E=MC² (Mariah Carey album)

In 2002, Mariah Carey signed a new record deal with Island Records and in 2005 she released her tenth studio album, The Emancipation of Mimi. It became the best-selling album of 2005 in the United States, and the second best-seller around the world, with over 12 million units sold. It earned a myriad of music industry awards, and brought Carey back to the top of pop music following her commercial decline in 2001. After completing The Adventures of Mimi Tour, she began working on material for her eleventh studio effort, the yet untitled E=MC². Throughout 2007, Carey recorded the album in a studio built into her private villa in Anguilla, in the Caribbean. She described E=MC² as one of her most expressive albums, and one that she felt free on, and able to express herself through her music. In an interview with The Bryan Times, Carey spoke of her sentiments on the album "It's hard for me to sit here and talk about it without sounding like if I'm bragging if I'm in love with it, but I am I love with this album. I think that having the success with the last record allowed me to have more freedom...and just make records that I like. It's kind of a really fun record". ==Delays and release==

The album was supposed to be released in late 2007, but Carey spoke about reason the album got delayed: "You can't really put records out in December if you want the whole world to have a chance to actually hear it, [and] my fans all over the world are very important to me", adding that she also wants to put out a pair of singles before the album drops. In a separate interview, she elaborated further: "This happened to me with The Emancipation of Mimi, I started writing more songs, I was like okay let me get these done, then I wrote four more songs and you know how it goes, so now I'm like 22 songs in and clearly I have to cut some of those down". It was then reported that the album will be released in February 2008. However, the release was later pushed back yet again to April 2008. Prior to its release, the album's working title had been That Chick, which was also the working title of a song on the album that would eventually be titled, "I'm That Chick". As the release date drew near, the title was changed to E=MC², in reference to Carey's previous album, The Emancipation of Mimi (2005). The title signifies "(E) Emancipation (=) of (MC) Mariah Carey (²) to the second power". It is a word play on Albert Einstein's famous mass–energy equivalence formula and has been dubbed as the sequel and improved counterpart to The Emancipation of Mimi. In an interview with NME, the singer described her choice on the album's title: "Basically, I'm freer on this album than I've ever been. Some of the songs on the last album were cool but maybe not quite as neat as this album." When questioned if the title represented Carey's interest in physics, she jokingly added "Einstein's theory? Physics? Me? Hello! I even failed remedial math. I could not pass seventh grade math even in the lowest class with the worst kids." In the album's cover art, she holds almost the exact pose as from her last album, only with different lighting and wardrobe. It features a black backdrop, with Carey completely naked, except for a large feathered shawl covering her body. Only her first name appears in large pink letters on the cover, with 'E=MC²' appearing in small white letters on the top. In describing the cover, Macpherson wrote "Carey is naked but for the world's largest feather boa, an accessory for which flocks of birds have surely given their lives." ==Composition==

Style and structure Music critics compared E=MC² heavily to Carey's previous album, The Emancipation of Mimi, and felt it followed the same formula of ballads and dance-able tracks. Freedom De Luc of The Washington Post felt that after experiencing strong success for the first time in the 2000s with Mimi, Carey tried to create E=MC² with the same formula, although possibly a little improved: "Having found that winning formula of coquettish club bangers, emotional ballads and frisky, mid-tempo coos, the diva with the golden tone has eschewed radical experimentalism here for stasis. 'E=MC²' is mostly more of the same, then, with the '2' representing something sequential rather than exponential. Meet the new Mariah, almost exactly the same as the old . . . 