going to end up - but it worked."
Here, Carey chats with Vogue about crafting a new set of power anthems, her recording studio must-haves - and what she wants for Christmas this year. (Hint: diamonds will do.)
Vogue: Hi, Mariah. Nice to chat with you. Tell us about when this album first started taking shape.
Mariah Carey: Well, I started by vibing with different people and songs. I didn't have that many songs, so I was like, what am I going to do with this? People would ask me if I was working on any new music, and I was like, "Maybe!" But as the days went by, I decided that we had enough songs to make a record. It took shape organically. When I started working with Anderson .Paak, that was the point where I was like, oh, this is going to be something really interesting. He's fun to work with. He's an eclectic fellow - very artsy. He comes up with a lot of ideas really quickly, and I love that about him.
I loved all the different instrumentation on the album. What did you want the sound of this album to be?
During the songs with Anderson especially, he's got his own vibe and style - but when we worked together, we did this retro '70s thing, which he's so good at it. We did some more uptempo songs, like "I Won't Allow It", and I did a lot of ballads with other people, too. I really love the ballads, like "Here for it All" and "Nothing Is Impossible".
What was your process like in the studio? Do you have certain must-haves when you're preparing to record?
It depends on who I'm working with, or what the song and vibe is. It's different if it's a bop or a ballad. It's hard to say, like, "I needed great honey juice." I didn't have one specific thing.
Were you spending a lot of time on each song, or did you bang out tracks pretty quickly?
If I'm starting out and I have an idea, I'll just go to my notes, and sing my little idea into the notes. But it's not always like that. Sometimes, if I'm collaborating with someone - which is my favorite thing to do - I'll vibe with them. If they're a piano or guitar player, they'll play, and then I'll write some lyrics and go from there.
Did you have any other favorite collaborators on this album?
I loved working with Daniel Moore. He's my musical director and he's an incredible piano player. We worked on a couple of songs, like "Nothing Is Impossible". Actually, I played that for Debbie Allen when she came to my house, and she really loved it. It was not done yet, but she's the first person who heard it. Daniel and I also did "Here for it All", and it's definitely one of my favorites from this album.
Let's chat about some of the songs. I love the opener, "Mi". To me, that was a song about prioritizing yourself and not seeing that as a selfish thing.
It's tongue-in-cheek. This new era is all about me - thank you, and goodnight!
I love that. I'm going to follow that for myself going forward.
Follow that era! Channel it.
That song is closely followed by "Play This Song", which to me is about singing a goodbye to someone.
Yes. It's kind of a ha-ha to whatever person - an "I'm giving up on this situation" type thing. We need those power anthems.
We have to talk about your lead single, "Type Dangerous". When I was watching the video, I was immediately struck by the sparkly Knicks-themed jersey dress you wear. Tell me more.
We recreated that dress for the video, and I loved it. I've got to say, I don't even know where I put it, though. I don't know where it is!
You always have amazing clothes in your videos. Do you see fashion as being part of your storytelling?
Sometimes. If we're doing pictures, I like when I can sit back and do looks that will stand out. It's something that I really put a lot of work into.
Do you have an archive of all these looks?
I do have a special archive for them. But I mean, if you ask me right now to go find a specific dress, I couldn't find it.
In "Type Dangerous", you sing about rocking nine-inch Fendis and dripping in "Balenci". What are some labels you are really into at the moment?
There's a lot of them - but let's be honest, we know that there are no nine-inch Fendis. I don't think anybody's going to try that.
Not even you?
Definitely not me.
Let's talk about some of your amazing ballads on the album. "Here for it All" is such a beautiful way to close the album. Tell me more about the inspiration behind that song.
Well, first of all, thank you for saying it's an amazing way to close the album, because that was the reason I ended with it. It's everything to me - I really believed in this song. "Here for it all" is about being here for it all.
With "Jesus I Do", it felt very remenescent of some of your earlier gospel songs. It also feels like a holiday song. Was that intentional?
It definitely was not intentional, but I love that song. I've been wanting to work with the Clark Sisters forever, so this was a huge opportunity for me. I was so happy when we even listened to the rough version of the song.
A lot of the songs have themes of empowerment, I noticed. Do you often consider how you want listeners to feel when you make a record?
I definitely went in with that intention. I want them to feel empowered, I want 'em to feel good. It's like when we were doing "I Won't Allow It." I mean, come on! "I won't entertain all your narcissistic ways. I won't allow it." It was just for a laugh - but I also really meant it.
The song "Nothing Is Impossible", meanwhile, is very much about achieving your dreams. What's still on your bucket list?
I just want a bunch of diamonds. Just some diamonds... it's not that big of an ask.
When I think of your style, I do think of diamonds. Why do they make you feel so you?
Because they're so freaking expensive. No, because they're beautiful! Sometimes at Christmas, when I'm buying stuff for my kids and other people, I really want to buy myself something. I got myself a necklace with pink opals the other day - that was nice. But I usually don't do it. Sometimes I'll be nice to myself, but it's more about everybody else. I love giving gifts.
As the reigning Queen of Christmas, how far are you into the Christmas shopping right now?
Not far enough - I've got to get going! We start in October.
So you haven't started defrosting for Christmas yet?
Not yet.
You've been celebrating some special milestones. Your album Daydream turns 30 on Friday; The Emancipation of Mimi turned 20 in April. How do you feel about these anniversaries?
Well, I'm sure you may have heard me say that I don't do numbers. Or time. So I don't really think about it. But when it's an album, I can handle it. I love to celebrate album anniversaries because I can't celebrate mine. Daydream is still one of my best albums.
When I think Emancipation, I think of your amazing "Say Somethin'" video, shot in Paris with a cameo from the late Vogue editor André Leon Talley. What do you remember about him?
He was a friend of mine. He made me happy - he was such a good person. He was eccentric, I was eccentric... and still am. On the video, he was just smiling and laughing. I loved being there with him, Pharrell, and Snoop. I got this luggage from Louis Vuitton (for the video), and he was just like, "Darling, you've got to get this luggage!"
Lastly, your dogs were on the cover of Dogue last year. We must know: How are they doing?
The dogs are doing well. They're in the other room, laying together on a little couch. They say hello!
(Vogue)
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