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About Rod from Philippines: I remember in 1990 a nephew of mine, who was 6 years older than me, was trying to make me listen to a "dubbed" cassette tape of his favorite songs that he had in his walkman. The song "Vision Of Love" was playing. He was saying to me that the girl singing was the hottest new artist in the US at that time. I didn't pay much attention to her or the song. I was not interested. Then in 1991, I saw the music video of "Love Takes Time" on a hit chart show on local TV here. I instantly liked the song after watching. But not until early 1994, when I first heard the song "Hero" playing on the radio in a diner where my high school friends and I used to hang out after classes, that I really grew fond of and eventually fell in love with her and her music. Now I am a Mariaholic!

Disappearing posts (36,177) by Rod from Philippines Not sure if this post will ever appear here but I've posted a response to Stacey's "One more thing, Rod (36,161)" post and Eric, the webmaster, just doesn't want to post it. (Now, he's very much involved in this, thanks to Stacey's connivance with him.) I'm gonna drag this issue here and on your Facebook page, Eric, until you post that message. I strongly believe that fredom of speech must never be suppressed. [...] (Tuesday 28 August 2012; 16:38)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) Chart Update (36,176) by Rod from Philippines MediaBase airplay for Triumphant (Get 'Em) currently stands at 5.476 million. That's a 0.3 million gain from yesterday's update. It's currently Top 40 on Urban and Top 50 on Rhythmic. On iTunes US, the single is hanging at #792 while the video sits at #42. (Tuesday 28 August 2012; 16:12)

Re: The album or song (36,160) (36,168) by Rod from Philippines Geezy, for me, it's the song Hero that really drew me in to her. Whenever I hear Hero, it takes me back to that time when I first really cared about the singer singing the song. At that time I already liked the song Love Takes Time, but I didn't pay much attention to her or her other songs like Vision Of Love, which was the song my nephew (who's older than me) had made me listen to prior. As for the album, the first two Mariah CDs that I proudly bought with my own money from my part time job/sideline were Daydream and Mariah Carey. That was in June of 1996 and was also the start of my collecting Mariah Carey CDs. My eldest sister had already bought a Music Box CD while she was working overseas so when she came back home January of 1994, I was surprised and delighted to see (her, of course, and) the Music Box CD she brought along with the other 5 CDs. Between 1994 and 1996, my highschool/college classmate/friend (who also became a Mariah fan the same time as I did) and I, both of us surviving on our respective measly allowances, would save up some money so he could start collecting Mariah (and a few other artists') cassette tapes one by one and I (who preferred to collect CDs which were 3 times more expensive than cassettes) could buy other artists' CDs that we both like. By 1999, I was able to complete all Mariah CD albums and bought my first ever Mariah Carey CD Single, Heartbreaker. That marked the official start of my Mariah Carey collection. (Tuesday 28 August 2012; 3:04)

Re: Favorite List 3 (36,158) by Rod from Philippines Favorite Mariah Alter Ego: Bianca and Michael Caligiuri Favorite Mariah Interview: The Friday Night Project with Justin Lee Collins and Alan Carr Favorite Artist/s I wish Mariah to collaborate with: Peter Cetera, Russell Hitchcock of Air Supply, Toni Braxton, Beyonce, Patti LaBelle, Aretha Franklin, Stevie Wonder, Bono of U2 and Janet Jackson (Monday 27 August 2012; 17:30)

Re: You Need Me (rock-influence) and Prisoner (rap-influence) (36,157) by Rod from Philippines Love Takes Time was the second single from the self-titled debut album. Two other singles, Someday and I Don't Wanna Cry respectively, were released by the record label Columbia (the Sony outfit in the US) after that. Then came the Emotions album. I just can't find the logic or any merit in this statement, "rumors that Prisoner was supposed to be Mariah's next single after Love Takes Time, but Sony decided to release Emotions (her second album)" because 2 singles were released after Love Takes Time before the second album, Emotions, was even released. And I think even in other countries (from different continents) such as UK, Australia, Japan and here in The Philippines (not sure about the countries in South America and Africa), the succession of single releases was very similar to that of in the US with the exception of the UK which had There's Got To Be A Way as the 5th single from the debut album. I wasn't a fan then when Mariah came out in 1990, so I don't really know for sure what the rumors circling around were back then, but the good thing about collecting her items is that you get to go back somehow to a certain era in Mariah's long standing music career, know the history of a song/single and with some research from verifiable sources be able to distinguish facts from plain rumors and even rumors with absolutely no merit. (Monday 27 August 2012; 17:03)

