MARIAH CAREY COVERED THE WRONG FOREIGNER SONG

MARIAH CAREY COVERED THE WRONG FOREIGNER SONG

*** The next single from Mariah Carey's upcoming album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel has been announced, and it's epic. Carey will unleash her cover of Foreigner's classic 1984 ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is", one of the most iconic song of the '80s.

*** Many will write off "I Want to Know What Love Is" as one of the schlockiest songs every written, but it's secretly brilliant. In fact, Carey should really take it a step further and record an entire album of late '70s/ early '80s ballads. She has already covered Journey's "Open Arms" (on her 1995 album Daydream), so she might as well do her own version of "Don't Stop Believing" (or "Any Way You Want It" if she's feeling cheeky). Styx's "Come Sail Away"? Why not? REO Speedwagon's "Keep On Loving You"? Yes please. "Hold On Loosely" by .38 Special? Absolutely!

Since Carey's voice is so high and versatile to begin with, she can wrap herself around the vocal stylings of Steve Perry and Dennis DeYoung without much fuss. And just for argument's sake, she might as well add a Rush song in there too (if only because she's got the same range as Geddy Lee, though can you imagine Carey singing the Ayn Rand-inspired lyrics of "Freewill"?).

*** Those are all excellent ideas, and though "I Want to Know What Love Is" was an excellent choice, she really should have covered "Hot Blooded" instead. Even better, she should have covered their acoustic version, a bongo-riffic performance if there ever was one. So come on, Mariah - give us a fever of a hundred and three!

(MTV Newsroom)

MARIAH CAREY'S NEXT SINGLE ANNOUNCED

MARIAH CAREY'S NEXT SINGLE ANNOUNCED *** Even though the "Obsessed" single is still flirting with the Top 10 on the Billboard Hot 100 (it currently sits at number 14), Mariah Carey is already prepping the next single in the lead-up to the September 29 release of her 12th studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel. The song is a cover of Foreigner's signature ballad "I Want to Know What Love Is", which originally appeared on their 1984 album Agent Provocateur. A rep for the singer said "I Want to Know What Love Is" will hit radio soon but did not specify a date. *** Oddly, the report that announced the single - which Carey later posted to her official Web site and her Twitter account - refers to "I Want to Know What Love Is" as the first "real" single from the album. However, Carey's rep clarified that "Obsessed" is indeed the album's first single. *** Despite the buzz surrounding the single's release, the high-profile video, the controversy surrounding her and husband Nick Cannon's feud with Eminem and a performance on Cannon's show "America's Got Talent", "Obsessed" has peaked at #11 on the Billboard Hot 100 thus far. According to Nielsen SoundScan, which tracks sales of albums and singles, "Obsessed" has sold 383,000 downloads in five weeks, a respectable number but not quite up to Carey's past success (comparatively speaking, last year's "Touch My Body" moved nearly 300,000 downloads in its first seven days). *** Still, "Obsessed" is Carey's 40th charting single - tying her with Diana Ross for the eighth most of all time among female artists - and anticipation remains high for Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, which is now slated for a September 29 release and features production by The-Dream, Timbaland and Jermaine Dupri. (MTV News)

NEW ALBUM TO DEBUT TOO LATE FOR GRAMMY CONSIDERATION

*** Mariah Carey is refusing to be pushed around by the Grammys anymore. The songbird, who has won a mere five awards out of 21 nominations since 1991, is officially taking herself out of the running this year. She'll release her album "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" on September 29, missing the Grammy cutoff date by just one day.

*** "Mariah's been shafted so many times before that it's like a big 'Kiss my butt' to the Grammy folks," says a music industry insider. "She doesn't need the awards, because her career is already so successful." The diva definitely doesn't need trophies to sell her album: "Memoirs" has already spawned the hit single, "Obsessed" and has generated heavy industry buzz.
*** Although the singer just rescheduled a series of promotional appearances on programs like the "Today" show and "VH1 Storytellers", the insider says Carey is just busy adding more songs to her album, wanting the end result to be perfect. In addition to her CD, the singer is drawing rave reviews for her performance as a Harlem-based social worker in the indie flick "Precious". The Lee Daniels-directed movie debuted earlier this year at the Sundance Film Festival.
*** Meanwhile, fans hoping for a Battle of the Divas will be disappointed to learn that Whitney Houston's new CD will be released nearly a month earlier than Mariah's; the icon's first album in seven years is now set to hit shelves on September 1. Whit should be thankful she's avoiding a showdown with Mimi. Her album's first single, "I Look to You", received a lukewarm reception on pop radio, finally debuting on Billboard's Hot 100 last week at No. 74. Mariah, meanwhile, blasted onto that chart at No. 11 with "Obsessed".
*** Houston is hoping the record's second single, the Alicia Keys/Swizz Beatz-penned track "Million Dollar Bill", will make her some big bucks - it's being released just five weeks after "I Look to You". Says Houston's rep: "Our strategy has always been to release a song to urban formats ('I Look to You') and a song to pop formats ('Million Dollar Bill'). The reviews for 'I Look to You' have been glowing. In fact, Billboard has said this single 'signals the long-awaited return of a true diva'."

