Look up current in Wiktionary, the free dictionary.

Current may refer to:

Ongoing events[link]

• The present
• Current affairs (disambiguation)
• Current events

Science and mathematics[link]

• Current (fluid), the flow of a liquid or a gas
  • Air current, a flow of air
  • Current (ocean), a current in the ocean
    • Rip current, type of ocean current
  • Current (stream), currents in rivers and streams
• Current (mathematics), geometrical current in differential topology
  • Conserved current, a concept in physics and mathematics that satisfies the continuity equation
  • Current density, a mathematical concept unifying electric current, fluid current, and others
• Electric current, a flow of electric charge through a medium
  • Alternating current
  • Direct current

Business[link]

• IBM Current, an early personal information management program

Media[link]

• Current (album), an album by Heatwave
• Current (film), a 2009 film
• Current (newspaper), an American trade journal
• Current Publishing, an American publishing company
• Current TV, a cable television network owned by Al Gore
• Currents (periodical), an international trade law journal
• Currents (TV series), a Catholic news magazine television show in U.S.
• 89.3 The Current, public radio station KCMP licensed to Northfield, Minnesota
• "The Current" (song), a song by the Blue Man Group

People[link]

• Jeff Current, lead singer for Against All Will

Ships[link]

• USS Current (ARS-22)

See also[link]

• Currant (disambiguation)

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Gavin DeGraw
DeGraw in March 2012
Background information
Birth name	Gavin Shane DeGraw
Born	(1977-02-04) February 4, 1977 (age 35) South Fallsburg, New York, United States
Genres	Blue-eyed soul, pop rock, rock
Occupations	Musician and singer-songwriter
Instruments	Vocals, piano, guitar
Years active	2000–Present
Labels	RCA Records
Website	gavindegraw.com

Gavin Shane DeGraw (born February 4, 1977) is an American musician and singer-songwriter. He is known for his songs "Chariot", "Follow Through", "I Don't Want to Be" (which has been featured as the theme song for the television drama series, One Tree Hill since 2003), "In Love with a Girl", and "Not Over You".

Early life[link]

DeGraw grew up in the Catskills in South Fallsburg, New York.^[1] His mother, Lynne (Krieger), was a detox specialist, and his father, Wayne DeGraw, was a prison guard;^[2] he referenced his father's occupation in the song "I Don't Want to Be".^[3] His father is of Irish descent and his mother's family was of Russian ancestry.^[4] DeGraw began singing and playing piano at the age of eight. He also has two siblings, both older, named Neeka and Joey (born August 1973). It was at his brother's advice that he began writing his own songs.^[5] Joey DeGraw is a musician as well, currently touring to promote his own music.^[6]

Career[link]

DeGraw rose to fame in 2003 when "I Don't Want to Be" was chosen as the theme song for teen drama One Tree Hill.^[7] The song has also been performed on American Idol^[8] and Idol Sweden^[9] by various contestants during different seasons.

DeGraw released his debut album, Chariot on July 22, 2003 under J Records.^[10] Chariot was recorded at Los Angeles' music studios, Sunset Sound and produced by Mark Endert.^[1] Chariot sold over a million copies and earned platinum certification.^[11] The album also featured three of DeGraw's singles: "I Don’t Want To Be", "Follow Through" and "Chariot".^[11] He then went on to release an acoustic version of the album called Chariot Stripped in 2004. Chariot Stripped contains a cover version of Sam Cooke's "A Change Is Gonna Come".^[12]

DeGraw performing in Georgia, 2005

DeGraw's second album, self-titled Gavin DeGraw was released on May 6, 2008.^[10] The first single, "In Love with a Girl" was released on February 12, 2008. The second U.S. single "Cheated On Me" was released in the US on September 30, 2008. This was followed by the Live From Soho album, released on Nov 7 2008, featuring mostly tracks from Gavin DeGraw.^[13] Gavin DeGraw debuted at No. 1 on the digital sales chart and ranked at No. 7 on Billboard’s Top 200 album chart.^[11]

Gavin Degraw's third album, Free was released March 31, 2009.^[14] DeGraw made Free in less than two weeks at the Brooklyn studio of his producer Camus Celli. DeGraw included some songs on the album that he wrote very early in his career and that have evolved over time, songs such as "Dancing Shoes" and "Glass".^[1] The debut single from the album, "Stay", was released on March 11, 2009.^[15] FREE has been described as "recorded versions of his live favourites".^[11]

DeGraw's fourth, and most recent album, Sweeter was set to release on August 9, 2011 but got pushed back to September 20, 2011.^[16] The album features many tracks co-written with other artists. The first single "Not Over You" was released on iTunes in June.^[17] The track was co-written and produced by Ryan Tedder and was said to be inspired by Kyle Craig. "Not Over You" is his first song to reach the top spot on the Adult Pop Songs.^[18] Sweeter contains collaborations from producers including Butch Walker, Eric Rosse, and Ron Aniello; alongside another co-written title track, "Sweeter" with Andrew Frampton. The album was recorded in many locations including Blackbird Studios in Nashville, Walker’s Space in Venice and the Henson Recording Studios.^[11]

Sweeter is DeGraw's first album released under RCA Records, all three of his previous albums were released under J Records. DeGraw went on to release an acoustic album based mostly on songs from Sweeter. The iTunes Session album features seven tracks and a 30 minute interview.^[19]

Appearances[link]

Alongside DeGraw's musical career he has also performed on multiple TV shows and his songs can be heard across TV and film.

TV appearances[link]

DeGraw made his first TV appearance on Real Magic TV. He then went on to appear on: The Sharon Osbourne Show, Late Night with Conan O'Brien, American Dreams, Total Request Live and Rove Live. During Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade in 2004, DeGraw is credited as a performer. After this, he was seen on What I Like About You alongside Dutch TV shows Barend & Van Dorp and Clement Behrendt Kjersgaard. DeGraw performed "I Don't Want to Be" during the 2005 Radio Music Awards. He was also a musical guest on The VIP, Jensen!, New York 360º and Entertainment Tonight. DeGraw has appeared on multiple episodes of The Ellen DeGeneres Show, the Late Show with David Letterman, The Tonight Show with Jay Leno, Live! with Kelly, Jimmy Kimmel Live! and Last Call with Carson Daly, performing tracks from whichever album he was promoting. DeGraw is credited as a presenter for the 2011 American Music Awards and can mostly be seen presenting footage from backstage. Recently he appeared during an episode of Conan; the episode was aired on January 9, 2012.^[6] On April 4, 2012 DeGraw performed on the final episode of One Tree Hill following his heavy connection with the show throughout its nine seasons. ^[20]

DeGraw was a contestant on ABC's season 14 of Dancing With the Stars which premiered on Monday March 19, 2012. DeGraw and his partner Karina Smirnoff were eliminated from the competition during week 5, following a Dance Duel with cast-mate Jaleel White and his partner Kym Johnson. ^[21]

Soundtrack credits[link]

DeGraw's songs have been played on twelve different titles across both TV and film.

