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Sunday, 6 April 2008
Mariah's "Touch My Body" - Her 18th #1 Single!!!
HISTORIC NEW BILLBOARD HOT 100 SINGLES CHART RECORD - SURPASSES ELVIS PRESLEY's 17 #1's - FIRST HIT FROM NEW ALBUM, E=MC²
Mariah reaches a once-in-a-lifetime career achievement as her current single "Touch My Body" goes to #1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this week and becomes her 18th career #1 hit - surpassing one of the most enduring chart records in Billboard Hot 100 history, Elvis Presley's 17 #1's. Mariah is now positioned as the only active recording artist in the 50 years of the Hot 100 (which began in 1958) with the potential to surpass the Beatles' all-time high of 20 #1 hits.
"Touch My Body" takes over #1 with an all-time record-setting 286,000 debut week at #1 on the Billboard Hot Digital Songs chart, and a Hot 100 Airplay radio audience now over 115 million. The video, directed by feature filmmaker Brett Ratner, and featuring a cameo by Jack McBrayer (30 Rock's Kenneth Parcell), stays at #1 on the Yahoo Music Video Chart, Yahoo Launchcast and AOL. And Mariah's widget has been viewed over 4.26 million times!
"Touch My Body" is the first smash from Mariah's highly anticipated hot new album E=MC², arriving in stores April 15th. Pre-orders are now underway for E=MC², with iTunes customers receiving "Touch My Body" instantly with their pre-order.
"Touch My Body" was produced by Mariah Carey, C. "Tricky" Stewart, and fellow Island Def Jam artist The-Dream. Other guest producers joining Mariah on E=MC² include Jermaine Dupri, DJ Toomp, Stargate, Will I Am, Bryan Michael Cox, Nate "Danjahandz" Hills and James Poyser. The album is executive produced by Mariah Carey and Antonio "LA" Reid, Chairman, Island Def Jam Music Group.
Wednesday, 26 March 2008
"Touch My Body" is #1 in Indonesian Radio Charts
Touch My Body is already #1 on the following Indonsian Radio charts:
- Istara Power 40 - Istara 101.1 FM, Surabaya
- Produa Bandung Top 20 - Produa 96 FM, Bandung
For the details about Touch My Body in Indonesian radio charts, you can click here!
Monday, 24 March 2008
Introducing...The New Album Cover!
E=MC² will be released April 15, 2008 on Island Def Jam Records.
Here's the tracklisting for the album:
1. Migrate featuring T-Pain
2. Touch My Body
3. Cruise Control featuring Damian Marley
4. I Stay In Love
5. Side Effects featuring Young Jeezy
6. I'm That Chick
7. Love Story
8. I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
9. Last Kiss
10. Thanx 4 Nothin'
11. O.O.C.
12. For The Record
13. Bye Bye
14. I Wish You Well
Mariah in Parade Interview: "I've Faced My Worst Fears"
Mariah Carey talks about her struggle with fame and desire to find happiness.
In this week's issue of PARADE, Mariah Carey talks to James Kaplan about leading a public life, being call a "diva" and reconciling with her father. Below, the singer talks more about how she had to deal with the pains of her past to work her way back to the top.
On Her Ex-Husband, Former Chairman of Sony Music, Tommy Mottola
"Some of the songs on the new album discuss a certain time of my life that was so intense. I grew up with such dysfunction that I was just used to it. I assumed that I didn't have a right to be a happy in a personal life. If I had a career and all these other things, I thought, 'you asked for it, you got it.' But I look back at it now and I feel that part of that was my fault, for allowing the relationship to linger -- or, dare I say, fester -- for so long. I knew that I needed to be singing and expressing myself, or I never would have gotten through that period. I do believe that I learned a lot from him, and that he really did believe in my talent and I am very grateful for that. On my new album, the song 'Side Effects' says, 'Kept my tears inside, 'cause I knew if I started I'd keep crying for the rest of my life.' It's really true. At that point in my life [during my marriage] I didn't cry because I had to be so emotionally cut off to deal with it."
On Maintaining Artistic Integrity
"I never really felt famous. Even when my album Music Box was out, I didn't feel that thing other young singers or songwriters who are just starting out feel when they become famous. I see other people who have one hit and they're already thinking they're the biggest star in the world. But I didn't feel that because of the relationship that I was in and because I think there was a concerted effort to keep me from feeling too empowered. So how do you keep your artistic integrity while you become a corporation? You've got to go through some stuff! I feel like I connect to people through song because it's filling a void in me. I don't do it just because I want to make money or I want to be famous. I need to make music. If I didn't have this, I don't know where I would be."
On Being an Outcast
"I felt very much like an outcast when I was younger. No matter where I went, there was always this sense of not really falling into place or into one category. I moved around a lot when I was growing up, so nobody knew me and I was never one thing or the other. Being biracial, I didn't really have somebody to look at and say, 'Okay, this person is exactly the same as me, and they're out there.' A lot of kids have said that to me, 'Until you put your first record out, I didn't feel like there was anybody that was the same as me.' People who don't feel like they fit in can identify with me. I promised myself when I was a little girl that I would never forget what it felt like to be a kid. I never wanted to grow up and be out of touch with what that feels like."
