by Shycora Smith

Created on: March 06, 2009   Last Updated: March 07, 2009

Every time I hear Mariah Carey's angelic voice, it takes me back to my junior high days. Some of the memories I'd like to relive. Others I just wish I could forget, but through it all Mariah was there. She was there when I danced my first dance and she was there when my friend's lifeless body was pulled out of a lake. From the day Mariah Carey opened her mouth to sing "Vision of love" in 1990, she has been my absolute favorite female artist. Often compared to the likes of Whitney Houston because of her stellar vocal range and use of whistle register, Mariah is truly a force to be reckoned with.

Born to an opera singer/ vocal coach on March 27,1970 , Mariah Carey was deemed for greatness. It was in her blood. Her debut album self entitled, Mariah Carey, put her on the map and made her a star. The album reached number one and yielded four number one singles. It also gave her her first 2 grammys-one for best new artist and the other best female pop vocal performance for "Vision of love".

She released her second album Emotions, in 1991. Though it wasn't as successful as her debut album the title track gave her her fifth number one single. Which made her the only recording artist to have their first five singles reach number one on the US hot 100 charts. Emotions was also the start of her co-producing her own songs.

In 1992, Carey covered the Jackson 5's "I'll be there" with her then back up singer Trey Lorenz. It was featured on MTV's Unplugged. This was her first widely seen performance and it helped to skyrocket her to worldwide popularity. It also led to a record deal for Lorenz.

Mariah Carey released album after album after that and earned the honor of becoming the only artist to have a number one single every year of the nineties. In 2000 she received the best selling female artist of the millennium award at the world music awards and she received billboard's artist of the decade award.

After winning her awards she left Columbia Records and moved on to Virgin Records. During this time she also testing the waters in the acting field with her movie "Glitter". It was a complete failure for her. She soon after suffered a breakdown. She complained she had been overworked and needed to take a break. So she did.

She stayed out of the spotlight for about a year and a half. When she came back she sung at the super bowl in 2002 and released the album Charmbracelet under Island records. The album did not do as well as her earlier works, but sales were moderate. The number one singles weren't there though and critics began to criticize her vocals. Many thought that she couldn't come back - that she was at the end of her road. She suprised every one in 2005 when she released, The Emancipation of Mimi, which became 2005's best selling album in the US. It also earned her yet another number one single with "We belong together", and a couple more grammies. "We belong together" stayed at the #1 position on the hot 100's chart for 14 weeks giving her the longest run at the top as a solo artist.

She began a tour, did many TV appearances, posed for Playboy (non-nude) and released her 11th album within the next 2 years. Mariah was back. And she is still working hard. She has earned five grammy awards and has sold over 200 million records worldwide. She is slated to release another album before 2009 is out. Mariah Carey is an extremely gifted individual. She has managed to overcome adversity and scrutiny to remain on top. She has longevity in this game and she has proved it to us all. With her glass shattering vocals she will continue to shatter records and put a song into our hearts.

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