10 Gems on ‘Mariah Carey’: The Star’s Debut Studio Album
Everyone is aware that Mariah Carey is quite the industry heavyweight and yet, when you realize that she plans to celebrate the 30th anniversary of her self-titled debut album – you’re stumped. First off, the woman’s got more than 30 years of experience behind her and simply digesting those facts, takes a while.
The star took to Instagram to put up a video which features a montage of older clips, album artwork, live performances and more. “MC30…Every Friday,” Carey captioned it.
Well, we don’t exactly know what kind of gems she’s kept in store, but we figured, we’d keep you occupied during the wait. And so, we’re reacquainting you with Carey’s debut album! We’re going to sprinkle in her finest lyrics, chart wins and all the other wonders her 1990 album brought forth. So, brace yourselves for a deep dive.
Photo Credit: Mariah Carey Official Instagram
1. ‘Mariah Carey’ is the title of the star’s debut studio album, released on June 12, 1990. It features a fantastic cocktail of slow ballads and groovy, upbeat tracks.
2. The record dominated the Billboard 200 album chart for 11 consecutive weeks. ‘Mariah Carey’ was also certified nine-times Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.
3. The album’s lead single, ‘Vision of Love’ garnered a lot of praise and critical acclaim, being lauded as one of the strongest debut singles by a female artist.
4. In 1988, Mariah Carey had a demo tape consisting of four songs, which she had written during her high school years and would later land on her album.
5. Strangely enough, while the star’s vocal abilities were lauded, her songwriting supposedly had a long way to go. Atleast according to critics, as one even said, while Carey possessed an “astonishing vocal range and high ideals”, the album was “plagued by poor songwriting.”
6. And speaking of her lyrics, we’ve still picked out a lovely couple of lines from her track, ‘Vanishing’: Surely I would/ Hear the distant laughter/ Wasn’t it you and me/ Surviving the night/ You’re fading out of my sight/ Swiftly
7. Now, going back to ‘Vision of Love,’ it brought home the 1991 Grammy Award for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance.
8. Carey’s known to inspire countless artists, Beyonce included. She said that she began doing vocal “runs” after listening to ‘Vision of Love’ for the first time, and that it pushed her to make that big leap into the industry.
9. In fact, even Christina Aguilera has also pointed out how Carey’s album had the biggest influence on her vocal style and delivery.
10. Ultimately, coming to her legacy with this 11-track album, Mariah Carey is credited for breaking down existent racial barriers between pop and R&B, at the time.
By: Nina Karun