(Belated) Happy Birthday, Zachary! (36,152) by Rod from Philippines Many returns on your birthday. (Monday 27 August 2012; 2:32)

Re: TJ, Rod (36,148) (36,150) by Rod from Philippines Have you checked your posts here lately, Stacey? Or do I need to ask Eric to purge the other pages aside from the last 4 that can be accessed here still? "None of my comments were snide toward anyone on this subject." Please! Does this quote from your post (36,124) ring a bell to you? "The audacity of some to question another's dedication to MC blows my mind. Who do some of you guys think you are? Ugh. If I don't like something, I am going to say it. That does not change my support of MC. Crap, I've been a fan longer than most of you have been alive, lol. Believe it. I love how quickly folks judge others as fairweather fans based on one opinion of a song, one opinion. You mean to tell me you love every version of every song she's ever recorded? There is not a song out there you don't like? Yeah ok. I don't expect MC to hit #1 each time. Most of the songs I've listened to recently weren't #1. She's been so successful for so long, I honestly don't care if she hits #1 or not. I live in reality." Not everyone in this fan board is righteous and in denial as you are! We both speak our minds here. The only difference between you and me is that I'm not a hypocrite and I own up to whatever I say here or elsewhere. So much for conducting properly on public messageboards! (Monday 27 August 2012; 1:54)

Re: Favorite List 2 (36,145) by Rod from Philippines Favorite Albums: Music Box, Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel, E=MC2 and Daydream Favorite Album Track: When I Saw You Favorite Tracks that should have been Singles: Migrate, Stay The Night, Side Effects Favorite Promo Single: Underneath The Stars Favorite #1 Songs: We Belong Together, One Sweet Day, Always Be My Baby and Touch My Body Most Underrated Singles: Triumphant (Get 'Em), Up Out My Face Favorite Bonus Tracks: Miss You (Feat. Jadakiss) Favorite B-Side: There For Me Favorite Vocal Performance: Forever Favorite High Notes: Bliss and Emotions Favorite Videos: It's Like That/We Belong Together, Butterfly, Touch My Body and Heartbreaker Funniest Videos: Touch My Body and Heartbreaker Favorite Remake/Cover: Open Arms Favorite Collaboration: One Sweet Day (With Boyz II Men) Favorite Gospel Song: Fly Like A Bird Favorite Holiday Songs: All I Want For Christmas Is You and O Holy Night Favorite Dance Mix: Loverboy (MJ Cole Remix) Favorite Urban Remix: My All/Stay Awhile Favorite Era: Daydream (Sunday 26 August 2012; 22:38)

Re: Favorite List 1 (36,143) by Rod from Philippines Fav song: There For Me Most underrated single: Triumphant (Get 'Em) Fav duet that should have been at least a top 10 hit: When You Believe (with Whitney Houston) Fav live performance: Open Arms (Sacree Soiree) Fav Album: Music Box Fav perfume: M Fav style or era: Daydream Fav video: It's Like That/We Belong Together Fav Club Mix: Loverboy (MJ Cole Remix) Fav album cover: Butterfly Fav guest rapper: Mystikal Fav remix: Always Be My Baby (Mr. Dupri Extended Mix Featuring Da Brat And Xscape) Fav song from movie: Never Too Far Fav movie: Wisegirls Fav high note: Bliss (Sunday 26 August 2012; 22:14)

Re: Get over it already (36,134) (36,142) by Rod from Philippines Criticism of people on this site needs to stop? This isn't Nazi Germany or communist North Korea. Get over yourself! If a "stan" wants to kiss Mariah's a$$, it is his/her right to do so as it is your right as a "fan" to criticize Mariah for her so called mistakes. You're right about "stans" accusing "fans" of not being true because they're critical and yes, too critical of Mariah. But you also forgot to mention that "fans" also ridicule and mock "stans" and "lambs" alike for liking Mariah's a$$ everytime or not being critical about her mistakes. Or was that intentional? (Sunday 26 August 2012; 21:50)