On Her Mother
"I must give my mother credit for really inspiring and encouraging me to sing. She was an opera singer and went to Juilliard. She still sings and was a classically trained musician. I'm not a technical person, so I went the other way and got into R&B because I can just do whatever and sing whatever comes to mind. But she instilled the belief in me that I could become who I am today. She tells a story about when she was rehearsing a part of the opera Rigoletto, and I stopped her and said, 'No, you made a mistake, it goes like this,' and sang it back to her in another language at 4 years old. So my mother thought, 'Okay, she has an ear.'"
On Getting Older
"I'm eternally 12. And that 12-year-old inside me is an eternal optimist. I know what it feels like not to have fame or money, and I do still feel like that same person in many ways. Honestly, I don't even have birthdays. I call them 'anniversaries.' It really is about being as young as you feel. Some people convince themselves they're old, or they think, 'I have to grow up now; I can't have fun.' I will still always choose a day at Disney World over a night in Las Vegas, because that's who I am."
On Her "Breakdown"
"How do you climb back from the shambles when everybody counts you out? That can be a very difficult thing to come to terms with, especially when you've had so much success from such an early age. I have such faith in God that I really had to surrender everything and just know that I was going to be okay. That's truly where I had to go to when it felt like the bottom. More than anything, it was learning to grow up and take care of myself. Not treat myself like the corporation wanted to treat me, but treat myself like a human being. I've faced my worst fears and come out of them okay. Everything is always going to be all right as long as I hang on to the person inside of me."
Mariah To Guest Judge American Idol
Mariah Carey is coming to American Idol this week. The bestselling female pop star of the last two decades will show those kids how it's done, no doubt, and maybe even give comment on some of that singing.
(Although, to this ear, Amanda Overmeyer already knows what to do!)
Mariah's "AI" appearance is part 2 of her well-constructed campaign to promote her new CD, "E=MC²" which hits stores on April 15th. Remember? I gave you a preview of the CD a few weeks ago. Last night on "Saturday Night Live,"
Carey-a quick substitute for the fluish Janet Jackson-performed her current single, "Touch My Body" and her next one, "Migrate," featuring T Pain with aplomb. The album is loaded with singles possibilities, so two before the album's release date is no prob.
I visited with Mariah backstage after "SNL" last night, and here are some tidbits I picked up. For one thing, as you could see on the show, she looks amazing. She told us she's lost 20 pounds after a rigorous diet and exercise plan. Last night, she cheated a little bit on the limo ride up to NBC, though. "Don't tell anyone, but I had two bits of a piece of Sicilian pizza. I had to have sustenance!" Her trainer, I hope, will forgive her.
In addition to "American Idol," Mariah is back in Los Angeles this week to finish the all important song sequencing of "E=MC²" and to polish up one or two tracks that are just, almost, not quite finished. "There are three songs you didn't hear, I think," Carey said of my early listening session. "You're going to love one of them especially. It's very old school R&B."
So who else was backstage at SNL? Visiting Mariah were also her manager Benny Medina, and film director/producer Lee Daniels who directed Mariah in the upcoming film, "Tennessee" which debuts at the Tribeca Film Festival on April 26th. Ironically, Carey got that role, too, when Jackson dropped out. Strange, huh? Just like last night. Daniels is so psyched about Mariah's performance that he wrote a cameo for her in the film he's shooting now called "Push," which features rocker Lenny Kravitz in his acting debut.
Mariah: 21 Odd Facts
Mimi is rocking Saturday Night Live tonight. From beauty school to butterflies, from crippling stage fright to breaking chart records to being a backstage diva, here are some things you should know about her.
Elvis. The Beatles. Mariah. Don't laugh - the Long Island diva is the only living artist with a clear shot at toppling some of the rock's most enduring chart records, and certainly the only one who could pull off an upset in a skintight gold lame mini. Carey's 18-year career has been filled with some famous ups (the #1 album for each record released, more than 200 million records sold) and infamous downs (a short-lived marriage to her former label boss and that legendary meltdown on MTV's TRL, with a hospitalization for exhaustion), but through it all she's cranked out some of the most indelible pop and R&B hits of the modern era.
Though she claims to have failed remedial math, Carey's back with her 11th album, the Einstein-inspired E=MC², which was reason enough to hit the books and dig up 21 things you may not have known about the woman only close friends call "Mimi."
1. It's been widely reported that her name means "the wind" in some unspecified Native American language, but that urban fable is likely tied to a Kingston Trio song from the 1950s titled "They Call the Wind Mariah." Her name was also allegedly inspired by the 1969 western "Paint Your Wagon," which features the song "They Call the Wind Maria."
2. Her exotic looks come courtesy of an African-Venezuelan father, Alfred Roy Carey, an aeronautical engineer, and her Irish-American mother, Patricia, a mezzo-soprano opera singer. She's spoken often about the effect her parent's divorce had on her and the racial prejudice she encountered growing up in the suburbs as a mixed race child. She has two older siblings, Morgan, CEO of the Big Kid Records label and Alison, whose struggles with drug use and prostitution in her teenage years led to a long estrangement between the sisters.
3. She began singing at age two and started taking voice lessons two years later. She has said the hours she spent alone at home following her parent's divorce were often spent listening to and singing music, including opera. She was so often absent from Harborfields High School due to her work as a demo singer in local studios that classmates took to calling her "Mirage."