'Mimi'!" Songs and lyrics The first song on the album's track list is "Migrate", a song Carey wrote and co-produced alongside Danja, and features a rap verse from T-Pain. The song features the inclusion of Auto-Tune and several vocal manipulators, which are used heavily on both Carey and T-Pain's vocals. The album's lead single, "Touch My Body", was written and produced by Carey, Tricky Stewart and Terius "The Dream" Nash. The song's hook is built around a piano melody and "circular keyboard line", and features "a stuttering mid-tempo beat that's accented by finger snaps and electronic synthesizers" as its instrumentation. "Cruise Control", featuring reggae artist Damian Marley, is influenced by R&B and reggae, and finds her adapting to the genre by imitating Jamaican phrases, accents and styles of singing. "I Stay in Love" was released as the fourth and final single from the album. Written by Carey and Bryan-Michael Cox, is a mid-tempo "beat-driven" and "piano-laced" ballad, that is influenced by pop and R&B music genres. The song's instrumentation is derived from a piano melody, and is backed by a strong computerized drum-beat. Its lyrics find Carey as her most vulnerable; she describes old times she shared with her lover, and that even though "we said let go", and "inside she knows it's over", she still "stays in love with him". Featuring American rapper Young Jeezy, "Side Effects" describes Carey's abusive relationship with Tommy Mottola, her ex-husband. During the first verse, she discusses the pair's background, and how she was young and naive, and believed everything he preached to her. Sarah Rodman from The Boston Globe described it as "another look at her fractious marriage to Mottola", and wrote "Although the union ended in 1998, Carey is still suffering, including dreams of the 'violent times' and 'sleeping with the enemy'. Interestingly, her vocal approach here is almost emo, as she hits her rock-solid middle register and refuses to be held captive by the demons of her past." and is influenced by soul, pop and disco music genres. Evan Sawdey of PopMatters described it as a "late-night disco-bass groove", and highlighted its production as the album's finest. "party jam", that is influenced by pop, R&B and soul genres. Critics elaborated on the song's "soul" influence, with Melissa Ruggieri from The News & Advance describing it as a "soul-thumper", while Digital Spys Nick Levine called it a "nod towards classic soul". Additionally, its hook and instrumentation is derived from sampling Mark DeBarge's Stay With Me. Critics also noted how "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time" "recalls" the melody riff The song's main source of production comes from its "lush keyboard work", so that the bridge would sound like a "swooning bank of a hundred Mariahs". The song is built on an understated and simple piano-driven melody, that is decorated with a soft bass-line. and an "inspirational lighter-in-the-air ballad", and finds Carey remembering both her father, as well as any lost loved ones. While the verses are dedicated to him, the chorus was written in a third-person point of view, for her fans: "This is for my peoples who just lost somebody / Your best friend, your baby, your man or your lady / Put your hand way up high / We will never say bye / Mamas, daddies, sisters, brothers, friends and cousins / This is for my peoples who lost their grandmothers / Lift your hands to the sky / Because we won't ever say bye bye". While listing several forms of loss, Carey encourages to never let go, and always live with their memory, and put their hands up if they ever lost someone, 'cause we won't ever say bye bye'. Serving as the album's closing number, "I Wish You Well" was compared to the closing number on Mimi, "Fly Like a Bird". Similarly, "I Wish You Well" incorporates gospel influence into its melody of "rousing piano waltz", that "extends forgiveness to those who have wronged her in the past and is pretty much interchangeable with its predecessors." Extensively making use of the whistle register, she references Mottola in another light than "Side Effects": "'I Wish You Well's' message to Mottola is similarly striking. Accompanied by a piano and some multi-tracked backing vocals, Carey sings: "Still bruised, still walk on eggshells / Same frightened child, hide to protect myself / But you can't manipulate me like before." She then prescribes Bible study and says, "I wish you well." ==Promotion==