"Follow Through" was part of the soundtrack for 2004 film Laws of Attraction and an episode of Scrubs called My Self-Examination, aired on 27 April 2004. The song has also been featured on One Tree Hill and on British and Italian TV advertisements for Carte D'or.^[6]

"Chariot" features as an uncredited part of the soundtrack for the American-Canadian TV series Dead Like Me. The song features in a 2004 episode called Always and is portrayed by DeGraw. DeGraw plays a non-recurring small role as street singer, Pete Anderson. The song also features on the TV series Boston Legal in a 2006 episode named Helping Hands, it is played during Denise and Daniel's dinner. The song can also be heard during a 2007 episode of Cold Case called Knuckle Up.^[6]

His song "We Belong Together" was also featured in the 2006 film Tristan and Isolde.^[22]

DeGraw has performed a cover of Smokey Robinson's love ballad, "The Tracks of My Tears", which is played during Chaos Theory, an episode of The Cleaner aired on August 5 2008.^[6]

During a Christmas special of TV series House called "Joy to the World", a cover of The Christmas Song performed by DeGraw was played.^[6]

TV dance competition and reality show So You Think You Can Dance utilised three of DeGraw's tracks across four shows and also features a cover performed by DeGraw. "Belief", "More Then Anyone" and "We Belong Together" are used as background tracks across the 2006, 2008 and 2009 series respectively. During the first part of the 2007 finale, a cover of "We Are the Champions", performed by DeGraw, is used.^[6]

DeGraw's songs are contained in the soundtracks of eleven episodes of One Tree Hill. Throughout he is uncredited. However, tracks such as "Belief", "More Than Anyone", "Chariot", "We Belong Together" and "Jealous Guy" all feature in the show. During the second season of the show, an unreleased live version of "Chariot" is played during the episode "Something I Can Never Have".^[6]

During a special of the TV show The Bachelor called The Bachelor: Jason & Molly's Wedding, DeGraw's song "Follow Through" is played.^[6]

Acting credits[link]

He has appeared in an on-screen role in three One Tree Hill episodes. His first appearance was in 2004, during You Gotta Go There to Come Back; he was seen singing "I Don't Want to Be" and "Chariot" at Karen's Cafe. His second appearance was at the beginning of 2008 episode, What Comes After the Blues where he was seen singing "I Don't Want to Be" with Jackson Brundage and performs in the series final episode.^[6]

Other[link]

DeGraw has released a number of music videos as well, including "I Don't Want to Be", "Follow Through" and "Chariot". The latter was directed by Zach Braff, who also directed music videos for Joshua Radin.^[6]

DeGraw's song "More Than Anyone" was selected by fans of One Tree Hill through a Cingular Wireless contest as the first wedding dance song for Nathan & Haley in the 3rd season finale "The Show Must Go On."^[23]

At the Des Moines Arts Festival on 27 June 2009

He and his brother opened The National Underground in December 2007, a New York City music venue that is a roots rock Americana music bar located in Manhattan's Lower East Side, at 159 East Houston Street between Allen Street and Eldridge Street.^[24] The venue offers music, food, and drink.^[25][26][27] The idea for the venue came about because the brothers wanted a place where they could hang out on a regular basis, and where other musicians could come in and listen and learn.^[28] "We were picky about the quality of musicians that played there," Gavin DeGraw says. "We wanted a place where the players were so good, other musicians were like, 'Wow! I really respect what they're doing.'"^[29]

Personal life[link]

On August 8, 2011, DeGraw was hospitalized after being assaulted by several people in New York City. Police said a group of men attacked DeGraw early Sunday morning at 6th Street and First Avenue in the East Village, near The National Underground. He suffered a broken nose, a concussion, two black eyes and lacerations to his face. Only minutes after the attack, DeGraw was then struck by a taxi. He was admitted to Manhattan's Bellevue Hospital Center for treatment. He had to cancel his scheduled August 9 performance at the Saratoga Performing Arts Center, located in Saratoga, New York.^[30]

DeGraw has said that his ultimate goal is "to leave this world a better person, and for me to not be the only one who knows it."^[6]

Band members[link]

Current[link]

Billy Norris – guitar, background vocals (since 2009) Ian O'Neill – drums, background vocals (since 2011) Ben Mars- Bass (Started on summer tour of 2012) Jimmy Wallace – keyboards, acoustic guitar, vocals (2007–2008, since 2011)

Previous[link]

Johnny "Tsunami" Andrews – guitar, background vocals Joey DeGraw – guitar, background vocals Brian Dennis – guitar, background vocals Matt Flynn – drums Jose Barrera – Guitar and musical composition Joey "Coach" Hanna – drums, background vocals

Rodney Howard – drums Whynot Jansveld – bass, background vocals Alvin Moody – bass, background vocals Casey Twist – bass, background vocals Tony Tino - Bass

Discography[link]

Studio[link]

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions[31][32]									Certifications (sales thresholds)
		US	CAN	DEN	NED	FIN	ITA	SWI	SWE	NOR
Chariot	Release date: July 22, 2003 Label: J	56	—	1	6	23	43	48	21	2	US: Platinum[33]
Gavin DeGraw	Release date: May 6, 2008 Label: J	7	21	3	8	36	44	23	13	35
Free	Release date: March 31, 2009 Label: J	19	—	29	76	—	—	96	—	—
Sweeter	Release date: September 20, 2011 Label: RCA	8	41	6	6	—	—	19	29	25

EPs[link]

Title	Album details	Peak chart positions[34]
		US
iTunes: Live from Soho	Release date: 2008	167

Other albums[link]

• 2001: Gavin Live

Singles[link]

Year	Title	Chart positions[31][32]												Certifications (sales thresholds)	Album
		US	US Adult	US Pop	CAN	UK	IRE	AUS	NZ	NED	ITA	NOR	SWE
2004	"I Don't Want to Be"	10	9	1	—	27	25	19	30	13	—	6	15	US: Platinum[35]	Chariot
2005	"Chariot"	30	5	17	—	—	—	—	—	12	27	19	—	US: Gold[35]
	"Follow Through"	111	22	33	—	—	—	—	—	13	—	12	—	US: Gold[33]
2006	"Just Friends"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	26	—	—	—
	"We Belong Together"	26	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	US: Gold[33]	Gavin DeGraw
2008	"In Love with a Girl"	24	5	10	32	—	—	—	—	22	—	—	73
	"She Holds a Key"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	29	—	—	—
	"Cheated on Me"	—	30	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2009	"I Have You to Thank"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
	"Stay"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—		Free
	"Dancing Shoes"	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—	—
2011	"Not Over You"	18	1	9	23	—	—	37	8	13	—	—	—	US: Platinum[33] NZ: Gold[36] AUS: Platinum[37]	Sweeter
	"Soldier"	—	—	—	—	59	—	—	—	14	—	—	—
	"Sweeter"	—	17	—	—	—	—	—	—	25	—	—	—

Awards and nominations[link]

Year	Award
2005	Billboard Music Award nomination for Top Soundtrack Single of the Year ("I Don't Want to Be")
2005	Radio Music Award nomination for Song of the Year/Mainstream Top 40 Radio ("I Don't Want to Be")

See also[link]

	Biography portal
	Music portal

List of Berklee College of Music alumni List of Ithaca College alumni

List of people from New York List of singer-songwriters

References[link]