4. After graduating from high school, she moved to New York to pursue a singing career and logged 500 hours at beauty school while working a string of menial jobs, including coat check girl and waitress. Her big break came when she sang backup for underground R&B singer Brenda K. Starr in 1987. Later, she handed Starr a demo tape at a party, which made its way to Columbia Records boss, Tommy Mottola. Twelve years after meeting Starr, she would pay tribute to her in 1999 by releasing a cover of her mentor's "I Still Believe."
5. Her debut album netted her two Grammy awards, for Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Performance for "Vision of Love." Though she picked up several American Music Awards and other honors in the years since, it wouldn't be until 2005 that she would win another Grammy. That year she picked up three for her comeback album The Emancipation of Mimi, including Best Contemporary R&B Album and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for the smash "We Belong Together."
6. She was 23 in 1993 when she married her label boss, Mottola, 43, in an elaborate, $500,000 wedding that she modeled on England's Princess Diana and Prince Charles. Among the details? A family heirloom tiara refashioned to look like Diana's, fifty flower girls and a boy's choir. The guest list included Bruce Springsteen, Ozzy Osbourne and Robert DeNiro. In addition to being a major label record head, Mottola was a former guitarist in a R&B/rock cover band (The Exotics), a sometime movie actor and a wannabe singer under the stage name Tommy Valentine. The couple split four years later and her next album, Butterfly, had a decidedly more hip-hop feel, with production and cameos from Puff Daddy, Missy Elliott, Dru Hill and Bone Thugs-N-Harmony.
7. She loves collaborations, having shared the mic with Luther Vandross, Whitney Houston, Ol' Dirty Bastard, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Missy Elliott, Dru Hill, Whitney Houston, Jay-Z, Joe, 98 Degrees, Westlife, Snoop Dogg, Cameo, Da Brat, Ludacris, Cam'ron, Busta Rhymes, Mase, the Lox, Mobb Deep, Rick James and Bow Wow.
8. Among her pets over the years: a pair of Dobermans named Princess and Duke, a Yorkshire terrier named Ginger, a pair of cats named Ninja and Tompkins, another pair named Clarence (his tombstone is pictured at right) and Puffy, two small dogs named Bing and Bong, a Jack Russell terrier named Jack, who travels with her and has appeared in several of her videos, including "All I Want for Christmas Is You" and "Dreamlover."
9. She holds several sales and chart records, among them: one of her albums is reportedly bought every three seconds around the world; two of her albums (Daydream and Music Box) have sold more than 20 million copies each; she has the most #1 Billboard Hot 100 songs by a female artist (17); she's spent the most weeks at #1 on Billboard Hot 100 (16) for "One Sweet Day"; she's spent the most cumulative weeks at #1 by a female artist on Billboard Hot 100 (77); and she's the best-selling female artist (49 million), just to name a few accomplishments.
10. In 2007, she told Glamour that her 17,000 square foot triplex in New York's Tribeca neighborhood was so big she wasn't even sure how many bathrooms it has. One thing she did know, though, was that there was one bathroom that was Hello Kitty themed, and that 3,000 of those square feet were just for her closet, which doesn't include a whole separate closet for lingerie.
11. You've probably heard it used a million times to describe her singing style, but what in the hell is "melisma?" The dictionary definition is a technique of singing in which the pitch of a note is changed in the midst of a single syllable. In other words, it's that thing she does where she stretches out a part of a word and makes two syllables sound like 12. Also, that squeaky, glass-shattering note she's known for? It's called "whistle register" and it's defined as the highest register of the human voice, which soars even above a female falsetto. She's said to be able to cover all the notes from alto to coloratura soprano.
12. She also loves her some covers. She's had a wide ranging choice of remakes over the years, including songs by Phil Collins ("Against All Odds"), Prince ("The Beautiful Ones"), Def Leppard ("Bringin' on the Heartbreak"), Darlene Love ("Christmas (Baby Please Come Home))", Cherrelle ("I Didn't Mean To Turn You On"), Diana Ross ("Do You Know Where You're Going To? (Theme from Mahogany))", Diana Ross and Lionel Richie ("Endless Love"), Cheryl Lynn ("Got To Be Real"), the Jackson Five ("I'll Be There"), Conway Twitty ("It's Only Make Believe"), Journey ("Open Arms") and Badfinger ("Without You").
13. For her first several years in the spotlight, Carey was unable to tour due, in part, to crippling stage fright. She finally hit the road in 1993 for the first time with her Music Box tour. But unlike most artists hitting the road for the first time, she was coming off two hit albums and played her first major show in front of 15,000 people in Miami. Fittingly, the band took the stage to the strains of "They Call the Wind Maria" from Paint Your Wagon during the six-date tour.
14. The 38-year-old singer recently told E! television that while she's happy dating Mark Sudack - a member of her management team -- she's not sure about having babies. "Obviously having a kid is a commitment for life. I really would have to be very, very positive that I was in a place where I could completely focus and put everything into the job of being someone's mommy cause it's hard enough to have a puppy."
15. She was born in Huntington, New York. Other notable residents over the years have included Billy Joel, John Coltrane, Ashanti, Jack Kerouac, Ralph Macchio, Walt Whitman, Sean Hannity, Lloyd Banks, New York Jets quarterback Chad Pennington and Lindsay Lohan.