'' on April 25, 2008 Carey performed on the March 15, 2008 episode of Saturday Night Live, hosted by Jonah Hill, replacing Janet Jackson who caught the flu and was unable to perform. She performed "Touch My Body" and "Migrate", this one alongside T-Pain. Ten days later, she was featured as the special guest performer at The Hills season premiere party, an event marking the start of a span of ten episodes airing in between season three and four, performing "Touch My Body", "I'm That Chick" and "We Belong Together". On April 12, 2008, Carey made an appearance on The Oprah Winfrey Show, where she was interviewed and performed a live rendition of "Bye Bye" for the audience, with three background vocalists assisting her. On the seventh season of American Idol, Carey was featured as a mentor for the top-seven week. Titled "Mariah Carey Week" and airing live on April 14, 2008, the contestants were to perform a song from the singer's catalog. After all seven contestants sang their individual songs, they all came together for a live rendition of Carey's 1996 collaboration with Boyz II Men, "One Sweet Day". Following their joint performance, Carey emerged onto the stage and performed "Bye Bye" live, while backed by a trio of supporting vocalists. Tamara Jones of The Washington Post jokingly commented on Carey's flailing hand movements during the performance, writing how she was "waving like a malevolent homecoming queen". Gil Kaufman from MTV News complimented Carey's performance, commenting on her "barely there micro-dress" and writing how she "serenaded the audience with her homage to lost ones." On April 25, 2008, Carey opened the Good Morning America "Summer Concert Series" with a live performance in Times Square. She began the set with "Touch My Body" in front of thousands of fans. In order to let the sound engineer know of the problem, she substituted part of the lyrics for "stop singing my part now baby", and completed the final chorus. travelling to Germany where she performed the song on the talent show Deutschland sucht den Superstar. On August 8, 2008, Carey performed on the Teen Choice Awards a mash-up consisting of "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time", "Touch My Body" and "Bye Bye". At the Fashion Rocks ceremony in 2009, she performed "Touch My Body" and her then-current single "Obsessed", as well as the remix to her 1995 song "Fantasy". During the set-list, Carey was accompanied by six men in black ties, who hoisted her into the air in front of over 6,000 people during "Obsessed", and rigorous dance routines throughout "Touch My Body". During that week, all the contestants would have to sing songs from her catalog. "Hero" was re-recorded by the 2008 UK X Factor finalists and released as a single, which became the best-selling single of the year in the region. According to reports, the episode gained a large increase in viewers due to Carey's presence, and was able to surpass its long-time rival program, Strictly Come Dancing, in the ratings. Carey made an appearance at the 2008 American Music Awards, held on November 23, 2008, at the Nokia Theatre. Singles {{listen "Touch My Body" was released as the lead single from the album on February 12, 2008. The song received generally positive reviews from music critics, who complimented its hook and production, as well as its playful lyrics. "Touch My Body" became Carey's eighteenth number-one on the Billboard Hot 100 and made her the solo artist with the most number one singles in United States history, surpassing the record held by Elvis Presley. Its tally of 286,000 digital downloads also helped it to break the record for best-selling digital song in a week at the time, surpassing Rihanna's "Umbrella" (2007), which sold 277,000 units. Internationally, the song peaked within the top five on the charts in Italy, Japan, New Zealand, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Its music video, directed by film-maker Brett Ratner, follows around a story revolving around a computer employees fantasy as he visits Carey's home. As he fixes her computer, he enters a fantasy in which the pair perform several activities together, all while showing off Carey's figure in several revealing outfits. "Bye Bye" was announced as the second single from the album on April 15, 2008. Despite being heavily speculated to have become her 19th number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100, it only managed to reach a peak position of number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100. Throughout other countries where it found release, the song peaked within the top ten in New Zealand, and in the top-fifty in Canada, Ireland, Slovakia, and the United Kingdom. The song's accompanying music video was directed by Justin Francis on the island of Antigua in the Caribbean. It features behind-the-scenes footage of the couple, Carey promoting the album in the United Kingdom, as well as photos of several of Carey's close friends, family and past collaborators such as Luciano Pavarotti