When discussing legacy, Mariah Carey is the blueprint for longevity. With a career spanning 35 years, she’s a singer, songwriter, producer, actress and entrepreneur to be studied. Named “Songbird Supreme” by the Guiness Book of World Records for her notable five-octave vocal range, very few singers can hold a candle to Ms. Carey.
Her record-breaking career makes her one of the most decorated artists of all time. Among her accolades includes being the only artist to date to have their first five singles snag the No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100. Billboard also named the songstress “The Most Successful Artist of the Decade in the United States” by the end of the ‘90s, and as of 2023, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” has earned $100 million in sales and re-enters charts at No. 1 every Christmas season in over 30 countries.
REVOLT ranked Mariah Carey’s discography for both the Lambily and those just now discovering the magic of the icon.
15. Glitter
Glitter is the soundtrack for Carey’s acting debut in the film by the same name. While the movie didn’t perform too successfully at the box office and possibly contributed to what her publicist referred to at the time as her subsequent “physical and emotional breakdown,” the album was still certified platinum.
14. Me. I Am Mariah… The Elusive Chanteuse
Collaborating as co-executive producers with superstars Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox, Carey's 14th studio album, Me. I Am Mariah... The Elusive Chanteuse, was three years in the making.
The album’s release date – ultimately, May 23, 2014 – was delayed due to a rocky single release, but once Carey shifted directions with her production team, the LP debuted with 58,000 in sales, and the single “#Beautiful” featuring Miguel landed in the Top 20 on the Billboard Hot 100. A decade after its release, the video had 65 million views on YouTube.
13. Merry Christmas II You
There’s an age-old question: Can you strike gold twice? Well, Carey did with her second Christmas album and 13th studio LP, Merry Christmas II You. This 13-track offering primarily consisted of reimagined holiday classics and included a bevy of features.
12. Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
Working with The-Dream, Dupri and, for the first time, Timbaland, Carey’s Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel held fast to the heavy Hip Hop influence of previous albums.
The diss track assumed to be directed at Eminem became the most successful single from the album. Titled, “Obsessed,” the song peaked at No. 7 on the Billboard Hot 100 and featured Carey dressed to resemble the 8 Mile rapper in the music video.
11. E=MC²
For her 11th album, E=MC², Carey experimented with production and writing from artists including The-Dream, Dupri, Cox, Scott Storch and Tricky Stewart. The record-setting LP is certified platinum, and single “Touch My Body” became her 18th track to land the top spot on the charts.
10. Rainbow
Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis came on board for Carey’s seventh studio album, Rainbow, which continued her era in the urban adult contemporary market. Still fusing pop ballads with Hip Hop flair, rappers including JAY-Z, Snoop Dogg, Master P and Mystikal, Da Brat and Missy Elliott were featured on the project. Other collaborations from Rainbow included R&B acts Joe, Usher and pop group 98 Degrees.
Today, it is certified three-times platinum.
9. Emotions
Carey beat the sophomore jinx – a phrase that describes instances when an artist fails to live up to the relatively high standards that occurred during their first album – when she released Emotions in 1991.
The release debuted at No. 4 on the Billboard 200. Today, it is four-times platinum.
8. Merry Christmas
Nine-times platinum, Merry Christmas is the gift that keeps on giving. Her soulful and gospel-influenced vocals helped showcase the young talent in a different way than previous albums. The true standout, “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” is the shining star here.
While the single was successful during its 1994 release, the shift to digital streaming helped the holiday season anthem reach new heights by being added to virtually every Christmas playlist in existence. It is estimated that this single alone has grossed over $100 million in royalty earnings and was even included in the National Recording Registry by the Library of Congress.
7. Caution
While Caution is Carey’s 15th studio album and her least commercially successful, fans and critics alike appreciated the intention with which the former “American Idol” judge poured into the 10-track album.
One writer at Rolling Stone described it as “polished” and observed, adding, “Carey doesn’t try to juice her streaming numbers by packing the album with a zillion songs, and there are no ill-fitting team-ups with impetuous SoundCloud rappers or awkwardly cobbled-together international collaborations. Instead, the album stays resolutely unrattled.”
Standout singles included “With You,” “GTFO,” and the Lil’ Kim “Crush On You”-sampled “A No No.”
6. Music Box
By Carey’s third studio album, Music Box, she began to step away from the ballads she’d become best known for and experimented with more up-tempo tracks. To do this, she elicited the help of Babyface to join her powerhouse production team, though Carey penned the majority of the songs.
The now-Diamond-selling album landed her a Grammy nomination for Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "Dreamlover" at the 1994 ceremony. Subsequently, she received the same nomination for the beloved track "Hero" at the 1995 awards show. Music Box is still Carey’s best-selling album.
5. Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey’s self-titled debut album, released June 12, 1990, followed her storied tale of being a struggling artist-turned-overnight success. An executive at Columbia Records took a chance on a young Carey and she began recording songs the writing team had already canned. Once they learned that she could write too, they collaborated on several of her early singles.
Her debut single, "Vision of Love," was penned by Carey prior to signing with the label. The track would win 1991’s Best Female Pop Vocal Performance Grammy Award, the Soul Train Music Award for Best Female R&B/Soul Single and more. The song ultimately reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100, where it lived for four weeks straight.
4. Charmbracelet
Charmbracelet is Carey’s ninth studio album and serves as her comeback tale, the first release after personal struggles following the film Glitter. The album debuted at No. 3 on the Billboard Hot 200, and it is now RIAA-certified platinum.
The lead single, “Through The Rain,” became a source of inspiration for millions after televised performances for the 2003 American Music Awards, “The View,” “Today,” The Soul Train Awards and “The Oprah Winfrey Show.”
3. The Emancipation of Mimi
Through collaborations with Hip Hop artists like Dupri, Snoop Dogg, Kanye West, Twista, Nelly and Pharrell Williams, The Emancipation of Mimi reminded the world that Mariah Carey had street sensibilities too. It marked a celebration of freedom from personal and public setbacks for the certified diva.
This feel-good LP was Carey’s first to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200 since Butterfly and scored her eight Grammy nominations at the 48th Annual Grammy Awards – three of which she won. “We Belong Together” won Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song while Emancipation won Best Contemporary R&B Album. The project is also certified seven-times platinum.
The pop icon is set to kick off the “Mariah Carey: The Celebration of Mimi,” an exclusive residency in Las Vegas, this April in honor of the offering’s 19th anniversary.
2. Butterfly
Recorded at The Hit Factory in New York City, Carey’s sixth studio album, Butterfly, gave her street cred for the first time in her career. The decidedly Hip Hop bangers had production from and featured rap acts like Sean "Puffy" Combs, The LOX, Q-Tip, Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Missy Elliott and the Trackmasters.
Butterfly debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 200 and stayed on the charts for 55 weeks. At five-times platinum, Carey was heralded for changing the way pop singers vocalize alongside rap acts for decades to come.
1. Daydream
Mariah Carey reached the pinnacle of success with her fifth studio album, Daydream, currently 11-times platinum. The project served as the artist’s third No. 1 LP and mixed the R&B and pop genres.
In a 2022 social media post, Carey described Daydream as her “most bittersweet album.”
Singles like “Fantasy,” “One Sweet Day” and “Always Be My Baby” led the project to six Grammy nominations, including Album of the Year.