1. ^ ^{a b c} "Gavin DeGraw Biography". Gavin DeGraw US. http://gavindegraw.us/biography.html. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
2. ^ "More Than a Memory - The Official Gavin DeGraw fan site: Articles & Interviews". Gavindegraw.us. 2005-04-29. http://gavindegraw.us/articles/timesheraldrecord05april29.html. Retrieved 2012-05-09. 
3. ^ "I Don't Want To Be Lyrics". Lyrics On Demand. http://www.lyricsondemand.com/g/gavindegrawlyrics/idontwanttobelyrics.html. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
4. ^ Staff (February 3, 2005). "Gavin DeGraw Speaks Out on Life and Music – His 'I Don’t Want To Be' Is the Theme Song for the Teen Soap 'One Tree Hill'. Associated Press (via MSNBC). Retrieved August 8, 2011.
5. ^ "Gavin DeGraw". Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival. http://www.bonnaroo.com/artists/gavin-degraw.aspx. 
6. ^ ^{a b c d e f g h i j k l} "Gavin DeGraw IMDB page". IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/name/nm1501113/. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
7. ^ "One Tree Hill IMDB page". IMDB. http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0368530/. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
8. ^ "'American Idol' Needs To Retire 'I Don't Want To Be,' Whitney Houston And Heart". MTV Website. MTV. http://newsroom.mtv.com/2010/03/03/american-idol-i-dont-want-to-be/. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
9. ^ "YouTube Video: Guy singing I Don't Want To Be in Idol 2009". YouTube. Google. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e43QQdO_OJY. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
10. ^ ^{a b} "Amazon: Chariot Gavin DeGraw | Format: Audio CD". Amazon Retail. http://www.amazon.com/Chariot-Gavin-Degraw/dp/B00009V8Z9. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
11. ^ ^{a b c d e} "Gavin DeGraw Official Bio". Gavin DeGraw Official Website. http://www.gavindegraw.com/bio. Retrieved 28 January 2012. 
12. ^ "Amazon: Chariot Stripped (Bonus CD) Gavin DeGraw | Format: Audio CD". Amazon Retail. http://www.amazon.com/Chariot-Stripped-Bonus-Gavin-Degraw/dp/B0002IQJUK/ref=sr_1_1?s=music&ie=UTF8&qid=1327522439&sr=1-1. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
13. ^ "Gavin DeGraw Discography". Gavin DeGraw Website. http://www.gavindegraw.us/discography.html. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
14. ^ "Amazon: FREE Gavin DeGraw | Format: Audio CD". Amazon Retail. http://www.amazon.co.uk/FREE-Gavin-DeGraw/dp/B001T4MT64. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
15. ^ "iTunes Single - Stay". iTunes. http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/stay-single/id308873888. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
16. ^ "Gavin DeGraw Blog". Gavin DeGraw Blog. Gavin DeGraw. http://www.gavindegraw.us/. Retrieved 29 January 2012. 
17. ^ "Gavin DeGraw Website - Not Over You Release". Gavin DeGraw Website. http://www.gavindegraw.com/music/not-over-you-single. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
18. ^ Trust, Gary (26 January 2012). "Weekly Chart Notes: Adele, Kelly Clarkson, Gavin DeGraw". Billboard. http://www.billboard.com/column/chartbeat/weekly-chart-notes-adele-kelly-clarkson-1005994562.story#/column/chartbeat/weekly-chart-notes-adele-kelly-clarkson-1005994562.story?page=2. Retrieved 28 January 2012. 
19. ^ "iTunes Session Gavin DeGraw". iTunes. http://itunes.apple.com/us/album/itunes-session/id480772033?ign-mpt=uo%3D4. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
20. ^ "ABC.com - Dancing with the Stars - Dancing with the Stars 2012 Cast Announcement - Season 14". Abc.go.com. http://abc.go.com/shows/dancing-with-the-stars/cast-announcement. Retrieved 2012-05-09. 
21. ^ 04/18/2012 (2012-04-18). "'Dancing with the Stars' ('DWTS') 2012: Gavin DeGraw Booted After Showdown | Video - ABC News". Abcnews.go.com. http://abcnews.go.com/GMA/video/dancing-stars-dwts-2012-gavin-degraw-booted-showdown-16161893. Retrieved 2012-05-09. 
22. ^ "Gavin Degraw Discography". Gavin DeGraw. http://gavindegraw.us/discography.html. Retrieved 25 January 2012. 
23. ^ "Tree Hill Memories: 322 THE SHOW MUST GO ON". Tree Hill Memories. http://www.freewebs.com/treehillmemories/s322.html. Retrieved 29 January 2012. 
24. ^ "About Us". The National Underground Official website. Accessed October 5, 2010. http://www.thenationalunderground.com/aboutus.html. 
25. ^ Carlson, Erin (May 8, 2008). "Gavin DeGraw Doesn't Wanna Be Another Singer-Songwriter". The Decatur Daily. http://www.decaturdaily.com/stories/Gavin-DeGraw-doesnt-want-to-be-another-singer-songwriter,11132. 
26. ^ Friedman, Roger (March 6, 2008). "Patrick Swayze Slammed by National Enquirer". Fox News. http://www.foxnews.com/story/0,2933,335432,00.html. 
27. ^ "Soul of the City: New York City". Glide Magazine. August 29, 2008. http://www.glidemagazine.com/hiddentrack/soul-of-the-city-new-york-city/. 
28. ^ Adams, Patty (July 27, 2008). "Six Seconds with: Gavin DeGraw". New York Post. http://www.nypost.com/pagesixmag/issues/20080727/Six+Seconds+Gavin+DeGraw. 
29. ^ Tomcho, Sandy (August 15, 2008). "Gavin DeGraw Performs at Monticello Gaming & Raceway". Times Herald-Record. http://www.recordonline.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080815/ENTERTAIN/808150350. 
30. ^ "Gavin DeGraw released from hospital after attack, doesn’t remember much". The Washington Post. 10 August 2011. http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/celebritology/post/gavin-degraw-released-from-hospital-after-attack-doesnt-remember-much/2011/08/10/gIQAICCP6I_blog.html. Retrieved 21 September 2011. 
31. ^ ^{a b} Gavin DeGraw. Billboard
32. ^ ^{a b} "Gavin Degraw – Music Charts". Acharts.us. http://acharts.us/performer/gavin_degraw. Retrieved 2011-11-02. 
33. ^ ^{a b c d} "Gavin Degraw RIAA album certifications". RIAA. http://riaa.com/goldandplatinumdata.php?resultpage=1&table=SEARCH_RESULTS&action=&title=&artist=Gavin%20DeGraw%&format=album&debutLP=&category=&sex=&releaseDate=&requestNo=&type=&level=&label=&company=&certificationDate=&awardDescription=&catalogNo=&aSex=&rec_id=&charField=&gold=&platinum=&multiPlat=&level2=&certDate=&album=&id=&after=&before=&startMonth=1&endMonth=1&startYear=1958&endYear=2010&sort=CertificationDate&perPage=50. Retrieved 2011-10-02. 
34. ^ "iTunes Live from Soho – Gavin DeGraw". AllMusic. http://www.allmusic.com/album/itunes-live-from-soho-r1462791/charts-awards. Retrieved 2011-11-02. 
35. ^ ^{a b} "Gavin DeGraw: Timeline". Rock On The Net. http://www.rockonthenet.com/artists-d/gavindegraw.htm. 
36. ^ "RIANZ". Recording Industry Association of New Zealand. http://www.rianz.org.nz/rianz/chart_facts.asp. Retrieved 2010-08-07. 
37. ^ "http://www.aria.com.au/pages/httpwww.aria.com.auSINGLEaccreds2011.htm". Aria.com.au. 2011-12-31. http://www.aria.com.au/pages/httpwww.aria.com.aupageshttpwww.aria.com.auSINGLEaccreds2011.htm. Retrieved 2012-05-09. 