(New York Daily News)

MARIAH CAREY BETS ON NOSTALGIA, COVERING FOREIGNER

MARIAH CAREY BETS ON NOSTALGIA, COVERING FOREIGNER

Perhaps realizing that the focus should be less on Mariah Carey's feud with Eminem and a bit more on the pop diva, more hints were dropped today about the singer's upcoming "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel". The ad-supported album, which was originally set for August 25, is now due to be released September 29.
The second single from Carey's "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" will apparently be a cover of Foreigner's "I Want to Know What Love Is" (perhaps tackling "Don't Stop Believing" would have been a too-obvious choice of pandering). The news was first reported by Roger Friedman, and his article has since been posted on Carey's official website.
This isn't the first time Carey has covered an '80s ballad - see her take on "I Still Believe". The latter gave Carey yet another top 10 hit, a status that has thus far eluded her "Obsessed". But it's far from a tanker, as the song is holding steady at No. 14.
Additionally, Nielsen SoundScan reports that the single has sold 383,000 downloads to date. The tally isn't bad for a song that's only been available for about a month, but it's not showing the kind of initial numbers her "Touch My Body" displayed last spring. The latter sold 286,000 downloads in its debut week, and shot to No. 1.
If anything, tackling a well-known power ballad seems like a safe choice. It's a comfortable fall-back plan after "Obsessed" performed well, but did far from blockbuster numbers. It will undoubtedly be a hit, but it's giving me more reason to fear "Imperfect Angel". The sort-of-real/sort-of-not feud with Eminem seemed largely a ploy to keep Carey in the headlines, and covering Foreigner seems just as calculated to steer Carey back onto familiar ground. Pop & Hiss awaits to be proven wrong.

MARIAH TO RELEASE BALLAD AS NEW SINGLE?

MARIAH TO RELEASE BALLAD AS NEW SINGLE?

*** After a rocky start with her single "Obsessed" and a couple album pushbacks, Mariah Carey is resorting to plan B. Showbiz 411's Roger Friedman reports that Mariah will release a "powerhouse ballad along the lines of 'Vision of Love'" as the follow-up to "Obsessed", which currently holds the No. 14 spot on the Billboard Hot 100.
*** She is also back with her old publicist Cindi Berger of famed public relations group PMK/HBH. The two parted ways after Mariah's Charmbracelet project. The pop diva's 12th studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, has been rescheduled for the second time. The set will now arrive on September 29.
*** Berger explained the reason for the delay. "Record release dates change all the time," she told People. "It's nothing unusual and it doesn't signal anything. There are a lot of moving parts to Mariah's professional life... She's making sure the record is how she wants it to be and it's no big deal."

(Rap-Up)

MARIAH REVS UP NEW CD, RETURNS TO POWERHOUSE PR

MARIAH REVS UP NEW CD, RETURNS TO POWERHOUSE PR *** Mariah Carey - despite idiotic postings elsewhere - is gearing up for her big new CD release. Mariah feels so strongly about "Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel" that she's even re-hired the PR powerhouse that made her second-stage career such a success. She's back with Cindi Berger of PMK HBH. It was Berger who made her "Emancipation of Mimi" the biggest hit of Mariah's career. Smart move. *** Of course, that means both Mariah and Whitney Houston are now being repped by the same PR company. PMK's Kristen Foster is handling Whitney with my old pal, Jill Fritzo. *** "Memoirs" was scheduled for an August 25th release, then moved to September 15th. Now it's set for September 29th. If the regular Grammy deadline had been in place - September 30th - Mariah would have made it. But the unfortunate early deadline of August 31st cut her off. So she has some slack time to get "Memoirs" just right. *** The first single from Mariah's CD will not be "Obsessed" - that was just a summer trifle, and it was a lot of fun. The real first official single is said to be a powerhouse ballad along the lines of "Vision of Love". (Showbiz 411) *** So "Obsessed" is not the first single from the new album. Does this mean "Obsessed" won't be on "Memoirs of an imperfect angel", or does this mean that "Obsessed" is not really a single, despite being released to radio, with live performances, a video and even a physical single? It is No 1 on Billboard's Hot Singles Sales chart. *** Also, in May 2004, Roger Friedman wrote: "It was only three short years ago that Mariah Carey's career was in the toilet. But she seems to have forgotten that. Last week, Carey fired her longtime publicist, Cindi Berger, of powerhouse firm PMK HBH, because - I am told - she held her responsible for a stupid, unchecked gossip item that ran in a local newspaper." See: Mariah: singing a tune of self destruct? So how can Cindy be responsible for the success of an album that was released a year after she was fired?