and Luther Vandross. Notably, Carey and Cannon began dating during their trip to the island, and later wed on April 30, 2008. The album's third single, "I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time", was released on June 1, 2008. In the United States, the song peaked at number fifty-eight, Its accompanying music video was shot over a three-day interval in Hawaii, and makes usage of the islands scenery, as well as shots of Carey in several bikinis, while swimming with a dolphin. "I Stay in Love" was released as the fourth and final single from the album on October 28, 2008. The song failed to chart on the Hot 100, though became Carey's fourteenth chart topper on the Hot Dance Club Play. Additionally, it peaked at number ninety-five on the UK Singles Chart. The song's accompanying music video was filmed by Carey's then-husband, Nick Cannon, and features her as a dancer in a Las Vegas show at the Bellagio Hotel and Casino Resort. During the show and its preparations, Carey realizes that her ex-lover has found love with one of her fellow dancers, leading her to blow up the car he gave her, as well as its accompaniments in the Mojave Desert. Canceled tour Since the album's release in early April, Carey had said publicly that she planned on embarking on a large worldwide tour in support of E=MC². In an interview with Billboard on March 28, 2008, she explained "It's come up, and I'm probably going to do it, but I don't know exactly how we're going to do it or when. I'm thinking probably September. But I think it's important to tour with this album, because there are so many songs that I really want to sing live, that I really enjoy." Months later, in an interview with MTV News in July, she further addressed her plans of a tour: "We're looking at November right now. Please don't hold me accountable if it turns out to be December 5 or December 7 or January 18!" When asked to describe the tour's theme, Carey explained "I'm thinking elaborate. I like elaborate. We only do substantial. That's what my jeweler says. I haven't gotten the looks in mind just yet, but we're going to figure it out soon enough." Tabloids and critics began heavily speculating that Carey had become pregnant, and had abandoned plans for a tour as a result. Though Carey had eventually announced that she was pregnant with twins on November 28, 2010, over two years later, she admitted she had indeed been pregnant during that time period, and suffered a miscarriage. For that reason, she cancelled the tour, and lost the child only two months later. ==Critical reception==

E=MC² received generally positive reviews from music critics. At review aggregator Metacritic, which assigns a normalized rating out of 100 to reviews from professional publications, the album received a weighted average score of 64 based on 19 reviews, indicating "generally favorable reviews". Writing for Entertainment Weekly, Margeaux Watson graded E=MC² an 'A−', and described how the album's goal was to prove "her comeback was no fluke". from the 1990s, blogger Roger Friedman from Fox News wrote "Her infamous eight-octave range has suffered a little wear and tear over the years, but Carey still can flutter from great highs to mellow lows like no one else." Alex Macpherson from The Guardian gave the album four out of five stars, heavily describing the singer's vocal state throughout the album: "Carey's voice has been mocked, bizarrely, as being a triumph of technique over soul – an argument that fails to comprehend that technique and soul are intertwined, that technique primarily exists as a means to convey emotion – but she is on fine vocal form throughout 'E=MC²', whether belting out massive ballads, or layering her voice into a swooning bank of a hundred Mariahs." eight by The Detroit News, and number ten by The San Diego Union-Tribune. Robert Christgau picked out one song from the album, "Touch My Body", as a "choice cut" (). Year-end lists ==Commercial performance==

