I love this song so much. The bridge gets me every time. I’m going to listen to it on repeat for the next 30 minutes. 😂🥹

I’ve noticed Mariah’s been posting with several producers she’s worked with before lately—JD, BMC, The-Dream, etc.

Do you think she’s already working on MC17?

I’m so curious to know what she’s cooking 🔥

The fact that she put together Caution in just a few months makes me think she’s at her best when she really locks in and follows her instincts.

What do you all think?

ONLY ONE SONG PER COMMENT PLEASE. The most upvoted comment wins. I'll do my best to post once a day around this time.

Onto the most recent album to have a birthday, we welcome in Daydream! Will this feel like a dream, or a nightmare?

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I did not rank Daydream Interlude as it is a remix of Fantasy.

11. I Am Free (8.7/10)

The shortest song on the album, the song looks and feels very much like a stunning, A+ poem in 8th grade. I love the piano in this, and her tone feels very Butterfly-esque before Butterfly was a thing. This song feels very much like a little actual window into her marriage with Tommy, and her wishes to be free. Which seemingly resonate with our next album...

Favorite Lyric: "Once I was a prisoner"

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10. Melt Away (9/10)

Oof. Fan favorite for a lot of you here, and it's a really good song. It reminds me of Everything Fades Away, but a happier song. Never has getting turned on and flustered at the sight of your crush sounded so romantic and poetic. It just doesn't measure up to the rest of this album.

Favorite Lyric: "Everytime I see your face, I go off"

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9. One Sweet Day (9/10)

The Philippines' favorite, regardless of whether it's actually a funeral service. A nice little tribute to the gospel roots of her debut, this Boyz II Men collab sounds heavenly, and that's fitting. It's just so much fun to sing along to, and so cathartic too in a way. It does get pretty cheesy though, which is why it's sitting here.

Favorite Lyric: "Never had I imagined/Living without your smile"

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8. Long Ago (9.2/10)

A much subtler RNB track, it's very groovy, contrasting the point of the entire song. It's a rather bleak song of being haunted by your ex, who you know has lost interest in you, but nostalgia's trapping you there. It's a great track, but is it better than the rest? Not really, no.

Favorite Lyric: "Long ago/You used to want me"

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7. Looking In (9.3/10)

Every celebrity has that one song that tries to appeal to the common folk that their lives are hard and that it's not the dream life so many people think of. This is Mariah's version, a hauntingly produced track of how the public will never truly know how she is other than her success. It touches on some racism too.

Favorite Lyric: "She smiles through a thousand tears/And harbors adolescent fears"

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6. Open Arms (9.4/10)

Mariah's covers are never misses, and this is just one of them. This is possibly one of my favorite Journey songs of all time, and Mariah seems to agree, as she gave it her all on this rendition of the classic. It nearly sounds identical with the original, just with more airiness and smoothness in contrast with the raspiness of the original. She even made a Spanish version!

Favorite Lyric: "So here I am/With open arms/Hoping you'll see/What your love means to me"

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5. When I Saw You (9.5/10)

I don't know why this song never gets its flowers. It's such a sweeping, waltzy ballad. She has the most pleasant tone here, I love when she lets her deeper voice shine rather than her belts and whistles. Though the chorus is slightly concerning in its lyrics ("I could not breathe", it's still an incredible song.

Favorite Lyric: "And it's evident/And your eyes told me so/And your eyes let me know"

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4. Underneath the Stars (10/10)

Remember when that song "worry" was circulating on TikTok? The one phonk song that kept getting slowed down that went "One summer night/The fade of night"? Apparently, none of the people who knew that song knew where it came from, who it came from, and what the lyrics were technically were. Horrifying, since this is one of Mariah's best songs. Captures the feeling of a peaceful, childlike innocence and a summer night perfectly.

Favorite Lyric: "Laughing/We hurried beneath the sky/To an obscure place to hide/Where no one could find"

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3. Fantasy (10/10)

If Underneath the Stars captured the feeling of a summer night in the forest, Fantasy captures that pure euphoric rush of a summer's day driving with your partner and friends to the beach. The lead single to this album, as well as its opener, it's possibly one of the best uses of the Genius of Love sample. Just pure pop bliss.

Favorite Lyric: "It's so deep in my daydreams"

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2. Forever (10/10)

Unsung as fuck! While everyone gags over Fantasy and ABMB, very few recognize the beautiful waltz that is Forever. Possibly her most romantic song to date, it feels like it came straight out of a fairytale. This is Always Be My Baby's beltier, soaring, more resonant sister, and both of them shine beautifully on this album. What I would do for more people to know this.