• Billboard Artist Chart History – retrieved March 15, 2009.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Gavin DeGraw

• gavindegraw.com, DeGraw's official website
• Gavin DeGraw at the Internet Movie Database
• Gavin DeGraw collection at the Internet Archive's live music archive
• Music videos at AOL Video
• Exclusive Gavin DeGraw Interviews at OurStage.com

v t e Gavin DeGraw Albums Chariot Gavin DeGraw Free Sweeter Singles "I Don't Want to Be" "Chariot" "Follow Through" "In Love with a Girl" "Cheated on Me" "Not Over You" "Soldier" "Sweeter" Related articles RCA Records

v t e Dancing with the Stars (U.S. season 14) Donald Driver Katherine Jenkins William Levy Maria Menounos Melissa Gilbert Roshon Fegan Jaleel White Gladys Knight Gavin DeGraw Sherri Shepherd Jack Wagner Martina Navratilova

Persondata
Name	Degraw, Gavin
Alternative names
Short description
Date of birth	February 4, 1977
Place of birth	South Fallsburg, New York, United States
Date of death
Place of death

Mariah Carey
Carey at the 2008 Tribeca Film Festival
Background information
Born	(1970-03-27) March 27, 1970 (age 42) Huntington, New York, United States
Genres	R&B, pop, hip hop, soul, dance
Occupations	Singer-songwriter, record producer, actress
Years active	1988–present
Labels	Columbia (1990—2000) Virgin (2001) Island (2002—present)
Website	mariahcarey.com

Mariah Carey^[1] (born March 27, 1970) is an American singer, songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut in 1990 under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, and released her self-titled debut studio album, Mariah Carey. The album went multi-platinum and spawned four consecutive number one singles, on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola in 1993, a series of hit records, including Emotions (1991), Music Box (1993) and Merry Christmas (1994), established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act. Daydream (1995), made music history when the second single, "One Sweet Day" a duet with Boyz II Men, spent a record sixteen weeks on top of the Billboard Hot 100, and remains the longest running number one song in US chart history. During the recording of the album Carey began to deviate from her pop background, and slowly traversed into R&B and Hip-hop. After her separation from Mottola, this musical change was evident with the release of Butterfly (1997).

Carey left Columbia in 2000, and signed a record-breaking $100 million recording contract with Virgin Records. In 2001, Carey ventured into film with Glitter (2001). Before the film's release she suffered a physical and emotional breakdown and was hospitalized for severe exhaustion. Following the film's poor reception, she was bought out of her recording contract for $50 million, which led to a decline in her career. She signed a multi-million dollar contract deal with Island Records in 2002, and after an unsuccessful period, returned to the top of music charts with The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). Its second single "We Belong Together", which became her most successful single of the 2000's, and was later named "Song of the Decade" by Billboard. Carey once again ventured into film, and starred in Precious (2009). Her role in the film was well-received, and she was awarded the "Breakthrough Performance Award" at the Palm Springs International Film Festival, and a NAACP Image Award nomination.

In a career spanning over two decades, Carey has sold more than 200 million records worldwide, making her one of the best-selling music artists of all time. In 1998, she was honored as the world's best-selling recording artist of the 1990s at the World Music Awards. Carey was also named the best-selling female artist of the millennium in 2000. According to the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), she is the third best-selling female artist in the United States, with 63 million certified albums. With the release of "Touch My Body" (2008), Carey gained her eighteenth number one single in the United States, more than any other solo artist. Aside from her commercial accomplishments, Carey has won five Grammy Awards, and is famed for her five-octave vocal range, power, melismatic style and signature use of the whistle register.

Biography[link]

1970–87: Early life and struggles[link]

Mariah Carey was born in Huntington, New York, on March 27, 1970.^[2] The singer's father, Alfred Roy, was of African American and Venezuelan descent, while her mother, Patricia (née Hickey), is an Irish American.^[3] Patricia's father had died while she was young; however, she inherited his passion for music.^[3] She developed a career as an occasional opera singer and vocal coach, and met Alfred in 1960.^[2] As he began earning a living as an aeronautical engineer, the couple wed later that year, and moved into a small suburb in New York.^[3] After the pair's elopement, Patricia's family disowned her, due to marrying a man of color. Carey later explained that growing up, she felt a notion of neglect from her maternal family, a mark that affected her greatly: "So later I was like, 'Well, where does this leave me? Am I a bad person?' You know. It's still not that common to be a multi-racial person, but I'm happy with the combination of things that I am."^[3] During the interval of years in between Carey's older sister Allison and the singer's birth, the Carey family experienced personal struggles within the community due to their ethnicity.^[3] Carey's name was derived from the song "They Call the Wind Mariah", originally from the 1951 Broadway musical Paint Your Wagon.^[4][5] When Carey was three years old, her parents divorced due to the increasingly strenuous nature of their marriage.^[6]

After their separation, Allison moved in with her father, while the other two children remained with Patricia.^[6] As the years passed, Carey would grow apart from her father, and would later stop seeing him altogether.^[6][8] By the age of four, Carey recalled that she had begun to sneak the radio under her covers at night, and just sing from her heart, and try and find peace within the music.^[8] During elementary school, she would excel in subjects that she enjoyed, such as literature, art and music, while not finding interest in others.^[9] After several years of financial struggling, Patricia earned enough money to move her family into a stable and more affluent sector in New York.^[9] Carey had begun writing poems and adding melodies to them, thus starting as a singer-songwriter while attending Harborfields High School in Greenlawn, New York.^[10][10] Even from a young age, Carey excelled in her music, and demonstrated usage of the whistle register, though only beginning to master and control it through her training with her mother.^[10] Though opening her daughter to the world of classical opera, Patricia never pressured Carey to pursue a career in that type of genre, as she never seemed interested in that world of music.^[10] Carey recalled that she kept her singer-songwriter works a secret and noted that Patricia had "never been a pushy mom. She never said, 'Give it more of an operatic feel'. I respect opera like crazy, but it didn't influence me."^[10][11]

Towards the end of her high school Carey developed a relationship with Gavin Christopher, with whom she shared musical aspirations. The song-writing duo, however, needed an assistant who could play the keyboard; "We called someone and he couldn't come, so by accident we stumbled upon Ben [Margulies]. Ben came to the studio, and he really couldn't play the keyboards very well - her was really more of a drummer - but after that day, we kept in touch, and we sort of clicked as writers."^[11] The two began writing and composing songs in his father's store basement, during Carey's senior year. After composing their first song together, "Here We Go Round Again", which Carey described as having a Motown-vibe, they continued writing material for a full length demo.^[12] After Carey's graduation her mother wed once more, which ultimately prompted her to move out from Patricia's apartment, and into a one bedroom studio in Manhattan, which she shared with four other female students.^[13][14] During this period, Carey worked several jobs as a waitress, usually getting fired after two week intervals.^[15] While requiring work to pay for her rent, Carey's mind and effort still remained with her musical ambitions, as she continued working late into the night with Margulies, in hopes of completing a demo take that could be passed on to record executives.^[15] After completing her four song demo tape, Carey tried to pass it to music labels, but was met with failure each time.^[16] It was then she was introduced to rising pop singer of Puerto Rican descent, Brenda K. Starr.^[16][17]

1988–92: Recording debut and career beginnings[link]

Carey exiting the Shepherd's Bush Theatre after promoting her single "Vision of Love" on The Wogan Show, in 1990.