ceremony with a live performance of "I'm That Chick". E=MC² debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 with 463,000 copies sold, making it the biggest opening week sales of Carey's career, and also the fourth biggest opening album in 2008 for a female artist, before matched by Beyoncé's I Am... Sasha Fierce, Britney Spears' Circus and Taylor Swift's Fearless in November. With six number one albums, Carey became tied with Spears and Beyoncé in the United States for the third most number one albums for a female artist, behind Janet Jackson with seven, Madonna with eight and Barbra Streisand's nine chart toppers. E=MC² became Carey's first album to spend two straight weeks at number one since 1995's Daydream, although The Emancipation of Mimi (2005) spent two non-consecutive weeks at the top spot. On Billboards Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart, E=MC² debuted at number one, and spent forty-seven weeks fluctuating within the top 100. According to Nielsen SoundScan, stateside sales of the album stand at 1,289,000 copies as of April 2013. In total, E=MC² spent twenty-seven weeks within the Billboard 200, and finished at number twenty-two on the Year-End chart. On the same day the album was released, Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa proclaimed April 15 officially as "Mariah Carey day" in Los Angeles. It was in part of celebrating her eighteenth number one single, "Touch My Body". Also, from April 25 through April 27, 2008, the Empire State Building was lit up in Carey's motif colors—lavender, pink, and white — in celebration of her achievements in the world of music. On the Canadian Albums Chart, during the week dated May 3, 2008, E=MC² debuted at number one, with first-week sales of 19,000 copies. It became her first number one album in Canada since Butterfly, as Rainbow and The Emancipation of Mimi both opened at number two. E=MC² entered the Australian Albums Chart on April 5, 2008, at number two. The album spent eight weeks in the albums chart, and was certified Gold by the Australian Recording Industry Association (ARIA), denoting shipments of 35,000 units. In France, the album debuted at its peak position of number six during the week dated April 19, 2008. E=MC² spent twenty weeks on the albums chart, and ended its run on August 30, 2008. The album ended its eight-week chart run on June 7, 2008. The album peaked within the top ten in several European countries, such as number five in Switzerland, seven in Germany and Ireland, eight in Austria On the UK Albums Chart, the album debuted at number three, selling 34,800 copies. This was her highest peak position in the United Kingdom since Butterfly (1997), which peaked at number two. After thirteen weeks on the chart, the album was certified Gold by the British Phonographic Industry (BPI), denoting shipments of 100,000 copies. In Japan, the album peaked at number seven on the Oricon Overall Chart, and was certified Gold by the Recording Industry Association of Japan (RIAJ) for shipments of 100,000 copies. After only eight days of release, E=MC² was certified Gold in the Philippines, denoting shipments of 15,000 units. The album was the 26th best-selling album worldwide in 2008, according to International Federation of the Phonographic Industry (IFPI). As of September 19, 2009, the album has sold 2.5 million copies worldwide. In April 2020, the album had a resurgence in popularity. This led to it reaching number one on the iTunes albums charts in several countries including the United States, and top 10 in several countries worldwide. ==Track listing==

Credits for E=MC² adapted from the album's liner notes. • Mariah Carey – producer (All Tracks), executive producer, lead vocals (All Tracks), background vocals (All Tracks) • Marcella Araica – audio mixing (Track 1) • Miguel Bustamante – audio mixing assistant (Track 1) • Bryan-Michael Cox – producer, instruments (Tracks 4, 12) • Aldrin Davis – producer (Track 8) • Kasseem Daoud Dean – producer (Track 11) • Jermaine Dupri – producer, audio mixing (Tracks 3, 7, 9–10) • Mikkel S. Eriksen – producer, recording engineer, instruments (Tracks 6, 13) • Brian Gartner – recording engineer (All Tracks), audio mixing (Track 14) • Shawntae Harris – background vocals (Track 11) • Tor E. Hermansen – producer, instruments (Tracks 6, 13) • Floyd Nathaniel Hills – producer (Track 1) • John Horesco IV – recording engineer (Tracks 3, 7, 9–10) • Josh Houghkirk – audio mixing assistant (Tracks 3, 6–10, 13) • Jay Wayne Jenkins – rap vocals (Track 5) • Crystal Johnson – background vocals (Tracks 3, 5–6, 8) • Jaycen Joshua – audio mixing (Tracks 2, 12) • Damian Marley – vocals (Track 3) • Faheem Rasheed Najm – vocals (Track 1) • Terius Youngdell Nash – producer (Track 2) • Dave Pensado – audio mixing (Tracks 2, 12) • James Poyser – producer (Track 14) • Derrick Selby – recording engineer (Track 8) • Kelly Sheehan – additional recording engineer (Track 2) • Manuel Seal – producer (Tracks 3, 7, 9–10) • Christopher Stewart – producer (Track 2) • Scott Storch – producer (Track 5) • Phil Tan – audio mixing (Tracks 3–4, 6–10, 13) • Maryann Tatum – background vocals (Tracks 1, 6, 11, 13–14) ==Charts==

Weekly charts Monthly charts Year-end charts ==Certifications and sales==