16. Her 2001 big screen bow in a starring role, "Glitter," was a disaster, but Carey actually began dipping her toes in the Hollywood pool two years earlier. Her movie debut was as an opera singer in the 1999 Chris O'Donnell/Renee Zellwegger romantic comedy The Bachelor. She went on to star with Mira Sorvino in the straight-to-cable mob movie WiseGirls, which got slightly better reviews. She has since appeared in the indie movies Death of a Dynasty and State Property 2, produced by former Roc-A-Fella boss Damon Dash. She also appeared on a 2002 episode of "Ally McBeal." She'll appear in the 2008 indie film Tennessee, and play herself in the upcoming Adam Sandler hairdresser comedy You Don't Mess with the Zohan.
17. She's notoriously generous to her personal staff and in 2007 she nearly broke the bank. Her annual gift bag to her closest peeps was reportedly worth almost $20,000 and included French champagne, whiskey, Belgian chocolates, Cuban cigars, an iPod and a laptop.
18. Though she avoided doing commercials and promoting products in the U.S. for years, Carey got on the promotional bandwagon in 2006, when she appeared in ads for Intel Centrino computers, launched her own line of jewelry for teens called Glamorized in the Claire's and Icing chains and also hooked up with Pepsi and Motorola for campaigns. In 2007, she released the fragrance "M" through Elizabeth Arden. As of last year, Forbes magazine ranked her as the sixth richest woman in entertainment, with an estimated net worth of $225 million.
19. She's celebrating the release of E=MC² with a special collector's Gold edition of her "M by Mariah Carey" fragrance. The rarity was priced at $75 and had a reported $595 value. According to her website, the lines on the "M" fragrance bottles are shaped to mimic the singer's signature, with a cap in the form of a butterfly, one of her favorite images. The butterfly sits on the bottle that's shaped like a Tiare flower that is, according to her official website, "just on the verge of blooming, its delicate petals open to reveal the seductive fragrance within." Among the "notes" in the fragrance are amber incense, the Tahitian Tiare flower and marshmallows, which remind Mariah of being a child in the kitchen with her father.
20. In October 2007, she was inducted into the Long Island Music Hall of Fame along with Louis Armstrong, Count Basie, Pat Benatar, Blue Oyster Cult, Neil Diamond, Arlo Guthrie, Carole King, Eddie Money, Public Enemy, the Ramones and Barbra Streisand.
21. Mariah's backstage needs are like any other divas, according to a tour rider obtained by The Smoking Gun website. Among the things she requires: one bottle of chilled Cristal champagne, two bottles of Camus white wine, 12 room temperature bottles of Poland Spring mineral water, tea service for eight using Poland Spring water, one bear-shaped bottle of honey, a selection of sugarless gum, one box of bendy straws, two air purifiers, one director's chair and three boxes of tissues.
Mariah To Perform at "The Hills" Premiere Event
MARIAH CAREY TO PERFORM LIVE AT "THE HILLS" PREMIERE EVENT HOSTED BY LAUREN, WHITNEY & AUDRINA LIVE FROM NYC
MTV fans wait no longer! The saga continues with 10 new episodes of "The Hills" premiering March 24th at 10pm ET/PT. The extended third season will begin with Lauren and Whitney's anticipated journey to Paris, where they travel to work for Teen Vogue at the Crillon Ball, an international gala for debutantes. The drama will continue back in Los Angeles as the cameras reveal the latest stories affecting the cast including Lauren moving into a new house, Whitney finding a new job, and Heidi and Spencer's tumultuous relationship.
With so many surprises and new stories, we had to kick it off with a glamorous night to remember and who better to do that than the one and only Mariah Carey. Lauren, Whitney and Audrina will join Mariah and MTV VJ Lyndsey Rodrigues along with all their fans at the ultimate premiere event live from Gotham Hall in New York City to watch the anticipated return of "The Hills." Starting at 9pm ET/PT, fans will have an opportunity to get up close and personal with the cast like never before, while giving viewers a chance to catch up on the latest drama of the last two episodes. With the world watching, Mariah will take the stage immediately following the show for an unforgettable performance. And just in case you hadn't had enough stay tuned by going to MTV.com the following day to see bonus performances from Mariah, along with all the inside dirt on "The Hills" cast.
McBrayer Raves About Working With The 'Living Barbie Doll'
'30 Rock' funnyman recalls an awkward moment from the video set: 'I threw a Frisbee in Mariah Carey's face!'
Most leading men carry a chin harder than granite and looks that could make any woman swoon. And Mariah Carey certainly brings her share of leading-lady beauty to the screen.
"She looks amazing," Carey's "Touch My Body" co-star Jack McBrayer raved to MTV News recently. "Apparently she's just been working with this trainer for a while. I mean, she looks like a living Barbie doll. A beautiful, caramel-colored Barbie."
So if Carey is Barbie, would that make McBrayer - who plays an overeager NBC page named Kenneth on Tina Fey's hit TV show "30 Rock" - her Ken?
"Maybe in an alternate universe," he quipped. "But Ken all the same."
The unlikely onscreen pairing of Carey and McBrayer in "Touch My Body" has raised eyebrows and busted guts. According to McBrayer, Carey is a huge fan of "30 Rock" and of comedy in general. But when he got the call requesting him for the video, he wondered whether it was a gag.
