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About Geronimo from USA:

Christmas is Mariah's catalogue "gateway" (107,826) by Geronimo from USA I have never been vocal about Mariah's Christmas music because it is not my favorite part of her catalogue. However, neither have I been one of those fans who have worried that her Christmas career somehow reduces her to a novelty artist. Overall, though, I currently find it delightful that her Christmas schtick will likely become for many generations to come a gateway to her very awesome catalogue, which comprises one of the densest sources of quality pop music recordings in that industry's history. (Monday 23 December 2024; 06:47)

Someone's Ugly Daughter (107,521) by Geronimo from USA I cannot wait to hear this album. The opportunity to hear what was really giving her life while she was recording top 40 safe-bets intrigues me - especially the "jokes" she has in store. (Friday 18 October 2024; 03:05)

Sex and drug trafficking is the context for pop culture (106,606) by Geronimo from USA Sex and drug trafficking is the basic context for popular culture from the military-slave economy of the 17th century Atlantic world to the organized crime-dominated New York speakeasy scene of the early days of "jazz" to the days of hair bands and "gangsta" rap. Mariah was swimming in sex trafficking and drugs against her will before Tommy, by choice with Tommy, and she was swimming in vice by choice after Tommy. Meanwhile, ethically serious musicians have always and continue to create better choices and contexts to make a living in music. They have done this, in part, by receiving inherited wealth, by pursuing something more interesting that being a star in a sky erected by moral perverts, and/or by choosing creativity and dignity over being a multi-million dollar slave to colonizers and pimps. The party animal, the pimp and ho routine, and the insecure, boy-crazy, naughty/innocent air-head tropes all need to go and our tastes must evolve. (Friday 7 June 2024; 00:48)

Missy Elliot (104,940) by Geronimo from USA I'm curious: why the comparison? They're on different albums and sound nothing alike. (Monday 15 January 2024; 04:18) this is a reply to message 104,909

Missy Elliot (104,909) by Edward from USA What I like about "Babydoll" is the beat, it hits hard. In my humble opinion, it's a way better song than "Stay the Night" which I always skip. (Friday 12 January 2024; 17:58)

Griot Award (104,239) by Geronimo from USA Congratulations to Mariah for the Griot [sic] Award. It is so refreshing to see her in her element. Jennifer Hudson's tribute was an event to itself as it should be. (Sunday 26 November 2023; 22:05)

Fandom base (103,550) by Geronimo from USA The question about straight male fans is an interesting one. The question is not essentially about what MC fans are doing with their genitalia, but, in part, how MC's "brand significance" to gay/queer consumers impacts her straight male fans who love her today like Tupac loved her in the 90s. There is an impact whether or not anyone thinks there should be an impact. Thus, the conversation elicits interest. (Friday 22 September 2023; 17:36) this is a reply to message 103,539

Fandom base (103,539) by Andrew from the UK What bearing does sexual orientation (or "where people put their penis") and intersectionality have on anything? Why does it matter where the males that like Mariah Carey's music put their penis? I have known gay people that do not like her music. I have known straight people that do. I have never felt the need to discuss Mariah Carey and where they put their penis in any conversation. In the same respect, if you have ever known people who star in musical theatre you will routinely find that round half of them are straight and constantly get targetted and belittled for their work - by people who think it appropriate to discuss their sexuality and the associations. Who should be the least offended in these circumstances? The straight persons for being singled out for liking something "not macho"? Or the gay person for hearing that the preference itself is not macho and therefore assigned only to gay people by third parties? I think both parties have an equal claim to outrage. In regards to this board, I could not care less where the men on it put their penises nor where the women and intersex persons on it do with their own genitalia. To paraphrase a Stonewall slogan: "Most people are straight - get over it." (Tuesday 19 September 2023; 08:02)

Article: Why Mariah Carey matters (103,549) by Geronimo from USA Did the article really need to be summarized with an uninformed reference to M.E. Dyson? No. The winsome article was written clearly enough for literate people in the habit of reading about certain intersections of ethnic and queer identities in the 20th and 21st centuries. (Friday 22 September 2023; 17:25) this is a reply to message 103,545