Re: Thoughts (36,124) Part 2 (36,141) by Rod from Philippines Fourth, every snide remark I make here is targeted to everyone who thinks they are 1. guilty of the crime and 2. being targeted. They usually are the first ones to overreact. I've seen some people here throw snide remarks too including you. But I don't see them crying wolf over it as much as you and your friends here do though. Fifth, liking/disliking a Mariah song is subjective. Judging the quality of a Mariah song is also subjective. Chart position only reflects the popularity of a song. Popularity is never a measure of quality. When a song hits #1 on Billboard or any other chart, it doesn't always mean that the song is good in everyone's ears. It only means it's the most popular song. Or when a song charts in the lower half or doesn't chart at all, it doesn't always mean that the song is bad. You can like/dislike any Mariah song you want. You can criticize Mariah all you want. No one's stopping you. But with every opinion/criticism you make here on a Mariah message/fan board whether it's about a Mariah song or Mariah herself comes (though not necessarily always) a counter opinion/criticism from everyone else including me. Not everyone is going to like you, your opinion or even agree with you. I just support my opinion with either facts (sales/airplay figures) or my observations/analyses so as not to make a fool of myself here. Sixth and lastly, freedom of speech is not just exercised in USA alone. And I'm not here for the Congeniality Award. I'm here to talk about Mariah. (Sunday 26 August 2012; 21:25)

Re: Thoughts (36,124) Part 1 (36,138) by Rod from Philippines First off, this statement of yours "I don't proclaim to be a die-hard fan, I am one" is contradicting. Stating you are one (die hard fan) on a public message board which also happens to be a Mariah fan board is "proclaiming" that you are a die hard Mariah fan. Brush up your English vocabulary, dear grade school teacher. Second, when you make statements such as these, "Crap, I've been a fan longer than most of you have been alive, lol. Believe it." (36,124) and "Because when you put out a so-so song (my opinion) and don't promote it right, this is what you get. I hope I'm wrong. Something tells me I'm not, though." (36,034), then you ask a question like this one "Who do some of you guys think you are?"(36,124) and finally, you make a snide remark of your own such as this one "I love how quickly folks judge others as fairweather fans based on one opinion of a song, one opinion."(36,124), it gives the impression that you are trying to imply in your statements that you know better and that you are better than most fans here. Righteous much? Third, everyone can give their opinion here. Everyone can also give their opinion on someone else's opinion. Now, if you can't handle someone else's opinion on your opinion, if you expect everyone else to take yours as fact because you "have been a fan longer than most of you have been alive" and if you expect everyone to agree with you everytime, a message/fan board such as this is not the place for you "to chat and have some fun". (Sunday 26 August 2012; 19:40)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) airplay update (36,115) by Rod from Philippines Triumphant (Get 'Em)'s airplay just crossed the 5 million mark today on MediaBase. It's currently at 5.216 million. It gained a 0.251 million impressions from yesterday's airplay. A big chunk (about 65%) of the total is from Urban and the rest is Rhythmic (about 34%) and others (1%). I hope airplay continues to increase and that the dance remixes be sent and added to Pop. (Saturday 25 August 2012; 14:21)

