Here’s a look at the life of Grammy Award-winning singer and actress, Mariah Carey.
Personal:
Birth date: March 27, 1969 (some sources say 1970)
Birth place: Long Island, New York
Birth name: Mariah Carey
Father: Alfred Roy Carey, aeronautics engineer
Mother: Patricia (Hickey) Carey, opera singer and voice coach
Marriages: Nick Cannon (2008-2016, divorced); Tommy Mottola (1993-1998, divorced)
Children: with Nick Cannon: Moroccan and Monroe (twins), April 30, 2011
Other Facts:
Has a five-octave vocal range.
Supported herself as a waitress and back-up singer before being signed to Columbia Records.
Has won five Grammy Awards.
Timeline:
1988 – Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola listens to Carey’s demo tape and signs her to the label.
1990 – Her debut album, “Mariah Carey,” is released. It goes on to sell more than six million copies and spawn four number one singles.
1991 – Carey wins two Grammy Awards: Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, for “Vision of Love” and Best New Artist.
1994 – Joins the board of directors of the Fresh Air Fund. She is a supporter of the fund’s Career Awareness Program, which is named Camp Mariah, in honor of her.
Summer 2001 – She suffers an “emotional and physical breakdown” and is hospitalized.
September 2001 – Carey stars in a semi-autobiographical movie, “Glitter,” and releases an album of the same name. Both the album and movie are unsuccessful.
2002 – Virgin pays Carey a reported $28 million to end her contract. She later signs a $20 million deal with the Island Def Jam Music Group.
2006 – Wins three Grammy Awards: Best Contemporary R&B Album, with Brian Garten and Dana John Chappelle for “The Emancipation of Mimi,” Best R&B Song, with Jermaine Dupri, Johnta Austin, and Manuel Seal, Jr., for “We Belong Together,” and Best Female R&B Vocal Performance for “We Belong Together.”
2009 – Portrays a social worker in the film “Precious,” directed by Lee Daniels.
March 2011 – Following reports that she accepted payment in 2009 to perform for Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi, Carey releases a statement saying she was “naïve and unaware of who I was booked to perform for. I feel horrible and embarrassed to have participated in this mess.”
2013 – Appears as a judge for the 12th season of “American Idol.”
August 5, 2015 – Carey is honored with a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
December 4, 2016 – The eight-episode E! docuseries “Mariah’s World” premieres.
December 31, 2016 – Experiences an audio track malfunction while lip-syncing in front of a live audience on ABC’s “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest.”