Article: Why Mariah Carey matters (103,545) by Andrew from the UK What an absolute mess of an article. I thought Michael Dyson was the master of lumping a dozen clever sounding words together to sound intellectual whilst tinting the sentiment with post-modern intersectional politics and dusting with tropes conjured recently in the halls of academia. But this queer takes the win. Let me sum it up: Mariah wrote songs about feeling lonely and ostracised whilst young for having an immutable characteristic. Gay people at that age feel ostracised whilst young for having an immutable charactistic. Ergo: Mariah was important to gay people back then and so is loved by them still. What a pretentious queer. Further, I dare say my above use of the word "queer" above probably made most people here feel a little uncomfortable. But, hey, if the movement is saying it's a so-called reclaimed word and we just have to accept it, then I will call people who use that disgusting word to reference other people (for whom it was a painful pejorative) that exact word. (Thursday 21 September 2023; 02:38)

Emotionally stiff (103,010) by Geronimo from USA I agree with you that some people got a pass while Mariah was being disparaged for formulaic and schmaltzy ballads that came off as emotionally flat. But Mariah was definitely guilty of this especially during the Emotions and Music Box era. Some of that material was very catchy, but very cliché at the same time. Some vocal performances from that time period - especially on recordings - focused on frenetic but impressive vocal gymnastics that appeal to people who prefer Hallmark card sentiments and adult contemporary/romantic comedy kitch. Daydream is when I really started falling in love with Mariah Carey as a creative singer-songwriter. She started making more intelligent musical "choices" as a vocalist then and begin to sound more like a creative person with something other than skill and novelty to offer. In other words, the artist I thought she foreshadow it on her debut album took centerstage by the time Butterfly came out. (Friday 14 July 2023; 01:48) this is a reply to message 102,998

Emotionally stiff (102,998) by Andrew from the UK Celine is an awesome vocalist. You know I love me some Celine, mate. But when she does her soft cooey emotional soft voice, I cringe. Perhaps it is the Britishness in me but it makes me very uncomfortable. And watching her do it on stage doubles the pain with her faux-emotional staring into the distance. Whitney never got this nonsense. But listen to her records and find emotion in them. She bellows everything. Her contributions to The Bodyguard sountrack are obnoxious bellowing. Where was the criticism of Whitney bellowing IWALY? She shouts the whole bloody thing. And Run To You. And I Have Nothing. There's no emotion in these songs at all. Mariah, no cringey over-emoting and no over-shouting. (Wednesday 12 July 2023; 00:28)

Female singers (102,577) by Geronimo from USA The real question is simply, "Did Tommy Mottola make you think you liked Mariah Carey, or did he make sure you had a chance to discover if you liked Mariah Carey during her vocal rather than artistic prime?" If we only describe Mariah's success in terms of record sales, then, yes, Tommy's relationship to her success remains a valid topic for conversation. But if you base your understanding of her success on the long and difficult process of transforming her raw talent and creative drive into a form that true fans have loved to experience for the 35 years, then you have to give credit where credit is due. (Wednesday 19 April 2023; 00:32) this is a reply to message 102,575

Female singers (102,575) by Bill from the UK "Marrying Tommy was a massive mistake because it meant she had zero separation between her personal and professional life, a recipe for burnout. And when it became clear that Tommy was sabotaging her during the 1998-2001 period, she had to work that much harder." No one likes to say it, but the other side to this is that marrying Tommy made her lose a lot of credibility. There was a question mark over her success because she was cleverly married to the boss of the record company. If Tommy could quite easily sabotage her career, he could quite easily make her successful. Her most successful years 1993-1997. The years she was Tommy's wife? 1993-1997. (Tuesday 18 April 2023; 20:19)

New picture (102,167) by Geronimo from USA Since she is an American woman over 50 years old who also takes medications with well-known complications, the dynamics of her body weight are not interesting from my point of view. (Wednesday 1 February 2023; 22:06) this is a reply to message 102,164