WHY IS MARIAH CAREY CANCELING EVENTS?

WHY IS MARIAH CAREY CANCELING EVENTS?

*** Reports that Mariah Carey has rescheduled several upcoming appearances has left many fans wondering if something might be wrong with the singer. Carey, 40, had been tentatively set to receive a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame August 25, perform on Today August 28, and also tape an episode of VH1's Storytellers.
*** But the singer's publicist Cindi Berger tells People there is no reason for concern: "These dates have been postponed and not cancelled," she said Friday. A source says the singer is completing her new album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, the release of which has been pushed to September 29.
*** "Record release dates change all the time," Berger confirms. "It's nothing unusual and it doesn't signal anything. There are a lot of moving parts to Mariah's professional life... She's making sure the record is how she wants it to be and it's no big deal."
*** In addition to working on her album, Carey is launching another perfume line and promoting her upcoming film, Precious, which is produced by Oprah Winfrey and opens in November. The reason for the calendar re-jiggering is explained further on Carey's official Website: "Mariah is putting the finishing touches on her newest album, and we have shifted all of our TV and promo appearances to coincide with the new release date of September 29th. We can't wait for the fans to hear the new album!!"

(People)

MARIAH CAREY, EMINEM'S WAR OF WORDS A "PUBLICITY STUNT"

MARIAH CAREY, EMINEM'S WAR OF WORDS A "PUBLICITY STUNT"

*** Mariah Carey's husband Nick Cannon has indicated that his wife's row with her ex-beau Eminem is just a publicity stunt to promote their new albums. Eminem declared war against the "Honey" hitmaker by discussing their brief fling in his recent track Bagpipes from Baghdad, and Carey retaliated by mimicking Eminem in the video for her latest track "Obsessed".
*** This urged Eminem to hit back again at her in a new song called "The Warning". According to critics, the fight has been orchestrated to promote Eminem and Carey's new albums - and Cannon seems to agree. "My wife doesn't beef (feud). She's Mariah Carey. She's not beef'in. She's vegetarian," Contactmusic quoted Cannon as telling Us Weekly.

(Thaindian Mews)

Mariah Carey Bets on 'Forever' Perfume

Mariah Carey takes her happiness seriously. That's why she has named her new women's scent "Forever." It's due out in September.

"I am in a wonderful place right now, surrounded by all the things I love, and Forever captures this moment in time," said the entertainer, whose first scent, M by Mariah Carey, launched in September 2007.

"When we work with celebrities, we aim to put together a project which is representative of their life," said Ron Rolleston, executive vice president for global fragrance marketing at Elizabeth Arden, of the new women's launch. "Mariah's happily married, has a movie coming out in November, which already did well at Sundance, and she is releasing a new album in September. She's got a lot of joy and optimism in her life right now, and we wanted to express that in a fragrance."

Perfumer Olivier Gillotin of Givaudan worked with Carey to create the modern opulent floral, which has top notes of neroli, lotus blossom and dewy green apple; a heart of tuberose and gardenia, and a drydown of white musk and exotic woods. "When I first met with Mariah, I was inspired to create a glamorous, opulent floral," said Gillotin. "I wanted the scent to be radiant but to also evoke a warm sensuality. This fragrance has iconic white florals, which convey a powerful message of feminine sensuality and classic glamour."

The collection includes eau de parfum in three sizes — 1 oz. for $42, 1.7 oz. for $55 and 3.3 oz. for $65 — as well as a 0.5-oz. parfum, $250, and a 6.8-oz. body lotion, $28.