Re: Flaws/perception (36,114) by Rod from Philippines You hit the nail right on the head, RibbonB, with your half empty glass analogy. Most fans (self-proclaimed die hards or not) live inside this Mariah #1 bubble. That if a Mariah song, once it's released, doesn't go to number #1 instantly or if it struggles to debut on or even move its way up the charts given the circumstances at hand or the factors that come into play (which most, if not all, self-proclaimed die hard fans STILL, up to this day, have absolutely no idea of), they are the first ones to call it a flop and to ask for the next single to be released. What I find more disturbing though is that their liking for a Mariah song depends on its chart position or the absence of which. Another thing about these so called "die hard Mariah fans" that never fails to wrinkle my brow is that eventhough they have been Mariah fans for so long, have listened to her CDs, have watched her music videos, performances and interviews and have heard/seen her sing/perform live countless of times (and maybe have interacted with Mariah in person), they still can't seem to get into Mariah's head (and heart) after all these years. They are oblivious when Mariah is being serious or just having fun or even making fun of herself by poking fun at her flaws or insecurities. I guess it just really takes a "crazy" person to know one. (Saturday 25 August 2012; 13:22)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) chart update plus bonuses (36,093) by Rod from Philippines Triumphant (Get 'Em) re-enters the Billboard Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart at #67 (new peak so far) this week. It fell off the chart last week and debuted at #97 two weeks ago. That's the good news. As for the bad news, it falls off the Bubbling Under Chart (the 25-song extension to the main chart, Hot 100 Singles chart) this week. It debuted last week at #15. Bonus news: Mediabase airplay currently stands at roughly 4.6 million audience impressions. It's gaining slowly, very slowly. And 2 days into the music video world premiere, Triumphant (Get 'Em) (featuring Rick Ross & Meek Mill) rises from #865 to #437 on iTunes US. I hope airplay and downloads continue to rise as we await the first live tv performance/major promo of the song on September 5 before finally sealing the fate of this single. (Thursday 23 August 2012; 18:27)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) Video (36,071) by Rod from Philippines I enjoyed watching the music video. Mariah looked hotter than ever! It's your typical Mariah video set in a boxing ring with Meek Mill as the prizefighter, Rick Ross as the promoter and Mariah playing 3 roles - the glamorous crowd member, the ring girl and the singer with the signature hand movements hitting the high notes as gold butterfly-shaped confetti rains down upon her. The storyline is simple and bordering to literal (and corny, for some) but fitting for the message of the song. What I loved about the music video though is the references to her previous music videos - Honey, Get Your Number, Never Too Far with the yellow/gold midriff, gold tight fitting dresses and light yellow/gold sequined gown she wore respectively; Shake It Off with the glittering wall and the girly poses; It's Like That and Obsessed with the straight and wavy (with hair extensions!) hairstyles; and that shocked facial expression she had on Obsessed and most importantly, the eras they represent - Butterfly, Glitter, The Emancipation Of Mimi and Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel. They were the lowest, highest and most intimate and personal points of her life and career. They remind us all how she emerged triumphantly through the challenges. And that, for me, is the underlying visual message of the music video. (Wednesday 22 August 2012; 15:05)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) chart update (36,057) by Rod from Philippines Triumphant (Get 'Em) is the Hot Shot Debut this week on Billboard Hot Dance/Club Play at #42. It also enters Mediabase Urban Top 50 at #48 today. Audience impressions are currently at a little over 4 million. (Tuesday 21 August 2012; 15:08)