New picture (102,164) by Randy from USA I struggle with weight. I can't imagine what it's like to be in the public eye with paparazzi outside your building. But why does it seem MCs weight goes up and down so much and so quickly. Maybe this is a bad angle. But I swear it reminds me of the parody Debra Wilson and MadTV did with the "I'm Not Insane" where she sings the line as MC, "Although my weight, does fluctuate." Any thoughts on this phenomenon where MC goes from a size 6 to a size 16 in a matter of two months? (Wednesday 1 February 2023; 02:11)

MC's sexiest video (101,966) by Geronimo from USA My All is sexy but I think The Roof is sexier. (Tuesday 27 December 2022; 14:41) this is a reply to message 101,965

MC's sexiest video (101,965) by Bobby A from United States I was thinking about the male model today in My All. His name is Matt King. He is still modeling today. I would have to say that My All is MC's sexiest video that she has ever made. I may be wrong, so what do the Lambs think? (Tuesday 27 December 2022; 13:58)

Why repeat and highlight the painfully obvious? (101,861) by Geronimo from USA We can all see Mariah Carey is not in a good place. I'd greatly appreciate a thoughtful explanation of the intended function of serializing goats' and lambs' riveting forensic takes on the tragic "farce" of it all ad nauseam when no one knows enough to shed light on what is actually happening with Mariah Carey. (Saturday 17 December 2022; 00:29)

Re: Full of grace (101,446) (101,454) by Geronimo from USA I'm not sure if this is quite accurate, Terna. In the first minute of this song I think her anxiety and insecurity shows through her neurotic melodic phrasing. None of the phrases that she sings in the first minute have an intelligent melodic ending that gives her interpretation of the lines any character or definition. There's a lot of unnecessary and noncommittal melisma that she would probably avoid were she's not so anxious. There is a kind of hackneyed parallelism to the last word of each sentence that gets really annoying and you can tell she's making these decisions at the last minute when there's nowhere else to go vocally. This has always bothering me about some of her performances during that period. I think with some of the resonance that she used to have - that smooth, buttery and broad vibrato - having vanished into thin air, she just tatters the end of each sentence with a bunch of unnecessary predictable filagree. I think the transition to "somewhere over the rainbow" is quite unique and I think it works really well. But, I also think she planned it in advance - which, of course, is a good thing. Overall, though, I like the texture and flexibility of her voice in this performance, but her judgment about vocal silence and motion is off and completely makes me anxious while watching this performance. (Saturday 15 October 2022; 03:09) this is a reply to message 101,446

Full of grace (101,446) by Terna from Nigeria This is the Mariah I [fell in love with]. That entrance, the raw 100% live singing, husk, rasppiness and all. Then the confidence on stage, not bothering to look pretty nor have good angles for the lighting (notice her exit after that beautiful applause was on her "bad side", no insecurity there). Where did this Mariah Carey go to? Today she really isn't this girl singing here anymore. That line she sings on Candy Bling though, "I'm the same Mimi, fame ain't changed me". Yeah [right] Mariah. Still got love for her though, that will never change. (Thursday 13 October 2022; 20:34)

Re: Just a thought, let's be kind (101,400) (101,405) by Geronimo from USA What a great post. Thank you for this. It is quite mystifying that people over the age of nine need to hear such a simple, common sense message - especially the delusional "no, we just want Mariah to be her best self" crowd who think we don't know the difference between encouragement, nostalgia, and abuse. I agree with you 100%. Let's all do unto Mariah Carey according to what we would want our own supporters to do us - especially on public message-boards. (Wednesday 5 October 2022; 13:15)

Re: Nicki Minaj thanked Mariah (101,091) (101,094) by Geronimo from USA I don't think your messages sounds negative at all. You're just having a conversation. You do sound a little paranoid to me framing your comments in this way, though. But anyway, I would love to know how you thought that beef was Maria's fault. I don't recall getting much information one way or the other. (Monday 29 August 2022; 19:36)

Re: If it was Whitney? (101,070) (101,082) by Geronimo from USA You expressed my sentiments exactly except on one point - what exactly is it that you're calling experimental R&B? I love R&B and I would love to hear Mariah Carey experiment. I don't feel like I've heard the latter from her. (Monday 29 August 2022; 03:29)

