- Title: USA: MARIAH CAREY LAUNCHES NEW ALBUM
- Date: 12th April 2005
- Summary: VARIOUS OF MARIAH CAREY PERFORMING ON STAGE AND AUDIENCE (4 SHOTS)
- Embargoed: 27th April 2005 13:00
- Keywords:
- Location: NEW YORK CITY, NEW YORK, UNITED STATES
- Country: USA
- Topics: Entertainment
- Reuters ID: LVA9VQ0VEB28A9DCC2KNVC1UJAPP
- Story Text: Braving the cold morning air, fans of Mariah Carey, lined up in New York's Times Square for hours to a chance to see their diva return to the spotlight.
And the singer didn't disappoint, electrifying the crowd with the launch of her new comeback album "The Emancipation of Mimi", which hits the stores Tuesday (April 12). Carey was performing in Times Square as part of a special concert for the ABC television show Good Morning America.
In 2001 the singer was at her peak, reportedly signing an $80m deal with Virgin. But, later that year it all came crashing down for Mariah, who was hospitalised twice with physical and emotional breakdowns. The drama happened close to the release of her critically-scorned movie "Glitter".
The bad press led to Carey being labelled an unstable diva and her contract with Virgin fell apart.
In 2002 her poor selling album, "Charmbracelet" added to her woes and led to speculation Carey the singer would never be able to return to the giddy heights and successes that once defined her 15-year career, when every album was a runaway success.
But for the fans who lined the streets of Times Square to see their hero's comeback, Mariah's performance was as good as ever.
"Mariah Carey is an amazing, amazing woman, and I am just so happy to be here and see her and be this close to her, it's awesome," said Rachel Quin.
"Oh she's great," said Chris Ciompi, "She's so alive and she is so vibrant, she's ready."
Clad in slinky dresses and glittering high heels, Carey certainly looked the part of a woman ready to reclaim her diva-title, and critics say in her new album she certainly sounds like her old self.
Fans were certainly pleased with what they heard. Eddie Hiram, who travelled to New York from Hawaii especially to see Mariah, loved the new songs on "Emancipation of Mimi". ] "Oh my gosh - Mariah - shut it down! I lost my voice from screaming," he gushed, adding,
"That album is great, I only heard snippets from it and I am really looking forward to hearing the whole thing and for the whole world to hear it because it's a wonderful album, she is a great artist."
Whilst looking and sounding similar to the good old days, Carey, may be subtly trying for an image change. She says the title of her album (Mimi) refers to a nickname she has, used only be close friends. In some of her songs she has backing singers dressed in gospel choir robes, to reflect, Carey says, her relationship with God, and to show her fans what got her through her recent hard times.
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