"I got a phone call on a Thursday night saying, 'Would you be available to get on a plane tomorrow morning and come be in Mariah Carey's video?' " McBrayer recalled. "I'm always worried now that somebody is pranking me, so at first I was very leery. But when I heard it was legit, and then later on we got a phone call from Brett Ratner, who directed it. I was like, 'This is either a very elaborate prank, or this is the real deal.'"
Obviously, it turned out to be the real deal.
In the fish-out-of water plot, McBrayer's character is a computer tech visiting Carey's home for a service visit. When the singer answers the door in a revealing outfit, McBrayer's character starts daydreaming about being with the superstar.
In one of the more memorable - and odd - scenes, he and Carey walk side by side with, of all things, a unicorn trailing behind them. "I have no idea [what that scene was about]," McBrayer said. "I guess part of this geek's fantasy would involve dressing up like medieval people walking a unicorn. Which, I mean, duh, that makes no sense."
Another scene, which could have been just as memorable, unfortunately didn't make the final cut, he said. "We're out in the backyard playing ultimate Frisbee and stuff, and we're given very loose directions: 'Play around!' 'Go fetch!'" McBrayer remembered. "So I go to throw the Frisbee to Mariah Carey, and she's lip-syncing and she's spinning around. And she spins around right around the time it leaves my hands. So by the time she spins back around - bonk, right in her face. I threw a Frisbee in Mariah Carey's face!"
For McBrayer, who was just as overwhelmed being around the real-life Carey as his character was, that was when his fantasy ended.
"Her bodyguard came over and set me straight," he said, joking. "In fact, if you notice, from there on out for most of the video, we're just kind of handing the Frisbee back and forth to each other."
Mariah Switch From 'Today' to 'GMA' Enrages NBC
Hell hath no fury like a network scorned. Music-industry insiders and network sources say NBC is furious with Mariah Carey, her manager Benny Medina and her reps at Def Jam, because they promised Carey would perform on "Today" to promote her new album, "E=MC2" - but instead she's going on archrival ABC's "Good Morning America."
One music insider told Page Six, "Every morning show wanted Mariah on for her new album, so Benny started negotiating. He demanded that 'Today' promote her fragrance and also give her a guest-star role on 'My Name is Earl.' They agreed."
But her "My Name Is Earl" part, which was to coincide with the album release, was put off when it was decided the album needed work. "It was supposed to come out in November, then it was pushed back until February, and now the release date is April 15," said our source.
"The entire time, Benny told 'Today' it would get Mariah for its concert series on Rockefeller Plaza. But then he stopped returning calls. Turns out, he had done a side deal behind everyone's back with 'Good Morning America' - after NBC had agreed to all of his demands.
Medina, the inspiration for "The Fresh Prince of Bel Air," told us: "We want to do something really spectacular for Mariah's album debut. I don't want 'Today' to feel disrespected by me trying to do right by my client. But when we went on 'GMA' [two years ago], they closed down Times Square. It got great ratings and was a big success."
And Medina denies he ever promised "Today" that Carey would give a concert on Rockefeller Plaza. "If they can show me an e-mail from anyone committing to the concert, I will personally pay for the entire production myself," he said.
Laura Swanson, Carey's rep at Def Jam, said the outdoor plaza wasn't big enough for a concert, "thus, they're unable to meet our needs for a spectacular launch event." No one would divulge where Carey's mid-April concert for "GMA" would be held.
Megan Kopf, a rep for "Today," said, "Mariah has been a guest on 'Today' several times since the start of her career. We would certainly like to have her back on 'Today.' "
Rolling Stone Previews E=MC²
At a private listening party hosted by L.A. Reid, Rolling Stone recently got a chance to check out Mariah Carey's eleventh studio album, the follow-up to 2005's blockbuster The Emancipation of Mimi. Due April 15th, E=MC² jumps from hip-hop-flavored jams like the Young Jeezy-assisted "Side Effects" to bright, mega-catchy stuff like the disco "That Chick." The album also tosses in a couple of big-voiced ballads ("Bye Bye," a piano-based song about losing someone close to you) and beats from big-name producers like Jermaine Dupri, Will.i.am and Scott Storch. In a notable departure from earlier albums, Carey sings in a lighter, less showy voice than we're used to on a few tracks, including lead single "Touch My Body." A horny jam about a "secret rendezvous," the single was co-written by Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, the team that co-penned Rihanna's "Umbrella."
Nate "Danja" Hills, who produced "Migrate" (which features T-Pain), tells RS that on that track Carey "definitely opens up towards the end of the song and shows what Mariah does. It's a different array of her vocal range on this record, but she keeps it pretty mid-range and then toward the end she lets loose. She was singing in the room, and I was just blown away by how good it sounded without her even trying. It's incredible, I see why she is who she is."
Watch the Full "Touch My Body" Video
You can view Mariah Carey's "Touch My Body" video here!
Saturday, 23 February 2008
Touch My Body Blowing Up Billboard Charts
Touch My Body is the highest debut on Billboard's Hot 100 chart at #57 this week (magazine issue: 03/01/2008). The song also debuts at #23 on Billboard's Hot 100 Airplay chart as the greatest gainer and the most added song on radio this week. "Touch My Body" climbs all the way to #20 on Billboard's Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart.
