Celebrating Black Music Month: Chart Topping Diva’s - Mariah Carey
By Njai Joszor
Posted on 06/21/08
Continuing our celebration of Black Music Month, this week’s featured moments are dedicated to the best chart topping, record breaking, and soul stirring R&B/Soul singers from Whitney and Mary to Aretha and Chaka. Plus get the lowdown on the latest news and upcoming projects from each featured Diva.
Mariah Carey - “Fantasy”
Recorded for her sixth studio album Daydream, “Fantasy” quickly became yet another #1 single for the Mariah Carey who burst onto the scene in 1990 with “Vision of Love.”
Combining funk, R&B, and pop elements on the song co-written by Carey, Fantasy debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 in 1995, a career first for the singer and a record setting debut that is only shared with Michael Jackson whose “You Are Not Alone” pulled the same feat in August of 1995.
Between September and November of 1995, Carey held on to the #1 spot only to be replaced by Whitney Houston’s “Exhale (Shoop Shoop).”In total, Fantasy spent 23 weeks in the top fourty and was later certified double platinum.
Overall, Mariah Carey holds the distinction of being one of the world’s top selling and chart topping female artists, with a record 18 #1 singles and 11 Platinum-selling studio albums.
Today:
Mariah Carey’s “E=MC2" debuted on the Billboard Hot 200 Albums chart at #1 this April featuring the #1 single “Touch My Body” and was 2008's highest debutting album until Lil Wayne’s recent chart topping album “The Carter III” sold well over 1 million albums in it’s first week. Carey can also be seen with Adam Sandler in this summer’s action/comedy “You Don’t Mess With A Zohan.”
I agree! Mariah Carey is has a great voice and I love her!
Fady Mansour
6/21/2008 6:09:35 PM
Mariah, the singer with the best voice, the great range, the mind-blowing timber, is a victim of colorism! She was never truly embraced by the Black community, and that's a real shame, and a great loss too.
That aside, her achievements on the charts often shadow her amazing skills (aside from that out-of-this-world ever-present voice) such as songwriting, composing and producing all of her material.
When will we start showing respect, and give credit where it's due, to the ever respectful Mariah? She always rooted for R&B and soul music, and glorified the African-American divas that paved the way for her contemporaries.
Here's to the wonder that she is! May she be fully embraced by her people.