As Carey's friendship with Starr grew, so did her interest in helping Carey succeed in the industry.^[18] On a Friday night in November 1987, Carey accompanied Starr to a record executives gala, where she handed her demo tape to Tommy Mottola, head of Columbia Records, who listened to it on his way back home.^[18][19] After the first two songs, he became so enamored at the sound and quality of Carey's voice that he turned around returned to the event, only to find that she had left.^[19] In what has been widely described by critics as a modern day Cinderella-like tale,^[20][21] after searching Carey for two weeks, and eventually contacting her through Starr's management, he immediately signed her and began mapping out her debut into mainstream music.^[18] While she maintained that she wanted to continue working with Margulies, Mottola enlisted top producers of the time, including Ric Wake, Narada Michael Walden and Rhett Lawrence.^[18] Mottola and the staff at Columbia had planned to market Carey as the main female pop artist on their roster, competing with the likes of Whitney Houston and Madonna, who were signed to Arista and Sire Records respectively.^[22] After the completion of the album, titled Mariah Carey, Columbia spent an upward of $1 million to promote it.^[23] Though opening with weak sales, the album eventually reached the top of the Billboard 200, after Carey's exposure at the 33rd annual Grammy Awards.^[24] Mariah Carey stayed atop the charts for eleven consecutive weeks,^[25] and she won the Best New Artist, and Best Female Pop Vocal Performance trophies for her single "Vision of Love".^[26] The album yielded an additional three number one singles on the Billboard Hot 100, following the four week number-one run of "Vision of Love". Carey became the first artist since The Jackson 5 to have their first four singles reach number one.^[27] Mariah Carey finished as the best-selling album in the United States of 1991,^[28] while totaling sales of over 15 million copies.^[29]

Only months after the Mariah Carey began its descent on the charts, Carey already began working on her second studio effort, eventually titled Emotions (1991).^[30][31] The album, as Carey described it, paid homage to Motown soul music, as she felt the need to pay tribute to the type of music and genre that truly influenced her as a struggling child.^[31] For the project, Carey worked with Walter Afanasieff, who only had a small role on her debut, as well as Clivillés and Cole, from the dance group C+C Music Factory.^[32] However, Carey's relationship with Margulies deteriorated^[31] over a contract Carey had signed prior to her signing with Columbia, agreeing to split not only the songwriting royalties from the songs, but half of her earnings as well.^[31] However, when the time came to write music for Emotions, Sony officials made it clear he would only be paid the fair amount given to co-writers on an album.^[31] Subsequently, Margulies filed a lawsuit against Sony which ultimately led to their parting of ways.^[31] On September 17, 1991, Emotions was released around the world, and was accepted by critics as a more mature album than its predecessor.^[33] While praised for Carey's improved songwriting, production and new sound, the album was criticized for its material, which many felt was noticeably weaker than her debut.^[34] Though the album managed sales of over eight million copies globally, Emotions failed to reach the commercial and critical heights of its predecessor.^[35]

As they had done after the release of her debut, critics once again questioned whether Carey would embark on a world tour, in promotion for her material.^[36] Although Carey explained that due to her stage fright, and the general strenuous nature of her songs, a tour sounded very daunting, speculation grew that Carey was a "studio worm", and that she wasn't capable of producing the perfect pitch and 5-octave vocal range for which she was known.^[20][37] In hopes of putting any claims of her being a manufactured artist to rest, Carey and Walter Afanasieff decided to book an appearance on MTV Unplugged, a television program aired by MTV.^[38] The show's purpose was to present name artists, and feature them "unplugged" or stripped of studio equipment.^[38][39] While Carey felt strongly of her more soulful and powerful songs, it was decided that her most popular content to that point would be included.^[39] Days prior to the show's taping, Carey and Afanasieff thought of adding a cover version of an older song, in order to provide something different and unexpected.^[39] They chose "I'll Be There", a song made popular by The Jackson 5 in 1970, rehearsing it few times before the night of the show. On March 16, 1992, Carey recorded a seven-piece set-list at Kaufman Astoria Studios in Queens, New York.^[40] The revue was met with critical acclaim, leading to it being aired over three times as often as an average episode would.^[41] The revue's success tempted Sony officials to use it as some form of an album.^[42] Sony decided to release it as an EP, selling for a reduced price due to its shorter length.^[43] The EP proved to be a success, shunning critics and speculations that Carey was just a studio artist,^[43] and was given a triple-Platinum certification by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA),^[44] and managed Gold and Platinum certifications in several European markets.^[42]

[edit] 1993–96: First marriage, Music Box and Daydream

During early 1993, Carey began working on her third studio album, Music Box.^[46] After Emotions failed to achieve the commercial heights of her debut album, Carey and Columbia came to the agreement that the next album would contain a more pop influenced sound, in order to appeal to a wider audience.^[46] During Carey's writing sessions, she began working mostly with Afanasieff, with whom she co-wrote and produced most of Music Box.^[45] During the album's recording, Carey and Mottola became romantically involved.^[47] They wed in a lavish ceremony on June 5, 1993, with several high profile guests including Barbra Streisand, Billy Joel, Gloria Estefan and Ozzy Osbourne.^[48] One month later, on August 31, Music Box was released around the world, debuting at number-one on the Billboard 200.^[49] The album was met with mixed reception from music critics; while many praised the album's pop influence and strong content, others felt that Carey made less usage of her acclaimed vocal range.^[50] Ron Wynn from Allmusic described Carey's different form of singing on the album: "It was wise for Carey to display other elements of her approach, but sometimes excessive spirit is preferable to an absence of passion."^[51] The album's second single, "Hero", would eventually come to be one of Carey's most popular and inspirational songs of her career.^[52] The song became Carey's eighth chart topper in the United States,^[52] and began expanding Carey's popularity throughout Europe. With the release of the album's third single, Carey achieved several career milestones. Her cover of Badfinger's "Without You" became her first number one single in several European countries, including Austria, Germany,^[53] the Netherlands, Ireland,^[54] Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom.^[55] Due to the song's success, Music Box spent prolonged periods at number one on the album charts of several countries,^[56] and eventually became one of the best-selling albums of all time, with worldwide sales of over 32 million copies.^[45] After declining to tour for her past two albums, Carey agreed to embark on a short stateside string of concerts, titled the Music Box Tour.^[57] Spanning only six dates across North America,^[57] the short but successful tour was a large step for Carey, who dreaded the hassle of touring.^[58]

