Mariah Carey (born March 27, 1969 or 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, actress, and record producer. Referred to as the "Songbird Supreme" by Guinness World Records, she is noted for her five-octave vocal range, melismatic singing style, and signature use of the whistle register.
She rose to fame in 1990 after signing to Columbia Records and releasing her eponymous debut album, which topped the U.S. Billboard 200 for eleven consecutive weeks. Soon after, Carey became the only artist ever to have their first five singles reach number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart, from "Vision of Love" to "Emotions".
Mariah Carey Discusses Revisiting Her Song ‘Portrait’ for Audible’s Words + Music Series, Her Unreleased Remix Project and Upcoming Album
variety.comSteven J. Horowitz Senior Music Writer In her 2020 memoir, Mariah Carey laid out her concept of time. “I live Christmas to Christmas, celebration to celebration, festive moment to festive moment, not counting my birthdays or ages,” she wrote in “The Meaning of Mariah Carey.” “Much to the chagrin of certain people.” But the singer-songwriter is quick to look back at certain moments that helped define her, time be damned, to reflect on those that shaped the person she’s become.
On her Audible Words + Music episode “Portrait of a Portrait,” available today, Carey thoroughly examines the songwriting process for “Portrait,” the closing song on her 2020 album “Caution.” Throughout the hour-plus experience, she speaks candidly of feeling stuck in a situation from which she can’t escape, and parses through how penning the song helped make sense of her situation. “I don’t know another word other than real for what that song ‘Portrait’ meant to me at that moment,” she says on the episode of the ballad, co-written with her musical director Daniel Moore. “I was completely isolated by myself and saying, let me get this off my chest and we’re going to end the album with this.
It’s still kind of a deep song to listen to.” Listeners who enter the Butterfly Lounge, as she refers to it, also get a treat in classic Mariah form: a newly recorded dance remix of “Portrait” with fresh vocals that clocks out at a hefty 15 minutes. “You know, it’s interesting.
I did love making remixes and sometimes, we didn’t get a chance to do that,” Carey tells Variety. “So I did the best I could and said, you know what?
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