Billboard.com writes: Mariah Carey makes a triumphant return to the charts with her new single Touch My Body. After less than six days at radio it blasts onto a whopping four airplay charts. "Touch" storms CHR/Top 40 (No. 32), Rhythmic Top 40 (No. 26), Urban (No. 23) and Urban AC (No. 39). By debuting on the CHR/Top 40 chart, Carey takes the lead for most hits in the list's 15-year history: "Touch" is her 26th entry, breaking a tie with Madonna.
Mariah's MAGIC 'TOUCH' doesn't end there... With just one day of airplay Touch My Body earned enough airplay to jump onto the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart at No. 78. "Body" is Carey's 41st song to appear on this survey. Her run began almost 18 years ago with "Vision of Love," which became the first of her 10 R&B No. 1 hits to date. Touch My Body previews Carey's 15th album, "E=MC2," due April 15.
Exclusive! Mariah Carey E=MC² Preview
Yesterday, Island/Def Jam honcho L.A. Reid hosted a few journalists in his office for a special preview of Mariah Carey's upcoming E=MC² album, tentatively due April 15. While Reid looked on, Mariah's A&R man and long-rumored beau Mark Sudack played 12 of the album's cuts from his laptop, often passionately (and adorably!) singing along. On the album, there was drama, there was death, there was disco. What follows is a track-by-track breakdown of our impressions of the album. Note that this isn't the final track sequence, that L.A. ticked off the producers list to us but it is by no means etched in stone and the tracks that we heard weren't always mastered.
One final note: so much of this album is sung in Mariah's chest voice. The vocal gymnastics and whistle notes, while there ('cause, duh, it's Mariah!), take a backseat to clear, purposeful singing, and Mariah sounds better for it. Oh yeah, Mimi's back.
1. "Migrate" (co-produced by Danja) -- After announcing itself with Mariah's patented whistle notes, this club track gets to bangin' and it takes that task really seriously. It's about as meta as a banger gets, with Mariah explaining during the chorus how her night goes: "From the car to the club / We migrate / From the bar to the V.I.P. / We migrate." And so it goes, from the party to the after party, from the after party to the hotel. There's a slight autotune effect on Mariah's voice on the last "migrate" of each chorus, which I assume is to put her on equal ground with the man she shares the mic with here. T-Pain, mercifully shows up for just a guest verse -- this is not a full-blown duet. It's a feisty track, with tough Storch-esque beats that Mariah's bravado attempts to match: "If you're inked up thuggin', that's what I like," she says. See, I always thought she went for the pretty boys. Already we're learning stuff!
2. "Touch My Body" (co-produced with Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and The-Dream) -- There isn't much to say about this ultra-femme track that wasn't said when it leaked. Hard to believe that that was only a little more than week ago -- in the time since, it's become so ubiquitous that it's kind of hard to imagine what radio was like before it. Even L.A. seemed taken aback by how quickly it has caught on -- he described the track's out-of-the-gate success as virtually accidental.
3. "Last Kiss" (co-produced by Jermaine Dupri) -- One of the album's many declarations of eternal love, this one is "We Belong Together, Part 35." It's nice but extremely safe. One thing that's very much in its favor are Mariah's vocals, which are nimble as they are in "We Belong Together" (she changes up her flow more times than I could count) and maybe more robust than they've sounded in over a decade. There's a nice little duet at the end of this one between Mariah's full chest voice and her higher register. Of course, if she didn't show off that stellar natural resource, this wouldn't be a Mariah Carey album.
4. "Lovin' You Long Time" (co-produced by DJ Toomp) -- Pure and utter joy is this one, which is most reminiscent of the lovely Mimi outtake "When I Feel It." Except this one's, like, 10 times better. The chorus of DeBarge's "Stay With Me" is the foundation of this track (as opposed to the verses, which provided the foundation for the single remix of Biggie's "One More Chance" and Ashanti's "Foolish," among tracks). However, the sample sounds more weathered, and overall, the track comes off as a '60s throwback rather than an '80s one. One hundred percent feel-good and packing in a killer breakdown and conclusion that's a wall of Mariah voices, this was the first song that felt like the work of unstoppable pop genius.
5. "Thanx for Nothin'" (co-produced by Jermaine Durpri) -- A mid-tempo ballad that sports a beat rougher than anything Jermaine Dupri has laid down for Mariah and a guitar line not unlike Mimi's "So Lonely" (though this track is more sassy and less dour than that), "Thanx" suggests that Mariah and Jermaine aren't sentenced to live in the shadow of their former glory and can actually make relatively new sounds together. Lyrically, this break-up track is a cross between the self-deprecating "Mine Again" ("I never knew enough about you, babe / And I guess I only have myself to blame") and the streetwise posturing of "Get Your Number" ("Seems like all I do is think about your pseudo-romance / While you're somewhere burnin' diesel in the streets, havin' laughs"). Mariah packs in so many lyrics that she barely has time to sing them, and sort of just growls them. It's not nearly as ridiculous as that description might make it sound.
