Born and raised in New York by her mother, a former opera singer and a vocal coach, Mariah Carey began singing at age four. By the time she was in junior high school, she had begun writing songs. She got her first big break after graduation, singing backup for Brenda K.Starr, which led to her signing with Columbia Records.
Mariah’s 1990 eponymous debut showed sales of over 12 million albums worldwide, and yielded a record-setting four consecutive number one singles including Vision of Love and Someday. The title track of 1992’s, Emotions, generated her fifth consecutive number one single, placing Mariah in the Top Ten All-Time achievers of Most Consecutive number one Hits. Emotions earned her two Grammy nominations and an American Music Award. In 1993, Mariah released Music Box, which sold over 24 million copies worldwide, and generated the hits Dreamlover , Hero and Without You.
Mariah followed up with her holiday album, Merry Christmas , which sold eight million copies worldwide. Mariah’s 1995 album, Daydream, generated three number one singles – Fantasy, One Sweet Day and Always Be my Baby. Her 1997 album, Butterfly, was a mix of contemporary R & B and pop, with the hits Honey and My All.
In 1998, Mariah released a collection of 13 of her chart-topping megahits as well as four new recordings including When You Believe from The Prince of Egypt. Her 1999 release, Rainbow, featured Mariah’s 14th number one single, Heartbreaker. Mariah was the first female artist to see two of her albums (Music Box and Daydream) reach the 10 million mark in sales and is the only female artist to have eight albums certified triple-platinum or better.She is the only artist to have had a number one single for every year of the 1990s. Mariah received the 1990 Grammy for Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Female. The same year, Mariah picked up three Soul Train Awards.
Mariah has also been a perennial favourite at the American Music Awards, apart from winning at the World Music Awards. As of September 1999, Mariah Carey had sold more than 120 million albums and singles worldwide and earned 84 RIAA gold, platinum, and multi-platinum certifications for her singles, albums, and videos. As one of the most popular recording artist of the 1990s, Mariah has provided an ongoing soundtrack to the decade.