Re: Negativity (101,075) (101,080) by Geronimo from USA Very well said. I completely agree with you about Christmas. I get that she needs to focus on money because, depending on your lifestyle and your location and your other responsibilities, that simply is how life is. There are some other nuanced things I would like to say about her overall well-being and aesthetic as a maturing lady lately, but I'm gonna wait until I can find the right words because doing so in a sloppy way will simply add to the brutish negativity that needs to disappear. (Monday 29 August 2022; 03:26)

Re: Nick Cannon (101,058) (101,059) by Geronimo from USA Going on and on about Nick Cannon's reproductive habits on Mariah's fan page is weird. How in the world is a black man's family life any of your business to the extent that you need to go on and on about what you imagine his psychological profile must be? It's weird that you don't feel weird doing that. Having said that, yes. I wish I didn't have to read about his behavior or his thoughts anywhere because what I do know is more than what I would like to know. But my goodness, can we not just look away and whistle - at least out of respect for... oh, yes of course, Mariah Carey? (Friday 26 August 2022; 22:55)

Re: Article: Mariah Carey wants to trademark "Queen of Christmas" (101,009) (101,019) by Geronimo from USA Your comments make no sense in reference to a world famous and iconic artist over 30 years in the pop culture business. This whiney exercise in gratuitous negativity is beyond tiresome at this point. (Tuesday 23 August 2022; 03:04)

Re: Collaborations (100,445) (100,447) by Geronimo from USA I agree and disagree with you. Her voice was not in great shape when she recorded Caution. I believe that she has said so herself. But, I don't think the heart and soul of her artistry is reducible to either 1) the current state of her instrument as such or 2) a never-ending balancing act between the preferences of former fans who won't go away but pine for the sounds she made a quarter of a century ago combined, somehow, with whatever is left of she would like to pursue in this actual millennia. I think she should completely ignore everyone's expectations at this point. If a fan in 2022 literally does not want Mariah Carey to do Mariah Carey without any external influence other than what she chooses, then it is not quite clear to me what it means to respect an actual artist. Let us not forget that some fans still think the hip-hop elements from the very beginning of her career are merely race-baiting marketing ploys on her part while our Long Island girl is somehow most truly the grown woman in pigtails running through fields of flowers in cut-off denim shorts. For real. I get the feeling a lot of Mariah Carey fans only appreciate her to the extent that her star shines in someone else's sky and lends her light to retail consumers who want to be vindicated through Mariah Carey's good press in the eyes their own peers. That strikes me as an odd way to be a fan of an artist who's been in the game since the presidency of George H. W Bush. That kind of fan/artist relationship, as far as I can see, is a commodity as fetish relationship that doesn't quite do justice to the kind of artist Mariah Carey has always been becoming. Obviously, Mariah Carey wants to do business. But at this point in her career, it simply makes no sense to try to please anyone but her own creative urges. I'm always going to be down for her-doing-her much more than Mariah straddling the fence on every other track in the hopes that fans of Hero, Always be my Baby, and Forever will grant her enough forbearance to stop painting by numbers. I mean, think about it: if Mariah Carey said, once and for all, "screw it all, I am simply going to make the album that I want to hear," do you think you'd love it and look forward to more, or hate and it and hope a woman in her 50s reverts to being preoccupied with market trends and Billboard stats in the fourth decade of an already world historical career? That how I see it. (Wednesday 15 June 2022; 02:12)

Re: Collaborations (100,438) (100,442) by Geronimo from USA I completely agree with you. There are a lot of negative neurotic fans who just use "love" for Mariah Carey as an excuse to draw attention to themselves when no one would be paying much attention to them otherwise. This is the third decade of an entirely new century and there are clowns out there who still believe the 1990s were Mariah Carey's creative peak when, in fact, she was literally just a few years into her 20s and full-time career in general. I am glad she had those early commercial successes, though. I can acknowledge that being a 21 year old hit maker from a poor and dysfunctional family in sexist America was a dream come true. At the same time, however, those platinum years have become an albatross around the neck of a woman talented enough to be just barely coming into a mature artistic creativity right about now. Albums like Butterfly, Rainbow, Charmbracelet, Emancipation, and Caution - not to mention utterly unique recordings like the Daydream Interlude and the entire tradition of remixes she introduced - have really brilliant material on them. On every album, her highlights definitely outshine the lesser cuts. I know it sounds judgmental but it's true. Not everyone has good taste and not all of Mariah Carey's musical choices were her best judgment. There is simply something immature and shallow about fans - almost 30 years late - seriously pining for while being actively disappointed over the ending of the days when Mariah Carey's voice was a technical freak of nature while her lyrical content too often could have been produced by a precocious six grader, and the music itself too often suitable for sexually frustrated soccer moms and their mall-rat kids vacillating between Precious Moments and Christina Aguilera. (Monday 13 June 2022; 23:52)