6. "That Chick" (co-produced by Stargate) -- Instant. Classic. An absolutely brilliant disco track that plays on Mariah's strengths and sexiness without ever crossing the line into indulgence. It's slick, it's chic (and Chic, with its slap-you-on-the-ass bass line), it's silly ("La da da a oooh wee-wee" goes the bit between the chorus and the verses) and it carries a killer middle 8 that's as exhilarating as the one in Michael Jackson's "P.Y.T." (you know, the best part of one of the best songs ever that goes, "Don't you know nowwwww / Is the perfect time..."?). Mariah makes references to 2Pac and Biggie, compares herself to ice cream and the lottery and maybe even references the long-lost track from the Charmbracelet sessions "Touch the Sky." Oh, and also she delivers the most her line of her career, complete with a 10-cent word: "I brings that levity." Maybe one day they'll bottle the essence of Mariah, but until then, we have "That Chick" and I seriously am counting down the days till I can hear this track again. This needs to be a single, like, now, and Mariah needs to dust off those "Heartbreaker" remix roller skates for the video, pronto.
7. "Cruise Control" (co-produced by Jermaine Dupri) -- Another J.D. track that deviates from what could have been a detrimental pattern, this is a reggae-lite extended car metaphor ("I need a caddy wit some cruise control," belts Mariah). The chorus consists of her spelling out, "C-R-U-I-S-E control" and the second verse finds Mariah adopting a Jamaican affect for kicks: "When da door open I de gals pon de block / They be hop-on, to rob the clock / Me say no mam / Step up step up / Bottle broken / Tink I'm jokin'." Seriously, she says that. Damien Marley gets a guest verse, and I have to say, his shtick is a little more convincing.
8. "Side Effects" (co-produced by Scott Storch) -- You know how sometimes Southern rap almost has a heavy metal feel? Mariah and Storch exploit that by turning out a Southern-fried power ballad that's a thinly veiled portrait of her time under Tommy Mottola's reign ("Hell we built, and I dealt with it... Kept my tears inside 'cause I knew if I started, I'd keep cryin' for the rest of my life with you / I finally built up the strength to walk away / Don't regret it..."). For someone as guarded as Mariah is publicly, it's shockingly frank (she alludes to "violent times") and really naked (the titular side effects refer to the toll the relationship has taken on her: she's "still a little depressed inside" and "still a little defensive thinkin' folks be tryin' to run my life"). This is another highlight, and having a rapper so associated with drugs (Jeezy) on a track called "Side Effects" that isn't about drugs at all, only makes things cleverer.
9. "Love Story" (co-produced by Jermaine Dupri) -- Anther ode to endless love ("This ain't no fairy tale or fiction / This is truly ours for eternity"), this ballad is more of the baby-making ilk. It's like Prince-lite with a synthesized beat a la "The Beautiful Ones," but not as effects-laden (i.e. the beat doesn't have the backwards sound). The melody is reminiscent of Mimi's "Joyride," and that should give you an indication of how sweet this track is.
10. "OOC" (co-produced by Swizz Beatz) -- This one has a pummeling thump so pronounced, it's somewhat surprising that it's not the work of Stargate or Tricky. "OOC" stands for "out of control," and while the track isn't exactly wild, it's a fun mix of The-Dream's "Ditch That N…" with a melody like Blu Cantrell's "Hit 'Em Up Style." Besides the hypnotic refrain of "Forever and ever," the track is most notable for including the word motherf***er. As in, "I know y'all motherf***ers feel like we / When you're messin' with the one true lova / That makes you OOC." Hardcore!
11. "Bye Bye" (co-produced by Stargate) -- When Mariah first started promoting Mimi, she described "We Belong Together" as a cross between "Breakdown" and "One Sweet Day." That description is infinitely more appropriate for "Bye Bye," a song about death that's "for my people who just lost somebody," "for my people who lost their grandmothers" and seemingly for Mariah's departed father, Alfred Roy ("You never got to see me back at No. 1"). It's nice that Mariah's on a confessional kick, although a track with the "We Belong Together" sonic template and lyrics tailored appeal to everyone on such a basic level seems like too easy of a combination for someone as established as Mimi. This one's like insurance -- in case nothing else is a hit, here's a sure-shot. But ultimately, it turns out that the album is too good for that.
12. "I Wish You Well" (co-produced by James Poyser) -- We were told that this was hot off the presses and a very rough version of the song, but even in its unpolished state, it was a stunner. A piano ballad that features Mariah, some gospel-tinged backing vocals, a piano and that's it, this track is a throwback to the fan-favorite "Vanishing" from her 1990 debut. Part feisty ("You can't manipulate me like before") and totally spiritual (Mariah name-checks a bible verse in the chorus, although I couldn't catch exactly what it was, and she ends the song repeating, "The Lord is my salvation / I will trust in him"), "I Wish You Well" will have fans wetting themselves. It's gorgeous and in its simplistic way, the type of risk that Mariah should take more often.
The risky moments on the album ("Lovin' You Long Time," "That Chick," "Side Effects" and "I Wish You Well") bode well for the future. Though E=MC² feels extremely safe, there's enough variation to signify some artistic growth. She's cranking out hits and that's fine because that's what she's always done (hitmaking is her medium), but when she goes out of the Top 40 comfort zone, the album truly soars. Over 10 years after she first sang about it, it's only now that Mariah has worked up the courage to really spread her wings. The next question is: how high can they take her?
