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About whisperingmisunderstandings from USA:

Mariah's mom and sister died on the same day (107,257) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

Saying they were "very close" seems like kind of a stretch. I mean, they were def on speaking terms back then, but we don't really know the extent of their relationship or how healthy it was, etc. Anyway, here's wishing MC can find some peace during this rough time.
(Tuesday 27 August 2024; 04:42)


this is a reply to message		107,255

E=MC2 off on the beaten path (106,878) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

I agree and I think the problem with the label's single choices after TEOM is that they always felt they had to stick to a formula (i.e. having the 2nd single be a ballad, which had usually worked for Mariah in the past) rather than shifting to where the popular culture was at. Following TMB with Bye Bye, a ballad at a time when slower songs (particularly non-love songs) were few and far between on the top 40, made absolutely no sense when you had Migrate, a killer song with a A-list feature and a song that already had the public stamp of approval (debuting on BB Hot 100 when it wasn't even a single). Maybe the label was stuck in the past, not fully understanding that in the iTunes era consumers were now setting the trends that labels needed to chase, not the other way around. Personally I think "For the Record" would have done well on the charts (in the vein of MJB's "Be Without You"), and even "Cruise Control" could have been a modest chart hit with its Caribbean sound, considering Rihanna had debuted just a few years earlier. And that's not even touching Bye Bye's subject matter - a topic that no pop song during the frivolous 2000s era would have ever dared to touch. In terms of sales idk if E=MC2 could have done any better than 1,000,000 in the States (considering that point in Mariah's career and the fact that its not her strongest album) but certainly had the label been willing to look forward with Mariah's career, rather than sticking to their tired guns, I think it would have had longer legs.
(Monday 15 July 2024; 01:13)


this is a reply to message		106,867

Tiny Desk (106,753) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

That would be a good venue for her, because it's a controlled environment, and not a full concert with a big audience. So she could adjust the setlist to her current voice, do a medley instead of full songs, throw in some remixes, etc, whatever she needs to do to feel relaxed. And it's unplugged so her improvisational skills can really shine.
(Thursday 20 June 2024; 03:05)


this is a reply to message		106,745

MC always late to the party isn't just a metaphor (105,400) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

I think there's some truth to this. The media does seem to single Mariah out in terms of holding her to that standard. If a single doesn't make it to the top 40 or even #1, it's dubbed a disappointment or outright failure. To be fair, however, Mariah has herself relied on this hype ever since TEOM, particularly ever since TMB went to #1 and surpassed Elvis' record. Every award show or live TV performance she's done since then seems to be prefaced by the same thing - a video montage of Mariah's biggest videos/performances, declaring her enormous record sales (200 million) and the fact that she has 18 #1 hits. It's become a part of her brand, that she's this huge commercial success. But it's impossible for any artist to sustain that. Once her songs stopped charting, she could have shifted gears, focuse less on hype and stats and more on creativity, giving her audience something new and interesting. She'll always have the commercial success of her legacy to fall back on (i.e. Christmas), but as a fan, I'd like to see her taking the most creative risks. Because she really has nothing to lose at this point.
(Tuesday 13 February 2024; 23:59)


this is a reply to message		105,392

MB30 (103,451) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

"All I Live For (Extended Version)" is interesting because it's much more vocally in-line with the rest of Music Box (I thought the vocals were a bit subdued on the "Rarities" version, although I like that one as well). If this song and the outtake snippet we heard from "All in Your Mind" are any indication, Mariah may have a vault full of alternate takes of various songs that would be worth releasing, (This is more common in the jazz genre, like John Coltrane releasing an album of alternate takes in the 70s. I think Mariah's instrument is strong enough to warrant that kind of treatment.)

The drum intro to "Workin Hard" immediately brought to mind BBD's "Poison", and while it's vocally impressive, I can see why it was left off the final track list (Poison was already three years old by the time MB was released, maybe this track was an early one in the recording process and deemed too dated for it's New Jack Swing elements?). "My Prayer" definitely had a similar vibe to "So Blessed" and "Forever", though more jazzy. The instrumentation reminded me a bit of Amy Winehouse, and again I see why it didn't make the cut (would have been more suited for Emotions, or even Daydream considering the doo-wop vibe of Forever).

One omission I noticed was the uptempo remix to "Never Forget You" that I've heard on YouTube... does anyone know if that one is legit or just a fan-edit? I actually prefer it to the original, and always assumed it was a foreign-released b-side of some sort, but if so it seems odd that it wouldn't be included on this "definitive" version of MB.