Re: Making Triumphant a number one? (36,055) by Rod from Philippines A song will not just do its own magic without the support from fans of the artist of the song first. The initial push for the new song to get noticed by the general public comes from: 1. the buzz about the new song created by fans through their feedback on music boards or fan boards such as this one, 2. the fans requesting the new song to be played on radio stations they listen to even before/once it's added and played, since the fans are the first ones to know about their favorite artist's new song and 3. the initial sales of the song (big chunk of sales comes from the fans) once it's available for download. And if a fan requests the song on radio or streams the song/video on YouTube or other music/video sites gazillion times and downloads multiple copies of the same song (or "gifts" it to others) on iTunes and other digital retail outlets (because he/she is the ultimate fan - loves and supports Mariah no matter what, has all the time in the world for Mariah, is filthy rich to afford it and is REALLY STUPID to do all these ), it is his/her prerogative as it is your prerogative to support Mariah by just purchasing a copy each of the remixes and watching the magic to happen. A song will not really become a hit by just the support of fans alone. And without the full support of fans, the song will not even have the chance to create that magic you speak of. And as for the quality of the song, it's all relative. Rubbish or not, the new song needs to be heard. (Tuesday 21 August 2012; 1:19)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) video world premiere and airplay update (36,052) by Rod from Philippines I can't wait for the music video premiering tomorrow! I hope the video premieres also on Mariah's Vevo account on YouTube so the stream would count towards Billboard. It would also help promote the single among music buying fans, who are not necessarily fans or lambs and who don't visit her official website, to download it on iTunes, Amazon or other digital retail outlets. As for other good news, Triumphant's airplay has been seeing some slow-and-steady increase in spins on Mediabase this week. It is almost 4 million audience impressions now (a new peak) and more Urban and Rhythmic radio stations have added the track on their playlist. The record label and Team Mariah are also planning to send either the Pulse Radio Edit or Vintage Throwback Radio Edit (or both) to Pop stations in the coming weeks. So, let's keep requesting the song on US radio some more and don't let 'em ever count it out just yet. (Monday 20 August 2012; 17:33)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) music video world premiere (36,039) by Rod from Philippines Just a heads up for the fans and lambs alike. The world premiere for the music video of Triumphant (Get 'Em) is scheduled on Tuesday, August 21, 2012 as per Mariah's recent tweet. Also, the "big" tv performance we are all anticipating is an hour long pre-game show (with No Doubt) at Rockefeller Plaza, NYC for the 1st NFL game this season (Giants vs. Cowboys). It will air on NBC at 7:30pm EDT on September 5, 2012. Mark your calendars! (Friday 17 August 2012; 12:57)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) analysis (36,037) by Rod from Philippines I don't think the original version of Triumphant (Get 'Em) is as bad as some fans, other casual fans and the general public (?), who didn't like it and preferred the remixes over it, would like to make it appear. Most of the feedback received for the original version were negative (too much rap, Mariah was apparently "featured" on her own single, she was again using the "whisper" and not belting much, generic and stale production, cliched lyrics, etc.) while most, if not all, of the feedback received for the dance remixes were positive (reminded fans of the old Mariah dance remixes, nice full vocals, "finally" a Mariah single with just Mariah!, etc.). Yet the original version with rap is currently outselling the dance remixes on iTunes US and worldwide. And eventhough the dance remixes were only released in certain countries so far, that's not an excuse to get 'em digitally and make it legally count towards the sales chart and the main chart. Amazon and other digital retail outlets have the dance remixes too. It's so easy to put the blame on others (rubbish single, lack of promo from Mariah herself, her team and the record label; Mariah being stubborn and not delivering what her fans and the general public would like to hear from her; etc.) for the single's poor chart performance but one thing remains a fact that can't be argued with. That is, the sales figures for the dance remixes still aren't reflecting the rave the dance remixes got when they first premiered. (Friday 17 August 2012; 12:36)

How do you solve a problem like Mariah? (36,032) by Rod from Philippines Triumphant (Get 'Em) missed the US Billboard Hot 100 Singles Chart this week and debuted at #15 on the Bubbling Under Chart instead. It also fell off the Hot 100 R&B/Hip-Hop Songs Chart this week peaking at #97. Radio has not been playing the track much since it premiered two weeks ago, though the recent official radio add date saw some increase in spins and audience impressions. (Hopefully, it continues to do so.) Digital sales of the original version and the 2 dance remixes - Vintage Throwback Remix and Pulse Club Mix - were dismal which saw the former peaking at #37 on iTunes US while the latter peaking at #294 and #352 respectively. And as of this writing, all versions are out of the Top 400 and freefalling. The video will premiere either this weekend or early next week. A "special" tv performance (finally, some promo!) is also slated in the coming weeks. Let us cross our fingers that these last few tricks up the record label's/Team Mariah's sleeves will at least breathe life to Triumphant (Get 'Em) once more or we are in for a Mariah drought for the rest of the year (unless the label does a re-release of Merry Christmas II You with some new remixes of the other potential singles/tracks) until American Idol Season 12 airs next year. (Thursday 16 August 2012; 20:00)

Triumphant (Get 'Em) Remixes (35,999) by Rod from Philippines I'm listening to the Triumphant (Get 'Em) remixes right now and I can honestly say that I like the Pulse Club Mix the best among the remixes including the extended mixes and edits. I think the Pulse Radio Edit would fit what's being played in pop radio right now. And if I were to rank the 3 versions (original and 2 remixes), the original version gets the icing on the cake, followed closely by Pulse Club Mix and lastly, Vintage Throwback Remix. (Sunday 12 August 2012; 10:00)