Following Music Box, Carey took a relatively large period of time away from the public eye, and began working on an unknown project throughout 1994.^[59] The project was kept very secretive until Billboard announced on their October issue, that Carey would release a holiday album later that year.^[59] In late 1994, Carey recorded a duet with Luther Vandross; a cover of Lionel Richie and Diana Ross's "Endless Love".^[60] By that point, Columbia felt Carey had already established herself as a pop singer, and vocalist, but wanted to try and feature her as more of an entertainer.^[61] Through the release of Merry Christmas, Columbia hoped that audiences would buy Carey's material solely for her name and reputation, and squash fears of her being a typical pop singer.^[61] The album was released on November 1, 1994, on the same day that the album's first single, "All I Want for Christmas Is You", was released.^[61] The album eventually became the best-selling Christmas album of all time, with global sales reaching over 15 million copies.^[62][63][64] Additionally, "All I Want for Christmas Is You" was critically lauded, and is considered "one of the few worthy modern additions to the holiday canon."^[62] Rolling Stone described it as a "holiday standard", and ranked it fourth on its Greatest Rock and Roll Christmas Songs list.^[65] Commercially, it became the best-selling holiday ringtone of all time,^[66] and the best-selling single by a non-Asian artist in Japan,^[67] selling over 2.1 million units (both ringtone and digital download).^[68][69] By the end of the holiday season of 1994, Carey and Afanasieff had already begun writing material for her next studio album, which would be released in the fall of the following year.^[70]

Carey performing "One Sweet Day" live alongside Boyz II Men, during a special taping at Madison Square Garden.

Released on October 3, 1995, Daydream combined the pop sensibilities of Music Box with downbeat R&B and hip hop influences.^[71] The album's second single, "One Sweet Day" was inspired by the death of Cole, as well as her sister Allison, who had contracted AIDS.^[72] The song remained atop the Hot 100 for a record-breaking sixteen weeks, and became the longest running number one song in history.^[73] Daydream became her biggest-selling album in the United States,^[74] and became her second album to be certified Diamond by the RIAA, following Music Box.^[44] The album again was the best-seller by an international artist in Japan, shifting over 2.2 million copies,^[75] and eventually reaching global sales of over 25 million units.^[29] Critically, the album was heralded as Carey's best to date; The New York Times named it as one of 1995's best albums, and wrote, "best cuts bring R&B candy-making to a new peak of textural refinement [...] Carey's songwriting has taken a leap forward and become more relaxed, sexier and less reliant on thudding clichés."^[76] Carey once again opted to embark on a short world tour titled Daydream World Tour. It had seven dates, three in Japan and four throughout Europe.^[77] When tickets went on sale, Carey set records when all 150,000 tickets for her three shows at Japan's largest stadium, Tokyo Dome sold out in under three hours, breaking the previous record help by The Rolling Stones.^[77] Due to the album's success, Carey won two awards at the American Music Awards for her solo efforts: Favorite Pop/Rock Female Artist and Favorite Soul/R&B Female Artist.^[78] Daydream and its singles were respectively nominated in six categories at the 38th Grammy Awards.^[79] Carey, along with Boyz II Men, opened the event with a performance of "One Sweet Day".^[80] However, Carey did not receive any award, prompting her to comment "What can you do? I will never be disappointed again. After I sat through the whole show and didn't win once, I can handle anything."^[80] In 1995, due to Daydream's enormous Japanese sales, Billboard declared Carey the "Overseas Artist of the Year" in Japan.^[81]

[edit] 1997–2000: New image and independence, Butterfly and Rainbow

After the release of Daydream and the success that followed, Carey began focusing on her personal life, which was a constant struggle at the time.^[83] Carey's relationship with Mottola began to deteriorate, due to their growing creative differences in terms of her albums, as well as his controlling nature.^[83] With each following album, and her continual established fame and popularity, Carey began to take more initiative and control with her music, and started infusing more genres into her work.^[84] During mid-1997, Carey was well underway, writing and recording material for her next album, Butterfly (1997).^[85] She sought to work with other producers and writers other than Afansieff, such as Sean Combs, Kamaal Fareed, Missy Elliott and Jean Claude Oliver and Samuel Barnes from Trackmasters.^[85] During the album's recording, Carey and Mottola separated, with Carey citing is as her way of achieving freedom, and a new lease on life.^[86] Aside from the album's different approach, critics took notice of Carey's altered style of singing, which she describe as breathy vocals.^[87] Her new-found style of singing was met with mixed reception; some critics felt is was a sign of maturity, that she didn't feel the need to always show off her upper range,^[88] while others felt it was a sign of her weakening and waning voice.^[89][90] The album's lead single, "Honey", and its accompanying music video, introduced a more overtly sexual image than Carey had ever demonstrated, and furthered reports of her freedom from Mottola.^[91] Carey stated that Butterfly marked the point when she attained full creative control over her music.^[92] However, she added, "I don't think that it's that much of a departure from what I've done in the past [...] It's not like I went psycho and thought I would be a rapper. Personally, this album is about doing whatever the hell I wanted to do."^[91] Growing creative differences with producer Afanasieff continued, and eventually ended their working relationship, after collaborating on most of Carey's material.^[93] Reviews for Butterfly were generally positive: Rolling Stone wrote, "It's not as if Carey has totally dispensed with her old saccharine, Houston-style balladry [...] but the predominant mood of 'Butterfly' is one of coolly erotic reverie. [... Except "Outside" the album sounds] very 1997. [...] Carey has spread her wings and she's ready to fly",^[94] Allmusic editor, Stephen Thomas Erlewine described Carey's vocals as "sultrier and more controlled than ever", and heralded Butterfly as her "best record and illustrates that Carey continues to improve and refine her music, which makes her a rarity among her '90s peers."^[95] The album was a commercial success, although not to the degree of her previous three albums.^[93]

Carey at Edwards Air Force Base during the making of the "I Still Believe"

Toward the turn of the millennium, Carey began developing other projects, many of which she wasn't able to during her marriage.^[96] On April 14, 1998, Carey partook in the VH1 Divas benefit concert, where she sang alongside Aretha Franklin, Celine Dion, Shania Twain, Gloria Estefan and Carole King.^[97] Carey had begun developing a film project All That Glitters, later re-titled to simply Glitter,^[98] and intended her songwriting to other projects, such as Men in Black (1997) and How the Grinch Stole Christmas (2000).^[96] After Glitter fell into developmental hell, Carey postponed the project, and began writing material for a new album.^[96] The executives at Sony Music, the parent company of Carey's label Columbia, wanted her to prepare a greatest hits collection in time for the commercially favorable holiday season.^[99] However, they disagreed as to what content and singles should constitute the album.^[100] Sony wanted to release an album that featured her number one singles in the United States, and her international chart toppers on the European versions, void of any new material, while Carey felt that a compilation album should reflect on her most personal songs, not just her most commercial.^[100] She felt that not including any new material would result in cheating her fans, therefore including four new songs that she had recorded.^[100] While compromised, Carey often expressed distaste towards the album's song selection, expressing her disappointment in the omission of her "favorite songs".^[101] The album titled, #1's (1998), featured a duet with Whitney Houston, "When You Believe", and was included on the soundtrack for The Prince of Egypt (1998).^[100] During the development of All That Glitters, Carey had been introduced to DreamWorks producer Jeffrey Katzenberg, who asked her if she would record the song "When You Believe" for the soundtrack to the animated film The Prince of Egypt.^[102] In an interview with Ebony, Houston described working with Carey, as well as their growing friendship: "Mariah and I got along very great. We had never talked and never sang together before. We just had a chance for camaraderie, singer-to-singer, artist-to-artist, that kind of thing. We just laughed and talked and laughed and talked and sang in between that ... It's good to know that two ladies of soul and music can still be friends."^[103] #1's became a phenomenon in Japan, selling over one million copies in its opening week, and placing as the only international artist to accomplish this feat.^[104] When describing Carey's popularity in Japan throughout the 1990s, author Chris Nickson compared it to Beatlemania in the 1960s.^[77] The album sold over 3.25 million copies in Japan after only the first three months, and holds the record as the best-selling album by a non-Asian artist,^[104] while amassing global sales of over 17 million copies.^[105]

