Mariah Carey Biography
Music Producer, Film Actress, Songwriter, Singer a a great story with an exceptional woman
Early Life
Singer
Mariah Carey was born March 27, 1970, in Huntington, Long Island, New
York,
to Alfred Roy Carey, a Venezuelan aeronautical engineer; and
Patricia Carey,
a voice coach and opera singer. Has two older siblings: a
brother, Morgan, and a sister, Alison. Carey
is known as one of the
top "pop divas" of the 1990s, having sold more than 80 million albums
worldwide. Her voice spans more than five octaves and she writes most of
her own music.
Carey's parents divorced when she was 3 years
old. She stunned her mother by imitating her operatic singing as early
as age two, and was given singing lessons starting at age four. After
graduating in 1987 from Harborfields High School in Greenlawn,
New York,
Carey moved to Manhattan where she worked as a waitress, coat check
girl, and studied cosmetology while writing songs and actively pursuing a
music career at night.
Early Music Career
When
she was 18 years old, Carey and her friend, singer Brenda K. StarrMariah Carey (1990) which included four No. 1
singles: "Vision of Love,Emotions was released in 1992
; the title track became her fifth No. 1 single, and included hits "Can't Let Go"
and "Make it Happen."
" "Love Takes Time
," "Some Day,"
and "I Don't
Wanna Cry."
Her second album
,
went to a party hosted by CBS Records. Starr convinced Carey to bring
along one of her demo tapes. She intended to give the tape to
Columbia's Jerry Greenberg, but Tommy Mottola, the president of
Columbia Records (later Sony), intercepted it before she could hand it
to Greenberg. After listening to the tape on the way home from the
party, Mottola signed Carey immediately and set her to work on her
first album, Mariah Carey
(1990) which included four No. 1 singles: "Vision of Love," "Love
Takes Time," "Some Day," and "I Don't Wanna Cry." Her second album Emotions was released in 1992; the title track became her fifth No. 1 single, and included hits "Can't Let Go" and "Make it Happen."
Success on the Pop Charts
In March 1992, Carey appeared on MTV's Unplugged.
This performance was released as an album and a home video, resulting
in another No. 1 single (a cover of The Jacksons' "I'll Be There")Music Box (1993)The Jacksons' "I'll Be There"
cut back a bit on the lavish
studio production techniques heard in her previous albums, and included
the No. 1 singles, "Dreamlover" and "Hero." Her November 1994 release
Merry ChristmasMerry Christmas combined traditional Christian hymns with new songs. In 1995 she released
Daydream;
the first single "Fantasy" debuted at No. 1. It also included
collaborations with R&B and hip-hop artists, such as Wu-Tang Clan
and Boyz II Men ("One Sweet Day").
. Her
next album
Her 1997 album,
Butterfly,
included 11 compositions written by Carey, and demonstrated her
continued interest in hip-hop and R&B, including the Sean "Puffy"
Combs-produced "Honey," her 12th No. 1 hit. Carey's 1998 album,
#1's,
featured her 13 previous chart-topping singles as well as the Academy
Award-nominated "The Prince of Egypt (When You Believe)," a duet with
fellow pop diva Whitney Houston.
Overcoming Obstacles
In
July 2001, Carey was admitted into a New York-area hospital and put
under psychiatric care after suffering what her publicists called a
"physical and emotional collapse." Carey had been preparing to promote
her upcoming feature film debut,
Glitter, and its accompanying soundtrack album, but cancelled all public appearances. The release of
Glitter was subsequently pushed back from late August to late September 2001.
Carey was released from the hospital after two weeks.
In
January 2002, Carey and EMI (the corporate owner of Virgin Records,
with whom Carey had signed a reported $80 million contract in April
2001) severed their relationship. Though the film and soundtrack for
Glitter
failed to generate the desired box office and sales totals, Carey
reportedly walked away from Virgin with nearly $50 million as part of
her severance agreement. In May 2002, she signed a deal with Universal
Music Group's Island/Def Jam Records. In December 2002, Carey staged a
comeback with her eighth album,
Charmbracelet,
which debuted
in third place on the charts. The record's accompanying tour, her first
in more than three years, launched in June 2003.
In Recent Years
In 2012, Carey was chosen as a new judge for season 12 of the popular FOX television show
American Idol, taking a seat alongside Randy Jackson, Nicki Minaj and Keith Urban.
Carey
has sold around 160 million albums worldwide. She is the third
best-selling female artist of all time, according to the Recording
Industry Association of America. With 2008’s
Touch My Body
(from her eleventh studio album E=MC²),
Carey passed Elvis Presley to become second only to the Beatles for the most No. 1 hit singles in the United States.
Outside
of her music career, Carey is active in fundraising for The Fresh Air
Fund, an independent nonprofit agency that has provided free summer
vacations to more than 1.6 million disadvantaged New York City
children since 1877.
In January 2015, Carey inked a deal to become the latest diva songstress to take up residency in Las Vegas beginning in May.
take up residency in Las Vegas beginning in May
Personal Life
In
June 1993, Carey married Mottola in a spectacular ceremony at
Manhattan's St. Thomas Episcopal Church.
The couple divorced in 1998.
Carey then dated Latin singer Luis Miguel for three years, but their
relationship reportedly ended in the summer of 2001.
Carey
married rapper/actor/talent show host Nick Cannon on April 30, 2008, in a
secret ceremony in the Bahamas.
The couple had been dating for less
than two months, their romance having blossomed after he appeared in her
music video for "Bye Bye." In 2011, Carey and Cannon welcomed twins
Moroccan and Monroe.
After six years of marriage, in August 2014, the
couple announced their separation. It was also reported that a
confidentiality agreement was issued that bars discussing the details of
their split publicly. In January 2015, it was reported that Cannon
officially filed for divorce.