Songwriter "The Ink" Co-Writes 4 Songs on E=MC²
Cri$tyle aka "the ink" pens four tracks on Carey's E=MC²
So So Def/EMI signed songwriter Cri$tyle aka "the ink" is the latest to join a short list of creative geniuses guaranteed to deliver a Billboard single. Cri$tyle penned Mariah Carey's 2008 comeback single 'Touch My Body' alongside super-producer C.Tricky Stewart. The mid-tempo track exudes sex appeal and captures Mariah's signature sound, while adding just the right amount of hip hop flavor.
"Cri$tyle is in one word... phenomenal," Carey says of her newfound muse. "I'm so glad Jermaine hooked us up. I know all the songs we've written together are going to be stonewinners--smash hit grooves."
In addition to the single, 'Touch My Body', Cri$tyle penned, 'Cruise Control' produced by Jermaine Dupri and 'Love You Long Time' produced by DJ Toomp and 'HEAT' produced by Will.I.Am on Carey's spring 2008 release E=MC².
Since signing with Jermaine Dupri's Dieniahmar publishing last year, the twenty-four year old has interpreted the tracks of producers such as Dre, Rodney Jerkins and Jermaine Dupri into unforgettable melodies for A-list divas such as Janet, Mariah, Jennifer Lopez and Natasha Bedingfield. Currently Cri$tle is in the studio with R&B darling Brandy and powerhouse diva Beyonce.
"It's her time. 2008 belongs to Cri$tyle," says mentor/friend Jermaine Dupri. The singer turned songwriter says the last year has been the equivalent of living a dream. "It's a blessing, but music has been my drug of choice for as long as I can remember," Cri$tyle admits.
'Touch my Body' made its radio debut Tuesday, February 12th to rave reviews. Cri$tyle also has the current singles on teen sensation Tiffany Evans and international superstar Natasha Bedingfield.
Saturday, 16 February 2008
Diva Alert: Mariah CD Previewed
I heard eight other tracks on Thursday, but since the album isn’t sequenced I can’t tell you where they fall in order. In the order I enjoyed them came first "Bye, Bye," a powerful ballad that should be a single and probably will close the album. It’s a natural singalong in concert, too, which could make it not only wildly popular but a possible Grammy contender next year. Look out.
The next most commercial number is "Thanks for Nothing," a witty and rueful tune with another great melody, courtesy of Jermaine Dupri and Carey. As on "Bye Bye," Carey’s vocals are superb. Her infamous eight-octave range has suffered a little wear and tear over the years, but Carey still can flutter from great highs to mellow lows like no one else.
Some other highlights included "Cruise Control," featuring Damian Marley with a driving reggae subtext; "Migrate" with T-Pain, which should be a single and perhaps the album’s kick-off track; "Last Kiss," with Dupri on vocals; a breathy disco dance hit called "I’m That Chick"; and out-and-out pop song "Loving You a Long Time," which samples DeBarge’s "Stay with Me" and recalls the melodic riff of the "Hill Street Blues" theme music.
From track to track I kept thinking that Carey and her crew have put a lot of work into making "E=MC2" not just a hit, but a sustainable success. There’s enough in the package that it will last as long as "Emancipation," spinning off singles, remixes and videos.
Blender Online Reviews 'Touch My Body'
WHO: Mariah Carey
WHAT: "Touch My Body"
WHY: While Mariah's new album, E=MC², is set to be one of the year's biggest, this introductory single is downright subtle -- yet effective. Co-written by The-Dream and produced by Tricky (a.k.a. the dudes behind "Umbrella"), "Touch My Body" rides the same never ending snap blueprint T-Pain used to brilliant effect on last year's feather-light super hit "Buy U A Drank (Shawty Snappin')." You won't mind hearing it on the radio and TV every 10 minutes for the next few months - this thing sooths as it repeats. Here, Mariah is focused on one thing: "Come on and give me what I deserve and touch my body," she coos. And make no mistake, she wants to be touched on her terms only: "Cause if you run your mouth and brag about this secret rendezvous, I will hunt you down." She even thinks about the possible ramifications of her touchy tryst when she sings, "If there's a camera up in here then I best not catch this flick on YouTube" (nevermind the fact that the video in question would never get past YouTube censors). A pop genius making genius pop. 4 Stars, Blender Magazine.
FMQB Reviews 'Touch My Body'
MARIAH CAREY
"Touch My Body"
(Island/IDJMG)
How does an artist follow-up one of their biggest selling albums that included two number one singles, when most had written the artist off as a causality of being relevant or not? If you're Mariah Carey, you keep it simple, and that's one thing MC has done with her debut single from her forthcoming album, E=MC2. "Touch My Body" (co-written and produced with Tricky Stewart and The-Dream) is the perfect lead track to re-ignite her most passionate fan base, who've kept her relevant through good times and bad... times are pretty good for Mariah nowadays! This mid-tempo track is pure fun, sounding at times reminiscent of another Carey gem, "Always Be My Baby," but yet different enough to sound like something totally fresh and new. Mariah's vocal range is also kept in check and fits the song to perfection. The hypnotic "Touch My Body...My Body" hook is sure to stick after one-listen. While the thought of Mariah Carey exceeding expectations remains a question, simply because the bar she's set is so high, matching them is a good way to start. This "body" of work sounds like a hit!
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