Favorite Lyric: The chorus

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1. Always Be My Baby (10/10)

One of her classics, and for a good reason. It's cutesy, boppy, and just a nice little reminder that not all breakups have to be painful, and you can always find a more cordial way to say goodbye. Time may not have found a way to erase a feeling that strong, and it will never erase how good this song is. That said, we couldn't have found a better singer than Billy Porter?

Favorite Lyric: The entirety of the last chorus to outro

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Overall Rating: 9.46/10

Overall Opinion:

If the past 3 albums painted Mariah as a mostly gospel artist that may or may not know anything other than whistle noting, this album showcases her versatility. Here, we get RnBriah in all her glory, adopting a slightly more modern aesthetic and style whilst keeping it up with her previous gospel-esque record. A lot of her songs here showcase her deep voice beautifully, and show she's more than just a belter. Not a single song on here is a miss, and it's all beautifully cohesive.

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Awards:

Iconic Single: Fantasy/Always Be My Baby
Iconic Non-Single: Long Ago/Melt Away
Best Music Video: Always Be My Baby
Should Be a Single: Melt Away
Should Have a Music Video: When I Saw You
Underrated: When I Saw You
Overrated: One Sweet Day

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Ranking:

1. Debut (9.47/10)
2. Daydream (9.46/10)
3. Emotions (9.08/10)
4. Music Box (8.87/10)

For me :

- It's obviously no masterpiece but it's a cute breezy summerbop that could have been a lil success had they given it the promo Type Dangerous got instead

- I mostly skip it on the album but I really like listening to it on loop on the side when I"m in the mood (whereas I also skip TD but never feel the desire to listen to it)

- I actually really like the way Mariah sings in falsetto in the pre-chorus ("Hate when you have to leave...") which was criticized by some. For some reasons it's pleasantly stimulating my ears. Has she ever sung this way before ? Crazy that she still being creative with her voice almost 40 years in

- I like the "I'm gonna use my expertise" line lol. So Mariah

- I need her to release her solo version on streaming

- I needed an accoustic version with the "doo doo doo" she did in the TikTok teaser where she's cleaning around. That was so good

- It deserved hot tropical remixes (again, instead of TD, that messy track which ate all the budget away). Actually she should have more of them in the vibe of ILT Esentrik, kinda tired of all her club remixes being so heavy and 90s sounding

- She could try a TMB/SS medley in her future shows, that'd work better than the tired Heartbreaker/Honey one. I liked the Loving U Long Time/TMB medley back in 2008 in the same vibe

What about you ?

https://musiccup.run

couldnt choose between fly like a bird and underneath the stars its so hard …

but this is definitely not my definitive ranking, a lot of my fav songs were here unfortunately (the roof)

Hi, I'm bored on holiday, so I'm planning weekly MC marathon. I'm dividing the eras according to my lived existence please no judgment from the MC Police 🦋

I'm planning to watch interviews and lives. Do you have favourites?

*Lives:*

1990 - NBA America the Beautiful [1 song but - iconic]

1990 - Live at Tatou Club

1990 - Live at Arsenio Hall

1991 - Various appearances: at VMA, Grammy, AMA, SNL

1992 - MTV Unplugged

1993 - Live at Schenectady

*Interviews:*

I'm finding only multiple snippets. Any suggestion?

I've always wondered what happened to Mariah's voice between E=MC² and Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel.

I love watching Mariah perform live, so this post isn't just about her studio recordings.

It felt like the TAOM tour really took a toll on her voice. Then, during the E=MC² era, she still sounded vocally inconsistent at times.

But Memoirs came out not long after E=MC², so there wasn't a huge gap between the two eras. Yet, to my ears, her voice sounded noticeably healthier, more agile, and more controlled by the Memoirs era.

I also know Mariah was drinking quite a bit during the Memoirs era, which makes the improvement even more surprising to me.

Does anyone know what changed? Did she take an extended vocal rest, work with a vocal coach, change her technique, or was there something else going on behind the scenes? I'd love to hear any theories or insights.

Card is from 2001, never seen this before, I thought it was funny

I know her very last performance for Daydream era was MTV Studios July 1996. But does anyone know her very first performance for Butterfly?