Re: The dress bit (100,087) (100,103) by Geronimo from USA You're totally right about a desert full of newbies at the Grammy awards. At the same time, though, I thought it was a combination of clever and cute that two artists I know nothing about and care even less about found Mariah and Whitney's super corny skit interesting enough to emulate. Back in the day I thought that was a pointless demonstration of Mariah Carey's lack of acting shops in addition to a rare lapse in comedic insight on her part. I find it interesting, though, that something I believed was best forgotten actually represents a "cultural moment" to commercial machine artists today. (Thursday 7 April 2022; 00:22)

Re: Tommy the racist (99,764) (99,765) by Geronimo from USA No harm done. I research and teach the stuff so I know how badly the United States school system has prepared students to know our own social history. Not that I'm assuming you are from the United States. Tommy Mottola is definitely a classic US American record industry exploiter. I can't speak to his personal feelings or intentions - which are irrelevant. It's simply the role he positioned himself to play and proceeded to play to the tune of millions of bucks. Anybody seeking to get rich and famous with these major record labels plays one role or another in a race-aesthetic vaudeville circus. But I'm sure Tommy gets along just fine with a certain type of ethnic artist under ideal circum$tance$. (Wednesday 23 February 2022; 18:54)

Re: Tommy the racist (99,758) (99,763) by Geronimo from USA Wow, Bill. I get the sense that you didn't mean to but you just offered a great example of how capitalism, sexism, class, and racism informed Mattola's approach to Mariah Carey's early career and continues to shape how many of the "nostalgic ones" still yearn for her most marketable years. Impressive. Personally, I wouldn't argue whether or not doing so makes him a racist. It's obvious enough to those who know and futile for those who don't want to know. Still, understanding racism, accommodating racism, enriching yourself from cultural racism, enriching your company and your multi ethnic spouse through your expertise in managing impressions about racial aesthetics - that's as Amerikan as apple pie. The reference to shining shoes is undoubtedly a US American racial slur tied directly to the history of shoe shining, personal service, zoning and other laws, and social customs in the U.S. that restricted African-Americans to menial labor. Most people, including United States citizens, are not steeped in the cultural heritage of the time from which that racial slur originates so I say the above without any intention to shame. Still, a lot of people (from my country) understand that it is is a racist term but pretend not to know under the assumption that the racist origin of the slur cannot be proven. But any white man of Mottola's generation in the United States of Italian heritage who says that about a black man who is not a shoe shiner is without a doubt attempting to assert their purported racist superiority according to the state of racism in the United States as it existed when a wave of Italian immigrants entered the US and displaced African-American shoe-shining, barbering, and catering businesses in major US cities in the 19th century. Whether or not the shoe fits, Tommy is wearing it. (Wednesday 23 February 2022; 01:52)

Great singers are a dime a dozen (99,385) by Geronimo from USA I remember Mariah once saying something in an interview suggesting that she knows that there are women who mop floors for a living who could sing her under the table without breaking a sweat. Ever since I've been thinking about the difference between great singers - which are clearly a dime a dozen according to those of us who have spent a significant number of Sundays in a Protestant worship service in the United States - and singers whose voices actually make a difference. Mariah Carey in her heyday was a limited singer on a few levels when compared with the vocalists who inspired her, such as the Clark Sisters, for example. But she had and continues to have a voice that actually matters - a voice that stands out from the vast majority of great singers anybody will ever hear because of her uncanny identity with the unique aspects of her instrument and its more subtle capabilities. (Thursday 6 January 2022; 20:56)

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