In the U.S., the scent will be available in about 2,000 department and specialty store doors, including Macy's, Dillard's and Belk's.

The bottle, inspired by Carey's love of the art deco style, is clear crystal with a gold band around the top. Outer packaging is bright pink with a metallic trim.

While executives declined to discuss sales projections, industry sources estimated that Forever would do upwards of $35 million at retail in its first year on counter. Sources also estimated Arden would spend at least $10 million on advertising and promotion.

Print advertising, shot by Michael Thompson and featuring Carey, will break in October fashion, beauty and lifestyle magazines, including Elle, Vogue, Glamour and In Style. A TV campaign, which also features Carey, is slated for the holiday season. As well, vials on card, scented strips and other scented pieces are expected to deliver upwards of 49 million scented impressions, noted Noreen Dodge, senior vice president, fragrance, global brand development for Elizabeth Arden.

In addition to a dedicated Web site, MariahCareyBeauty.com, a strong social media campaign will also be part of the campaign, Dodge said. Arden plans MariahCareyBeauty pages on Facebook, MySpace and Twitter, hoping to leverage Carey's 1.7 million followers on Twitter and 700,000 Facebook fans (Carey also has 132 fan separate fan pages on Facebook.) Arden is also working with social media sites Imeem, Pandora and VideoEgg to further drive business. Pandora will create Carey fragrance-branded backgrounds for users to see while listening to the singer's music, while Imeem will feature an exclusive Forever-themed playlist customized by Carey on its home page. VideoEgg will feed into Facebook, MySpace, Twitter and YouTube in an effort to drive traffic to MariahCareyBeauty.com. DailyCandy will offer a "twitter-to-win" sampling program for the fragrance, and Sugar Inc. plans a customized Carey page on its site and a sweepstakes to win the scent.

(Women's Wear Daily)

Australia's Rhyme & Reason Mag Previews Memoirs

Rhyme & Reason, Australia's largest and most frequently issued Urban magazine, was this afternoon treated to an exclusive preview of Mariah Carey's 12th studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel. A single CD containing six songs from the album was flown in to Sydney from Island Def Jam's New York offices, accompanied by an IDJ representative. Taking every precaution to avoid leaks of Mariah's new material, phones and recording devices were cloaked before the listening session, with the lone CD set to return to New York along with the IDJ representative.

The release of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel has been delayed until September 29th as Mariah continues to write and record material alongside a collaborator who is understood to be a writer she worked with in the earlier part of her career. Along with the six cuts previewed by Rhyme & Reason, an additional five or six songs are expected to round out the album.

Mariah has entrusted much of the album's production duties to Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, while long-time friend and collaborator Jermaine Dupri also makes a return for Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, along with hit-maker Carlos "Los DaMystro" McKinney [Usher, R. Kelly, Whitney Houston].

Mariah co-wrote all of the songs previewed, save for "I Want To Know What Love Is" - the remake of Foreigner's chart-topping 1985 single. "I Want To Know What Love Is" is expected to be the album's next single.

While we don't want to give too much away, below is Rhyme & Reason Magazine's brief breakdown of the six songs previewed from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel:

"CANDY BLING"
Credits: Written by Mariah Carey, Carlos McKinney and Terius Nash. Conducted and produced by Los DaMystro for DaMystro Music LLC/Music Line Entertainment, LLC and produced by Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A laidback, mid-tempo track set to finger-snaps. At one point, Mariah makes mention of bringing "ODB back".

"OBSESSED"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: You should all be familiar with this one...

"H.A.T.E. U"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A slower-tempo song which has Mariah wanting to square off with a trifling partner; "I can't wait to face you / I can't wait to hate you".

"STANDING O"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: The "O", of course, stands for "Ovation". This is an unmistakable Dream concoction laid over mid-tempo staccato piano chords and plush synths. The chorus includes Mariah mimicking Dream's signature "oh, oh" vocal punctuations.

"IMPOSSIBLE"
Credits: Written and produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Terius "The-Dream" Nash for Radio Killa Records.
Description: A woozy, somewhat minimalist slow jam.

"I WANT TO KNOW WHAT LOVE IS"
Credits: Written by Mick Jones. Produced by Mariah Carey for Maroon Entertainment, Inc., C. "Tricky" Stewart for RedZone Entertainment and Big Jim.
Description: Staying true to the original, this piano-lead remake is less an overhaul of the classic 80's hit than it is a modest but impressive update.

( Rhyme & Reason Magazine)