Mariah Carey’s astonishing stratospheric flights into her upper register to adorn such of her hits as “Vision Of Love” and “Emotions” are matched by her continuing ascent into the uppermost reaches of pop stardom with her second album, Emotions.
Following the multi-platinum success of her self-titled 1990 debut album, Emotions — released last September — has already gone past the triple-platinum mark, and its first single, the title track, gave Carey her fifth straight No. 1 pop hit (and her fourth gold single). These feats add up to quite some achievement for any artist her first two times out — let alone a 22-year-old. And recently Carey received further acknowledgment of her great popularity when BMI cited “Love Takes Time” as the Song of the Year.
Given the overwhelming success of her first album, it would not have been surprising for Carey to rest on her laurels (which also included two 1990 Grammy Awards — for Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female — among five nominations) for a while to consider her next step. But, she has said, “I'm something of an introvert, who is happiest when I’m creating in my own little world in the studio,” also explaining, “I discussed it with everyone. We decided I should put out a new album soon, because I was growing so much from the last album.”
And, indeed, that self-assessment is substantiated by the depth of Carey’s involvement in Emotions. She once again co-wrote all of her material, but this time out she also co-produced every cut — either in tandem with Walter Afanasieff (who produced “Love Takes Time” for her first album) or with her labelmates, dance masters Robert Clivillés and David Cole (C+C Music Factory). She says, “This album was my opportunity to progress as a producer and a vocalist. I feel that it better expresses my vision of who I am as an artist because of my intricate involvement in creating the music for all the songs… I feel that I’ve definitely taken a step forward from where I left off.”
Carey says that “There’s more me on this album. I let myself go a lot more. I tried to sing from deep inside myself,” and the intensity of her approach to such ballads as “Can’t Let Go” (the second single) and her exhortative power on the dance-pop cuts are certainly striking.
But her development as a writer is perhaps even more noteworthy. Carey wrote “If It’s Over” with Carole King, of whom she says, “It was an incredible honor to write with such a legend. She was so easy to work with and we really clicked immediately.” She adds, “We sat down together at the piano and wrote ‘If It’s Over’ in about an hour. The song was inspired by classic r&b/gospel music, reminiscent of some of her previous work.” In fact, “If It’s Over” brings to mind King’s “A Natural Woman,” which Carey has said that King had suggested that she record before they decided to collaborate on a new song.
Another step forward for Carey is “The Wind,” on which, as The New York Times' Stephen Holden put it, she “moves promisingly into the realm of jazz-torch singing.” The song’s music was written in the '50s by West Coast jazz pianist Russ Freeman, and Carey explains, “Walter Afanasieff played me an instrumental version of the song recorded by Keith Jarrett and I loved it. I got permission to rewrite the lyrics. It is basically my perception of losing someone close to you to death.”
Emotions has earned Mariah Carey two additional Grammy nominations (Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, for “Emotions,” and Best Producer, with Walter Afanasieff), and at this year’s Grammy Awards, Carey — with a 30-member choir — brought down the house on “If It’s Over.” She has also given impressive performances on a number of talk shows, including Arsenio Hall’s late-night program. And. too, she has became a major video artist: Her 1991 long-form, The First Vision, a compilation of the four Mariah Carey singles, as well as live performances of the first album’s “Vanishing” and the classic “Don’t Play That Song.” was a platinum seller.
Yet Mariah Carey has already moved onward. As of this writing, she is preparing for her debut on MTV Unplugged, accompanied by 27 musicians and singers. And an EP of songs from that show is scheduled for release in the near future, to be preceded by a single, a cover of “I’ll Be There.” If that’s not enough, Carey says, “I'm currently working with a new artist on Epic Records, Trey Lorenz. He has been singing background for me for the past year-and a-half. I will be writing and producing some of his new, upcoming album.” With such drive, versatility, and, of course, that voice, Mariah Carey’s statement, “I want to be around for awhile,” has the ring of a foregone conclusion.