During the spring of 1999, Carey began working on the final album of her record contract with Sony, her ex-husband's label.^[106] During this time, Carey's strained relationship with Sony affected her work with writing partner Afanasieff, who had worked extensively with Carey throughout the first half of her career.^[106] She felt Mottola was trying to separate her from Afanasieff, in hopes of keeping their relationship permanently strained.^[107] Due to the pressure and the awkward relationship Carey had now developed with Sony, she completed the album in a period of three months in the summer of 1999, quicker than any of her other albums.^[48] The album, titled Rainbow (1999), found Carey once again working with a new array of music producers and songwriters, such as Jay-Z and DJ Clue.^[108] Carey also wrote two ballads with David Foster and Diane Warren, whom she seemingly used to replace Afanasieff.^[108] Rainbow was released on November 2, 1999, to the highest first week sales of her career at the time, however debuting at number two on the Billboard 200.^[109] Throughout early-2000, Carey's troubled relationship with Columbia grew, as they halted promotion after the album's first two singles.^[109] They felt Rainbow didn't have any strong single to be released, whereas Carey wanted a ballad regarding personal and inner strength released.^[109] The difference in opinion led to a very public feud, as Carey began posting messages on her webpage in early and mid-2000, telling fans inside information on the dispute, as well as instructing them to request "Can't Take That Away (Mariah's Theme)" on radio stations.^[110] One of the messages Carey left on her page read: "Basically, a lot of you know the political situation in my professional career is not positive. It's been really, really hard. I don't even know if this message is going to get to you because I don't know if they want you to hear this. I'm getting a lot of negative feedback from certain corporate people. But I am not willing to give up."^[111] Fearing to lose their label's highest seller, Sony chose to release the song.^[111] Carey, initially content with the agreement, soon found out that the song had only been given a very limited and low-promotion release, which made charting extremely difficult and unlikely.^[111] Critical reception of Rainbow was generally enthusiastic, with the Sunday Herald saying that the album "sees her impressively tottering between soul ballads and collaborations with R&B heavyweights like Snoop Doggy Dogg and Usher [...] It's a polished collection of pop-soul."^[112] Vibe magazine expressed similar sentiments, writing, "She pulls out all stops [...] Rainbow will garner even more adoration".^[113] Though a commercial success, Rainbow became Carey's lowest selling album to that point in her career.^[92]

[edit] 2001–04: Glitter, Charmbracelet; personal and professional struggles

Carey, pictured with former Island Records head L.A. Reid in 2005, signed a recording contract with Island following her separation with Virgin.

After she received Billboard's Artist of the Decade Award and the World Music Award for Best-Selling Female Artist of the Millennium,^[114] Carey parted from Columbia and signed a record-breaking $100 million five-album recording contract with Virgin Records (EMI Records), Carey was given full conceptual and creative control over the project.^[115] She opted to record an album partly mixed with 1980s influenced disco and other similar genres, in order to go hand-in-hand with the film's setting.^[116] She often stated that Columbia had regarded her as a commodity, with her separation from Mottola exacerbating her relations with label executives. Just a few months later, in July 2001, it was widely reported that Carey had suffered a physical and emotional breakdown. She had left messages on her website that complained of being overworked,^[117] and her relationship with the Latin icon Luis Miguel ended.^[118] In an interview the following year, she said, "I was with people who didn't really know me and I had no personal assistant. I'd do interviews all day long and get two hours of sleep a night, if that."^[119] Due to the pressure from the media, her heavy work schedule and the split from Miguel, Carey began posting a series of disturbing messages on her official website, and displayed erratic behavior on several live promotional outings.^[120] On July 19, 2001, Carey made a surprise appearance on the MTV program Total Request Live (TRL).^[121] As the show's host Carson Daly began taping following a commercial break, Carey came out pushing an ice cream cart while wearing a large men's shirt, and began a striptease, in which she shed her shirt to reveal a tight yellow and green ensemble.^[121] While she later revealed that Daly was aware of her presence in the building prior to her appearance, Carey's appearance on TRL garnered strong media attention.^[120] Only days later, Carey began posting irregular voice notes and messages on her official website: "I'm trying to understand things in life right now and so I really don't feel that I should be doing music right now. What I'd like to do is just a take a little break or at least get one night of sleep without someone popping up about a video. All I really want is [to] just be me and that's what I should have done in the first place ... I don't say this much but guess what, I don't take care of myself."^[121] Following the quick removal of the messages, Berger commented that Carey had been "obviously exhausted and not thinking clearly" when she posted the letters.^[122]

On July 26, she was suddenly hospitalized, citing "extreme exhaustion" and a "physical and emotional breakdown".^[123] Carey was inducted at an un-disclosed hospital in Connecticut, and remained hospitalized and under doctor's care for two weeks, followed by an extended absence from the public.^[123] Following the heavy media coverage surrounding Carey's publicized breakdown and hospitalization, Virgin Records and 20th Century Fox delayed the release of both Glitter, as well as its soundtrack of the same name.^[124] Consequently, critics suggested that in delaying Glitter, hype for the project would have largely subsided, and would possibly hurt both ticket and album sales.^[125] When discussing the project's weak commercial reaction, Carey blamed both her frame of mind during the time of its release, its postponement, as well as the soundtrack having been released on September 11.^[126] Critics panned Glitter, as well as its accompanying soundtrack; both were unsuccessful commercially.^[127] The accompanying soundtrack album, Glitter, became Carey's lowest-selling album to that point. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch dismissed it as "an absolute mess that'll go down as an annoying blemish on a career that, while not always critically heralded, was at least nearly consistently successful."^[128] Following the negative cloud that was ensuing Carey's personal life at the time, as well as the project's poor reception, her unprecedented $100 million five-album record deal with Virgin Records (EMI Records) was bought out for $50 million.^[115][129] Soon after, Carey flew to Capri, Italy for a period of five months, in which she began writing material for her new album, stemming from all the personal experiences she had endured throughout the past year.^[120] Carey later said that her time at Virgin was "a complete and total stress-fest [...] I made a total snap decision which was based on money and I never make decisions based on money. I learned a big lesson from that."^[130] Later that year, she signed a contract with Island Records, valued at more than $24 million,^[131] and launched the record label MonarC. To add further to Carey's emotional burdens, her father, with whom she had little contact since childhood, died of cancer that year.^[132]

Carey performing "Hero" during her Charmbracelet World Tour.

