They call the wooed Mariah
We've just found out that Mariah Carey will be slipping on that little black dress for Lyor Cohen. After weeks of deliberation, the free-agent diva has decided to enter into a business marriage with Cohen's Island Def Jam Music Group. Carey had reportedly narrowed the field to three suitors, as IDJ jockeyed for position with Clive Davis' J Records and Sylvia Rhone's Elektra, before choosing Cohen's red-hot operation, which is the year-to-date label-marketshare frontrunner.
While details of Carey's arrangement with IDJ have yet to be announced, hitsdailydouble has learned that the singer will be given her own label under the IDJ banner. Carey recently returned to the studio to begin work on her first project since 2001's disastrous Glitter. This project will presumably now be part of her IDJ deal.
Some contend that the diva may have damaged her career beyond repair with her recent flops in music and film. But even though most agree some damage has been done, there are players who insist that, if Carey is willing to take input from Cohen and his crew, she still has a tremendous upside. That's the big question - whether or not she'll go back to accepting the kind of creative guidance she received during her Columbia years (as opposed to Virgin, where she called the shots).
Ironically, Carey's current in-demand status follows a horrendous turn at Virgin and her very public breakdown. All that Glitter barely turned to Gold, let alone Platinum, for EMI, so the marriage between the music giant's Virgin label and the diva was annulled in January. At that time, EMI Recorded Music chief Alain Levy decided the risks weren't worth the benefits of the record-breaking five-album, $120-million deal, which had been made in April 2001 by his predecessor, Ken Berry, along with his ex-wife, then Virgin chief Nancy Berry. Said deal called for a $23.5 million advance per album. Levy bought out the remainder of the pact for $28 million, and Carey was also able to hang onto the more than $21 million previously paid to her in advances, giving her a total of around $50 million after delivering just a single album. EMI's total outlay had it not ended the arrangement could have reached upward of $150-200 million over the course of the five-album contract. Between $13-14 million was spent marketing Glitter, which to date has sold just 2 million globally and a hair over 500k in the U.S.
The dumping of Carey came at a time when EMI bosses Levy and David Munns had been focused on the company's worldwide operations, looking for ways to cut costs. At the time, EMI Corporate said the $50 million to Carey would be taken as a one-time charge for its fiscal year ending March 31. Carey went to EMI/Virgin from Sony Music/Columbia, where her records have cumulatively sold over 100 million units worldwide. Through her years at Sony, Carey had been a consistent top seller, with her best, 1995's Daydream, topping out at 24 million units worldwide, while her last for the label, Rainbow, sold 6.8 million. (Hits Daily Double)
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