Overall I'm happy with the release, and find it exciting that there are still MC songs (particularly from her prime) that we've never heard. Here's hoping that Daydream30 gives us some more unheard gems.
(Tuesday 12 September 2023; 06:43)

Albums (103,126) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

I have a feeling that if she does release another studio album in the future, she'll be using some sort of AI assistance. A lot of people have accused her of pitching up parts of her vocal climaxes post-breakdown, and we certainly know she's used auto-tune, both blatantly and subtly (as all pop singers do these days). I don't think it's a stretch to say that, once the technology has advanced enough, we'll probably be hearing Mimi-AI generated vocal climaxes mixed in with whatever authentic studio vocals she can muster. Then during concerts she'll just lip the climaxes as always.
(Thursday 3 August 2023; 00:27)


this is a reply to message		103,120

The Weekend collaboration (102,858) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

There was a moment in time where she was pushing that, even posting that IG story of her singing along at one of his concerts. I got the feeling that he wasn't interested, maybe thought it was beneath him to be collaborating with a "legacy" artist when he's in the prime of his career, and she felt dissed and stopped acknowledging him. Recently there was an awkward moment during one of her Twitter spaces and where she asked the fans who she should collaborate with, someone clearly said "The Weeknd" and she pretended she didn't hear and changed the subject lol. I don't see that ever happening, maybe in a few years when his career is on the decline.
(Thursday 8 June 2023; 23:09)


this is a reply to message		102,855

Maybe I'm missing something? (102,708) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

I honestly think at this point she's more concerned about the way she looks than anything else, even her vocals. A few years back during the #1 to Infinity era they did a video of her "reacting" to each of her number ones. Instead of sharing interesting anecdotes/reflections about the songs/videos, she spent the whole time criticizing her outfits and hairstyles, saying things like "hideous, what where they thinking with this shot, dahhhling".

There are multiple examples of performances from the last decade where she gets to a difficult part of the song, and then stops singing to look at herself in the monitor and rant about her hair/makeup or how she needs a "glam moment". This hyper fixation on appearance (which no one cares about other than her) seems to be a crutch to avoid dealing with the reality of the state of her vocals (a convenient way to distract the audience from the fact that she's not delivering, maybe she's even starting to fool herself).

As far as Lovers and Friends, she looked amazing, better than she has in years imo. But aside from a few nice impromptu vocal moments, she also delivered one of her worst vocal performances ever. It seems that she's happy with that trade off.
(Wednesday 10 May 2023; 22:20)


this is a reply to message		102,701

What's going on (101,838) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

I'm a long time lurker as well, thought I'd share my two sense about what's going on with her vocally. A lot of fans have relied on the "vocal rest" narrative, the idea that if Mariah would just take a year off, like she did during her pregnancy, or like she did between the Charmbracelet tour/TEOM, her voice would recover. Her voice did sound pretty strained by early 2020, so the pandemic seemed like a perfect opportunity for her to take a break.

Cut to 2022, her live performances this year have proven that vocal rest alone won't cut it. In fact, I think part of what we're dealing with is vocal underuse. The voice is a muscle, and any athlete knows that there's a delicate balance between overuse and underuse. Imagine an olympic runner taking 2 years off, and then one day getting up and trying to run a marathon. They would not be anywhere near their peak performance, as their body would be woefully out of shape. Mariah went from singing around the house/in the studio whenever she felt like it (claiming to have regained her voice fully) to doing a full set list in an arena, and we can all see she wasn't prepared.

So yes, Mariah's gonna need to ease back into live performing, like she did in 2014, starting off TECS tour with some terrible shows (probably her worst up to that point), but her voice gradually gaining strength and ending that year with some amazing Beacon shows. I'm hoping that her voice/confidence will improve with the next NYC show/any further shows next year.

That being said, there's obviously waaaaay more going on here, and others have pretty much hit the nail on the head (not warming up, not putting her vocal health first). Alcohol is clearly a big issue as well, and I can't help but wonder if the botched 2014 AIWFCIY moment actually scared her into sobriety (temporarily), and maybe that's why those Beacon shows were so strong. I hope she wouldn't have to experience another public shaming like that but she's made it pretty clear that she has no intention of changing her lifestyle or giving up her vices so idk (hopefully the CBS special doesn't go viral for the wrong reasons).

As far a playback, I'm not a fan but didn't really mind it used sparingly, on climaxes for super hard to hit notes. But this tour is just ridiculous. Her saving grace in recent tours were the little moments, doing snippets of "Slipping Away", etc. but now she's lipping most of those moments as well, i.e. "Miss You Most". Same with "Away in a Manger", it just felt so unnecessary and like she's depriving the show of a needed organic moment.

I genuinely hope she can get it together and improve. I also understand the fans that just want to enjoy her current output, not focus on negativity, etc. But unfortunately there's not a lot of good to focus on, and I fear it won't get any better/will get worse unless MC wakes up and gets focused on what's best for her voice. But that's just my opinion, so take it with a grain of salt.
(Thursday 15 December 2022; 06:46)


this is a reply to message		101,832

Alabama Shakes (50,558) by whisperingmisunderstandings from USA

Has anyone heard their new song "Gimme All Your Love"? If Mariah did a collab song with them it could be really awesome. Something in the vein of TEOM.
(Sunday 1 March 2015; 18:58)