Friday 25 January 2002

Mariah eyes cheap deal

Fallen pop princess Mariah Carey is in talks with fabled Def Jam records for a two-album deal at $3 million to $5 million per album, a source told The Post yesterday - a far cry from her previous five-album deal for $80 million. Carey was unceremoniously dumped by record label EMI earlier this week, but managed to bank $49 million from her deal after one failed album. After Carey left Sony's Columbia Records last year, she signed with EMI in April. She was paid $21 million up front to sign the $80 million contract. After her first EMI album, "Glitter", sold a dismal 500,000 copies, the label paid her $28 million in severance to end their contract.

One well-placed record industry source said Def Jam - the legendary hip-hop label founded by Russell Simmons and sold to Universal Records in 1999 - is now talking to Carey about the much more modest two-album deal. The source said Carey is talking directly to Def Jam CEO and President Lyor Cohen. A Def Jam spokeswoman said she was unaware of any such talks, and said Cohen was unreachable. The source said most in the music business think Carey can still be a bankable star. "Sony did a great job with her and recognized her talent, but this time, whether it was her management or her record company, they just weren't up to the task," the industry source said.

(Page Six)

Many thanks to MariahC.nu.



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