Mariah Carey has been gracing the music industry with her catchy tunes for three decades, establishing herself as one of the most iconic singer-songwriters of all time and becoming one of the best-selling female artists ever. From her self-titled debut album in 1990 to her most recent project Caution, the diva supreme has managed to surpass Elvis Presley for the most No. 1 singles by a solo artist on the Hot 100 with "Touch My Body", and is now only second to The Beatles. She was even one of Forbes' top-earning women in music, conquering the ninth spot in 2015.
With eighteen No. 1s and twenty-eight top 10 hits, Carey's career simply doesn't need anymore accolades to prove her five-octave vocal range or her songwriting abilities to produce a bop at any given moment. In fact, Mariah Carey could throw in the towel and still remain a timeless legend because she not only blurred the lines between pop and hip-hop, but she also paved the way for greats like Beyonce, Christina Aguilera and Rihanna.
So does it really matter if her fifteenth studio album, Caution, garners the No. 1 spot on the Billboard 200 albums chart? The obvious answer to any chart aficionado would be a definite yes, but the soul powerhouse shouldn't be limited by numbers - seeing that she has broken so many records that the modern artist today could only wish to accomplish a fraction of what she has achieved.
Carey has always been ahead of her time, and that's what has lead her to become a household name. For instance, before hip-hop and R&B became the dominant genres in music, the singer had already established a relationship with the genres from the beginning of her career. Elements of soul were seen in "Emotions" and "Visions of Love" before she had any major features to add to her already soulful palette.
Carey tapped R&B hitmaker Babyface to assist her with the 1993 album Music Box, helping co-produce and co-write her fourth single, "Never Forget You". The record also featured some impressive sample credits, including "Blind Alley" by The Emotions - Grammy-Award winning R&B girl group - on the lead single, "Dreamlover". Other noteworthy samples include "Synthetic Substitution" by Melvin Bliss and Slave's "Just a Touch of Love" on the track, "I've Been Thinking About You". It should be noted that "Synthetic Substitution" is a famous sample recognized in some of hip-hop's most iconic songs such as N.W.A.'s "Real N*ggaz Don't Die," and sampled in over 94 songs, respectively.
The "With You" artist went on to create the emotional ballad "One Sweet Day" in 1995 with the help of mega boy band, Boyz II Men. Featured on Carey's fifth studio album Daydream, the collab went on to spend the most weeks at No. 1 on the Hot 100 ever for a single before Luis Fonsi, Daddy Yankee and Justin Bieber tied for the longest run with "Despacito".
This is also when she first linked up with Jermaine Dupri, who co-wrote and produced two songs - "Always Be My Baby" and "Long Ago" - for the album. While many consider Carey a pop star, she began to prove in the mid-90s that she was a R&B/hip-hop artist at a core, paying homage to it at every opportunity she was given.
The soulful preface of tracks paved the way for Carey's future, leading her to work with some of hip-hop's finest like Diddy, Missy Elliott, Prince and Dru Hill on "Honey" for Butterfly as well as her guest-heavy record, Rainbow, that included JAY-Z, Snoop Dogg, Mystikal, Master P, Usher, Joe, Da Brat, Missy Elliott (once again), DJ Clue? and 98 Degrees.
The talented songstress switched it up and went retro with the funky record Glitter, but still managed to include an array of MCs - Ludacris, Ja Rule, Nate Dogg, Busta Rhymes and Fabolous - on the album. While the soundtrack album didn't receive critically acclaimed reviews, it still performed on the charts - peaking at No. 1 for three weeks on the Soundtrack charts. This past week, the soundtrack album resurged when Lambily drove it to No. 1 on the iTunes Albums Chart and re-entered the Soundtrack charts at No. 14 (dated November 24), making the #JusticeForGlitter campaign a complete victory for Lambs everywhere.
It wasn't until "The Emancipation of Mimi" that Carey impeccably perfected the mix of pop, R&B and hip-hop on one body of work while also simultaneously bringing soul and gospel components to the project. She once again joined forces with Jermaine Dupri for standout tracks, "It's Like That" and "We Belong Together", and expanded her list of collaborators by working with Kanye West, Pharrell Williams, Nelly and Twista.
What some consider her "comeback album", the tenth studio album hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart as well as the Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. The singer-songwriter accomplished such a perfect balance of pop, R&B and hip-hop that she almost created an entirely new genre for herself, and one that no one could ever really emulate - and haven't, yet.
Mariah's relationship with hip-hop and R&B stays true, seeing that she never left the genre out of her music and/or stopped working with rappers and R&B artists to go "more" pop to appeal to the masses (as many other artists have done and get called out for today). Instead, she spearheaded the movement throughout the years and could definitely be considered one of the most loyal pioneers of the genres.
She consistently proves time and time again that the genres are part of who she is and the type of music she's passionate about. Even after nearly thirty years, her discography remains consistent because she doesn't stray away from her roots and her evolvement is most evident in how she singlehandedly takes direction with her projects.
Caution is a record that showcases Carey's best, and it serves her so well. Her R&B-heavy album is cohesive, honest and sequential in a very effective way. Ty Dolla $ign, Slick Rick and Blood Orange are all great contributions to the project, demonstrating her decades-long loyalty and love for R&B/hip-hop by handpicking artists who are currently impacting the genre.
Whether or not Carey hits No. 1 on the charts, she's at a place in her career where it doesn't really matter if she garners another hit record because her tremendous success has set her up to create music she loves producing. She's at a point where she doesn't have to appeal to the masses, but consistently does either way. So all in all, let the queen make music for her most loyal of fans, but more importantly, for herself.
(Forbes)
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