We all have that music snob friend. You know, the one who protests when we shriek, “Turn it uuuupppppp!” from the backseat of an Uber after going hard on the Baileys at the holiday party. He pretends not to feel it. Resists and rolls his eyes. Says he’s more of a The Fall guy. But 30 seconds into Mariah Carey’s “Heartbreaker” his voice miraculously skyrockets a few octaves as he clutches an invisible microphone and strains to hit the high notes, casually reciting the Jay Z rap verse by heart.
In a Tumblr post, pixie goddess Grimes once gave major props to one of the best-selling female recording artists of all time, writing: “The first time I heard Mariah Carey it shattered the fabric of my existence and I started Grimes.”
If praise from one of today’s most authentic and outspoken artists isn’t testament enough to Mimi’s enduring influence, then consider the hundreds of Mariah Carey nights popping up in clubs across the country, her upcoming Hallmark movie A Christmas Melody, the three new shows added by popular demand to her second annual All I Want for Christmas Is You tour, that that song is consistently named #1 on Billboard’s Holiday 100, and her new children’s book of the same name becoming an instant Amazon best-seller. You’ll notice the recurring theme here: Christmas. So, as we deck the halls for the most wonderful time of the year, we ask: How did Mariah evolve from a tube-topped 90s darling to the undisputed Queen of December 25?
In 1990, Mariah Carey was an unassuming Long Island girl with a big voice, bouncy curls, and a mean case of stage fright. Her self-titled debut album opened at #80 on the Billboard Hot 100 before catapulting to multi-platinum status and producing four number one singles, including the balladic “Vision of Love,” which rock critic Devon Powers calls, “A simple testament to the incredible pipes that gave her a permanent place in pop cultural memory.” After a string of number ones, she released the Merry Christmas album in 1994, which contained the worldwide classic “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” co-written by legendary Grammy winner Walter Afanasieff. With over 14 million copies sold and nearly 140 million YouTube views, it’s one of the best-selling tracks of all time and has been covered by everyone from Shania Twain to Ariana Grande. As of 2013, it was reported that the song had earned over $50 million in royalties, and it is still considered by many to be Mariah’s magnum opus.
But all that glitters is not platinum. In 2001, after a whacked-out surprise TRL appearance during which she sported a spray-painted “loverboy” t-shirt with gold hot pants, pushed around an ice cream cart and babbled nonsensically, Mariah Carey suffered a nervous breakdown and checked into rehab for “extreme exhaustion.” Next: the infamous Glitter box office bomb which earned her a Razzie for worst actress in 2002. Though certainly a cinematic disaster, the film also signified a new era for the pop princess: the beginning of her temporary fall from greatness and subsequent reincarnation as an accidental cult icon.
“Throughout a screening [of Glitter] in a Times Square theater the other night, the audience erupted repeatedly into laughter at scenes intended to carry emotional weight,” read one rough review in the New York Times. London’s Barbican theater later screened the flop as part of its Bad Film Club (as did other cinemas). And it even had the distinct honor of being roasted by the overdub masters at RiffTrax, officiating its membership into “So bad it’s good” territory.
But like the indestructible entertainment mogul she’s proven herself to be, the inimitable diva has been reborn with head high, bodycon dresses tight, and a merry multimillion dollar Christmas-themed empire. She even had the chance to redeem herself on the big screen, receiving critical acclaim for her 2009 portrayal of welfare caseworker Ms. Weiss in Lee Daniels’ Precious (for which she swapped her signature face of makeup for frumpy sweaters and a mustache). This year, she has a residency at Caesar’s Palace, a forthcoming MAC collaboration, and a Hallmark Channel holiday special. We’re not sure when the mother of two sleeps, but we bet it’s in something red with a fur-trim.
Hilary Hughes of the Village Voice is doing the world a great service by attending all eight nights of Mariah holiday madness live at New York’s Beacon Theater this year. She writes, “‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ […] is the reason for Mariah’s season, the bedrock of this holiday spectacular and of any holiday soundtrack curated since 1994 […] her first Christmas record and its instantly recognizable single hold the keys to Mariah’s cultural immortality.”
Jeffrey Lyman, promoter of Club 90s’ Mariah Carey Night at the Regent in Downtown LA, tells us about the popularity of these events. “Back in June, we had our very first Mariah Carey night and it sold out by 11 PM with people outside not able to get in. On a whim, we decided to throw in ‘All I Want for Christmas’ at the end of the night, even though it was summer. It was the biggest singalong of the night. Since it’s the appropriate time now, we decided to bring it to a bigger venue. She is the undisputed diva of deck the halls, so the response has been amazing.”
Sarah Owen, editor and trend forecaster at WGSN has her own theories about the Mariah phenomenon. “Grimes and other Gen Y’ers have a longstanding bond with the singer that taps into a powerful and nostalgic cord. So each year, when Christmas rolls around, it’s basically like Mariah’s your second-removed aunt.” Plus, she notes, “She wins at social media. Who else can do a killer throwback Thursday like this.” Long live pink cotton garments that walk the line between sleepwear and club attire.
“Mariah has a permanent spot in the holiday music canon,” agrees Ioanna Gika of dreamy LA-based duo Io Echo, who recently put out a brooding, icy cover of “Heartbreaker” in collaboration with TOKiMONSTA. “If you can crack into that rotation, you and your generations to come are set for life. [‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’] will get played in every mall, Rite Aid, and Uber rocket ship forever.” Sure, the December pageantry is a tad bit gimmicky, but that’s part of what makes this time of year, and Mariah, so magical. “I don’t think she’s cheesy,” says Gika. “She bathes in Mariahness. She is unapologetic and her voice is made of iridium.”
So, to what do we really owe Mariah’s lasting reign as a Christmas icon? Certainly our insatiable appetite for yuletide spirit, but also her resilience. “I’ve loved many different incarnations of Mariah with no shame. She is a legend. She’s been around and proven herself,” says Dana Meyerson of Music PR firm Biz 3, noting Mariah has achieved the near-impossible: rebounding from the shackles of pop music purgatory (and the control of her ex-husband, Columbia record exec Tommy Mottola).
Though a far cry from the wide-eyed, honey-vocaled teen we fell in love with back in the 90s, Mariah has morphed like a Butterfly into exactly what we need her to be: a festive, albeit a little kitschy, beacon of holiday joy and a nurturing matriarch to her devoted “Lambily.”
In the two decades since “All I Want for Christmas Is You” first warmed hearts and living rooms around the world, no song, nor singer, has ever inspired such nostalgia or mass cheer. Regardless of age, gender, or mood, when we hear its familiar jingle, we collectively regress into Mariah’s restless, naughty children sneaking downstairs to unwrap presents and check out Santa’s handiwork.
“One of my fondest Christmas memories is coming home and finding my mother, who is an immigrant from Iran and also not Christian, blasting the Mariah Carey Christmas album while festooning the tree with silver-painted grapes and elaborate gold ribbon. Just goes to show the inclusive nature of that record. Now I play it when I decorate too (my fake grapes are burgundy though),” says Yasi Salek, a Los Angeles culture writer who hosts an annual holiday party. You can count on bite-sized cheesy appetizers and a Mariah singalong.
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Text Jane Helpern
Image via YouTube