Mariah's new album?

[Sylph]

I've just read she's already in the studio preparing the new album, which will be, and I'm paraphrasing, best of without being the best of. Yay!

Does anyone have any other info? A possible date?

[Y&RWorldTurner]

Since all but the debut single for her last album flopped, I guess we should be prepared for another extra-commercial effort. God knows it must have made her break plates again for not scoring more than one #1 single from her last effort.

Every singer/artist says their next release will be the best work of their career, I'll believe it when I hear it.

[Sylph]

She, sadly, chose the wrong songs to be singles. Do you have the sales data?

[bellcurve]

I wish Mariah would grow the eff up.

I used to be a HUGE HUGE fan of Mariah. I defended everything in her career(including Glitter), but The Emancipation of Mimi and E=MC/\2 were not that great. It's not Mariah. Even Charmbracelet and the Glitter Soundtrack(which both used recycled material and cut tracks from albums prior to those) were better than this crap. Who wants a dance track of Mariah discussing Tommy Mottola? And who wants a ghetto ripoff of "One Sweet Day" with Mariah trying to sound cool with "Dis is fuh my peoplez who los dey granmommas?"

She needs to come out of the Adult Contemporary Closet, embrace herself, forgive Walter Afanasieff, do a few covers, and be graceful like Celine, instead of going this freak show route. I don't care if her voice is wrecked(which it is). The only song even worth listening to on the last album was "I Wish You Well." She needs to focus her efforts on what she does best: writing ballads and singing them. I don't care if she whispers them or if she puts her all into them. But that's the Mariah people fell in love with and still COULD fall in love with. Instead, she's so concerned about beating The Beatles' #1 singles record by making all these trashy rap songs.

Give me the Emotions album on a constant loop anyday over her recent hip-hip efforts.

And for f***'s sake, PLEASE don't remake any of your hit ballads. Hero 2009 blows ass.

[Sylph]

I would like that, too. She often — and weirdly not all the time — annoys the hell out of me, but somehow, I don't know exactly how, I got over that. I just don't pay attention to her baby talk, her pink shoes or any of those childish things she's known for. I'm just over it.

I do! Side Effects is my favourite song from the album! It really is, what can I do.

Could you elaborate?

More remakes, please! No, seriously, I wouldn't have a problem if she remade We Belong Together once again. And in the process pushed it a little further.

Y&RWorldTurner, no sales data?

[Y&RWorldTurner]

According to Billboard, the album scanned 1.2 million copies in the US, according to Mariahdaily, it's sold 2.5 million worldwide (counting the 1.2 million from the US).

Compare this to The Emancipation of Mimi, which scanned nearly 6 million in the US, and sold 10 million worldwide (counting the nearly 6 million from the US).

[bellcurve]

What I mean is that she always had the image of being a sweet ballad singer and she has never truly been able to shake that, because it's what she has always done, Instead of experimenting with other genres of music(the way Madonna has) Mariah has relied on her one trick pony of rap remixes and hiphop influences which haven't been relevant since she did Fantasy with ODB and at the very latest, Butterfly. She has tried so hard to shake this image of being the popstar who sang ballads but she never has and probably never will.

She needs to embrace the fact that people think of her as Adult Contemporary and that when she does this rap stuff, people think of her as a loon.

And it's no secret that Mariah only does her best work when she is surrounded by good co-writers. Ben Margulies(from her self-titled album) and Walter Afanasieff from every other album up to Butterfly(the album where she had a falling out with him). Without them, her work has really suffered. And Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis were so dated by the time they helped her out with her other albums. If she goes back to ballads and markets herself as AC, she may not hit #1, but it's not too late for her to get some of her self-respect back.

[Y&RWorldTurner]

People think that for a myriad of reasons.

[tina m]

I do agree with Bellcurve to a point. Although I have embraced Mariah over the past 8-10 years since she's took more of a hip-hop/R&B vibe to her albums, it would be great to see her return to her roots. At first I really was not into the R&B Mariah (I couldn't stand 'Rainbow' until about a year ago) but like I said, I've come to embrace it. I didn't realize how much E=mc2 'flopped' so to speak until I realized that none of the other singles were successful (expect for Touch My Body). And I hate to say it, but 'Bye Bye' really is a ghetto rip-off of 'One Sweet Day'

I absolutely love Mariah and wish her nothing but the best but maybe she should reevaluate her music. I do wonder what has happened to her voice and how she blew it out.. Celine's been around longer than Mariah has and her voice is still as strong and powerful as it was 15 years ago.

And Hero 2009 is awful. I heard a clip of it on amazon.com and had no interest in buying the Ballads album (I have her greatest hits album) or downloading it.