In 2002, Carey was cast in the independent film, WiseGirls, alongside Mira Sorvino and Melora Walters, who co-starred as waitresses at a mobster-operated restaurant. It premiered at the Sundance Film Festival, and received generally negative critical response, though Carey's portrayal of the character was praised; Roger Friedman of Fox News referred to her as "a Thelma Ritter for the new millennium", and wrote, "Her line delivery is sharp and she manages to get the right laughs".^[133] Later that year, Carey performed the American national anthem to rave reviews at the Super Bowl XXXVI at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana.^[134] Towards the end of 2002, Carey released her next studio album Charmbracelet, which she said marked "a new lease on life" for her.^[119] Though released in the wake of Glitter and Carey's return to the music scene, sales of Charmbracelet were moderate and the quality of Carey's vocals came under criticism. Joan Anderson from The Boston Globe declared the album "the worst of her career, and revealed a voice [that is] no longer capable of either gravity-defying gymnastics or soft coos",^[135] while Allmusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine expressed similar sentiments and wrote, "What is a greater problem is that Mariah's voice is shot, sounding in tatters throughout the record. She can no longer coo or softly croon nor can she perform her trademark gravity-defying vocal runs."^[136] In an attempt to "relaunch" her career following the poor reception to Glitter, as well as her breakdown, Carey announced a world tour in April 2003.^[137] Lasting over eight months, the Charmbracelet World Tour: An Intimate Evening with Mariah Carey, became her most extensive tour to date, spanning sixty-nine shows around the world.^[138] Throughout the United States, the shows were done in smaller theaters, and something more Broadway-influenced, "It's much more intimate so you'll feel like you had an experience. You experience a night with me."^[137] However, while smaller productions were booked throughout the tour's stateside leg, Carey performed at stadiums in Asia and Europe, performing for a crowd of over 35,000 in Manila, 50,000 in Malaysia, and to over 70,000 people in China.^[139] In the United Kingdom, it became Carey's first tour to feature shows outside of London, booking arena stops in Glasgow, Birmingham and Manchester.^[140] Charmbracelet World Tour: An Intimate Evening with Mariah Carey garnered generally positive reviews from music critics and concert goers, with many complimenting the quality of Carey's live vocals, as well as the production as a whole.^[141]

[edit] 2005–07: Return to prominence with The Emancipation of Mimi

Throughout 2004, Carey focused on composing material for her tenth studio album, The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). The album found Carey working predominantly with Jermaine Dupri, as well as Bryan-Michael Cox, Manuel Seal, The Neptunes, Kanye West and Carey's longtime collaborator, Jermaine Dupri.^[142] The album debuted atop the charts in several countries, and was warmly accepted by critics. Caroline Sullivan of The Guardian defined it as "cool, focused and urban [... some of] the first Mariah Carey tunes in years which I wouldn't have to be paid to listen to again",^[143] while USA Today's Elysa Gardner wrote, "The ballads and midtempo numbers that truly reflect the renewed confidence of a songbird who has taken her shots and kept on flying."^[144] The album's second single, "We Belong Together", became a "career re-defining"^[145] song for Carey, at a point when many critics had considered her career over.^[146] music critics heralded the song as her "return to form",^[147] as well as the "return of The Voice",^[147] while many felt it would revive "faith" in Carey's potential as a balladeer.^[142] "We Belong Together" broke several records in the United States and became Carey's sixteenth chart topper on the Billboard Hot 100.^[148] After staying at number one for fourteen non-consecutive weeks, the song became the second longest running number one song in US chart history, behind Carey's 1996 collaboration with Boyz II Men, "One Sweet Day".^[148] Billboard listed it as the "song of the decade" and the ninth most popular song of all time.^[149] Besides its chart success, the song broke several airplay records, and according to Nielsen BDS, gathered both the largest one-day and one-week audiences in history.^[150]

Carey performing "Vision of Love" during The Adventures of Mimi Tour

During the week of September 25, 2005, Carey set another record, becoming the first female to occupy the first two spots atop the Hot 100, as "We Belong Together" remained at number one, and her next single, "Shake It Off" moved into the number two spot.^[148] (Ashanti had topped the chart in 2002 while being a "featured" signer on the #2 single.) On the Billboard Hot 100 Year-end Chart of 2005, the song was declared the number one song, a career first for Carey.^[151] Billboard listed "We Belong Together" ninth on The Billboard Hot 100 All-Time Top Songs and was declared the most popular song of the 2000s decade by Billboard.^[152] The album earned ten Grammy Award nominations in 2006–07: eight in 2006 for the original release (the most received by Carey in a single year),^[153] and two in 2007 for the Ultra Platinum Edition. In 2006 Carey won Best Contemporary R&B Album for The Emancipation of Mimi, as well as Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song for "We Belong Together".^[153] The Emancipation of Mimi was the best-selling album in the United States in 2005, with nearly five million units sold. It was the first album by a solo female artist to become the year's best-selling album since Alanis Morissette's Jagged Little Pill in 1996.^[154] At the end of 2005, the IFPI reported that The Emancipation of Mimi had sold more than 7.7 million copies globally, and was the second best-selling album of the year after Coldplay's X&Y. It was the best-selling album worldwide by a solo and female artist.^{[155][156][157]} To date, The Emancipation of Mimi has sold over 12 million copies worldwide.^[158] At the 48th Grammy Awards, Carey performed a medley of "We Belong Together" and "Fly Like a Bird".^[159] The performance earned the night's only standing ovation, prompting Teri Hatcher, who was presenting the next award, to exclaim, "It's like we've all just been saved!"^[159]

In support of the album, Carey embarked on her first headlining tour in three years, named The Adventures of Mimi: The Voice, The Hits, The Tour after a "Carey-centric fan's" music diary.^[160] The tour spanned forty stops, with thirty-two in the United States and Canada, two in Africa, and six in Japan.^[161] Tickets for the tour went on sale on June 2, 2006, with prices ranging from $95 to $150 USD, and featured Carey's long-time friend Randy Jackson as the tour's musical director.^[162][163] Carey's performances consisted of old songs from her catalog as well as her newest singles.^[164] The tour received warm critical reaction from music critics and concert goers, many of which celebrated the quality of Carey's live vocals, as well as the show as a whole.^[165][166] However, critics felt the show's excesses, such as Carey's often costume changes and pre-filmed clips, were unnecessary distractions.^[165] The tour proved successful, with Carey playing to over 60,000 fans in the two stop in Tunis alone.^[167] Midway through the tour, Carey booked a two-night concert engagement in Hong Kong, which was scheduled to take place following her Japanese shows.^[168] The shows were cancelled, however, after tickets went on sale. According to Carey's then-manager Benny Medina, the cancellation was due to the concert promoter's refusal to pay Carey her agreed-upon compensation.^[168] The promoter instead blamed poor ticket sales (allegedly, only 4,000 tickets had sold) and "Carey's outrageous demands".^[169] Carey ultimately sued the promoter, claiming $1 million in damages due to the concert's abrupt cancellation.^[170]