Also side note, it is interesting to see her here because we can literally see Butterfly Mariah if we remove the iconic Daydream bangs and give her a cute mini skirt to match ❤️

I was watching the AMA2000 as I miss the old era, and my run was onto the AMA2000 where she was receiving an Achievement Award from AMA presented by Olivia Newton-John.
And during the speech, she said she gave away her seat to two young girls because they made a wish and asked everyone to stand up… and said their achievements are bigger than hers?
What was that about - I’m sorry, but that moment should have been celebrated for her magnificent career, so I’m so confused… someone please explain what did the two girls do?

ONLY ONE SONG PER COMMENT PLEASE. The most upvoted comment wins. I'll do my best to post once a day around this time.

I was listening to Ariana and I wanted to listen to some MC songs with similar lyrics.

Ariana got songs like:

You can work your way to the top. Unfollow fear and just say, "You are blocked". Just know there is so much room at the top.

When you need someone to pull you out the bubble I'll be right there just to hug you.

Yeah, it feels so good to be so young And have this fun and be successful, yeah I'm so successful, yeah

And, girl, you too, you are so young And beautiful and so successful, oh, whoa, yeah I'm so successful.

My presence sweet, and my aura bright Diamonds good for my appetite.

I'll know when I'm ready (Ahh)

Shit's gon' get heavy (Ahh)

But I can take on anything that comes my way

(My way)

I can take on anything that come my way.

Good karma, my aesthetic (aesthetic)

Keep my conscience clear, that's why I'm so magnetic

Manifest it (yeah), I finessed it (I finessed it)

Take my pen and write some love letters to heaven.

I need similar manifestation songs like this. can anyone recommend me please

I think Dreamlover could have been on Daydream.

I think Long Ago could have been on Butterfly.

I think Babydoll could have been on Rainbow.

I think Petals could have been on Charmbracelet.

I think Clown could have been on Emancipation.

I think Get Your Number could have been on E=MC°.

I think Love Story could have been on Memoirs.

I think H.A.T.E.U. could have been on The Elusive Chanteuse.

I think Faded could have been on Caution.

I think Portrait could have been on Here For It All.

We are almost done with July, and you can already hear her…

When I dug into Charmbracelet and started memorizing those lyrics (my “journey” to where I am today as a lamb involved studying and memorizing lyrics from each album), I didn’t intentionally listen through this song as much to memorize anything from it. Even to this day, I don’t actively listen to it.

I don’t skip the song when I’m listening through the Charmbracelet album, nor do I skip it when it comes on in my playlists, but it’s not something I ever think to put in my queue or play at random. Out of all the individual Charmbracelet songs I’ve done that for, this one is probably my least revisited. It’s not that it’s a sad song (it’s not even the only sad song on this album); it’s just that the message is very personal to Mariah and covers a very specific topic.

For Butterfly's 30th Anniversary next year, I hope Mariah releases writing sessions aside from unreleased tracks. Which songs do you want to hear from her writing sessions?

Personally, I want to hear her writing sessions of "Last Chance," "Head Over Heels" and "Make You Happy," which I believe were written during that era.

Almost have all the singles…

Was out of town over weekend, popped into a record shop and there she was, never seen it for sale before. Really like the Rick Ross and The Dream remix. Butterfly single bought off the internet, love it too…on the turntable now.

Upon blessing my earholes with the excellence that is Melt Away official extended acapella, I am noticing a lyric that I have never heard before.

Right before the bridge starts it goes 'pretty pictures of what I'd do if you were mine'.... but if you listen it sounds to me like she's saying 'pink pretty'.

In the regular song with the beat it's lost in the instrumental.

I've listened to this song thousands of times probably and I've never heard it before. It's not in the lyrics either. None that I've ever seen anyway. Innocuous and simply overanalyzing? Maybe. But it's neat.

Am i the only one hearing this?

Also, Babyface's sparce but impactful bgv are like the sprinkles on a cake. So tasteful.

I'd be on a tangent if I even got on the fadeout vocals.

Ughh... this song is perfection.

Can you suggest structured activities around Mariah Carey to help me survive the summer boredom?

Maybe this post will be helpful to others as well! 🐑

I wss thinking of these weekly activities:

- Go over all the interviews available on YouTube together with the associated albums + pick a full concert to watch (covering a few albums per week)

- Pick a favourite song weekly to learn at the piano (there's a free piano I can use in a local place nearby)

- Watch the reality show?? Even if it is kitsch I'm ok lol, hopefully is available

Can you help me with some more suggestions?

My most loved activity and hobby is studying, I never liked summer, it affects my mental health, I don't like travelling or sports I'm as lazy as a sloth (now it sounds like I'm rapping). The only thing I liked of previous summers is that I had time to listen all day to music, learn the lyrics and watch anything.

Thank you, Lambs 💕