Four years ago, an unknown singers with an unpronounceable first name burst into the Australian Top 10 with a soulful ballad called "Vision Of Love". Nothing unusual in that - except for that soaring voice with its ability to make everyone's ears prick up and take notice. This girl was Mariah Carey, a gospal-trained, multi-octave ranged former waitress who sang back-up for toher singers. encouraged to break out on her own, she sent a demo tape to Sony president (and future husband) Tommy Mottola, who immediately signed her up. And the hits haven't stopped - from "Love Takes Time" to "I'll Be There", and now with her current global smash "Without You", Mariah is enjoying a career high and staggering record sales. In her only Australian interview, Mariah reveals all exclusively to TV HITS: about fame, her marriage and the incredible voice.
What do you know about Australia?
Well, I was playing with some kangaroos the other day! (laughs) No, I'm serious, I was at Gloria Estefan's house and she has these little kangaroos, they're really cute. What are the little ones called? They don't get really big. Wallabies? Yeah, that's what she had. That's Australian, right?
Have any of your friends come over here?
Not really. It's pretty far away from here! But I do know one Australian person. She's a photographer and she shot my album cover. She doesn't really take about it much, but she has an accent.
You're enjoying huge success on our charts at the moment. How does it feel being popular in such a faraway place?
It feels great! I would love to come to Australia one of these days. I hear it's really beautiful. It's warm there now, right? Well, we're just having another snowstorm here, and it's like the 14th one!
Have you ever met another Mariah?
I hadn't until around three years ago, and it was this girl that was a friend of a friend. She used to tell people her name was Maria because nobody could pronounce it. It was funny because I used to do that, too! Sometimes I would meet somebody for the first time, I would just say Maria because nobody really could remember Mariah or understand it.
Have any of your fans named their children after you?
Yeah, I've had a couple! I met this girl who said she'd named her baby Mariah Cara, so I thought that was pretty cool!
I've read that your mum used to say you were "six going on 35", meaning you were always very mature. Did you ever do anything remotely outrageous?
Oh, I did outrageous things! (laughs) I enjoyed being around grown-ups when I was a little kid, so that was probably what she meant. I could sit around the table with adults and have adult conversation and hang out, and it wasn't like I always wanted to be with kids. But I can still - and I did then - act crazy and act like a kid.
So, what's one outragous thing that you've done lately?
Um, let me think! I don't know about outrageous, but I love rollercoasters. That's, like, a fun thing for me. I always go on the scary ones. I'm always in search for the best rollercoasters!
You seem like a workaholic, always recording new stuff. What do you do to relax?
(sighs) It's really hard. Um, I sleep whenever I can, which is rare because I have trouble falling asleep sometimes. I like to spend time with old friends and people I don't get to see that much. I love going to amusement parks and love going on rollercoasters, and water rides. I like horseback riding, driving, just chilling out.
Do you ever put on your leather trousers and rock out?
(laughs) Um, not really 'rock out'! I listen to hip hop and rap, and I love r 'n' b. I listen to the radio a lot, but I drive everyone else in the car crazy because I change the station every five minutes!
How does Mariah Carey the star differ from Mariah Carey the person?
I guess I'm more serious when I'm on stage than when I'm not, just because of the nature of what I'm doing, you know, if I'm singing ballards or whatever. But that's not really who I am. That's like, one-tenth of my personality, it not really me.
Do you remain down-to-earth by doing your own laundry?
Oh no, I never did my laundry, I always hated it! (laughs hysterically) I would just leave it on the floor. I'm not a prima donna type of person. I'm just down-to-earth because that's who I am. I haven't lost the real person. I haven't lost touch with who I am and I never want to because that's when most people start going downhill.
What do you remember from your days as a waitress?
Well, what stands out in my memory the most is that I hated doing it! It was like, the worst thing because everyone tends to think that you live at the restaurant and you never leave and you're a premantent fixture there. They don't think of you as a real person, so that was kind of hard. And just the fact that I didn't want to be there. You know, some people will just do it and do it the best they can. But I really hated it! I mean, I didn't want to be there so I had the worst attitude about the whole thing.
Have any of your former workmates told the press that you were a rude waitress?
No, because I've always said that I was a rude waitress so nobody would be discovering anything new! (laughs) I was the worst!
So, if I came to your restaurant and ordered a hamburger, you'd tell me, "Get it yourself"?
Sometimes! (giggles loudly) No, um, I'd try to get it for you! First of all, I was more of coat-check girl and a hostess than I was a waitress, so I used to seat the people. But when I was a waitress, I used to get fired from my jobs because they'd realise how bad I was! (laughs) It was really bad!
Your weapon is that awesome voice you've been blessed with. But I've always wanted to ask, have you ever shattered your bathroom mirror during vocal practice?
(laughs hysterically for about 10 years!) No, well, actually, I'm looking at my bathroom mirror now and it's not shattered, it's fine. I can see it from here. But no, I haven't! I don't know if that's a reality, if people can shatter glass. Maybe they can. Somebody wrote me a letter and said their son was listening to my song "Someday", and at the end, when I hit the high note, their automatic garage door kept opening! It was triggering the garage door! They must have made that up! But it could be true, you never know!
Do you get offended when your voice is labeled "the human dog-whistle"?
No, because I'm influenced by singers that really sing. People might think it's over-singing or whatever, but for me, when I'm singing a song - something that I've written - and I'm trying to take it to the next level, there's nowhere to go but up and it's a really emotional feeling for me. I don't expect everbody to love me voice or me or whatever - you can't please everybody. But it is a strange part of my voice, it is something different that people aren't use to, so people are going to have extreme reactions and critiques of it.
But you've never had dogs come running after you or anything like that?
Well, yeah, there's a pack of dogs that follow me around everywhere I go, but other than that, you know ... (laughs)
Have you invented any strange concoctions to keep your voice in shape?
No. Sometimes, when my voice is tired, I try to think of things that will fix it. Everyone has their own remedy, you know, like cheyenne pepper or hot sauce or this or that. Nothing really works execpt sleep and honey and tea.
You've been married nearly a year, but how did Tommy propose to you?
(sighs nervously) Um, it was very romantic and he's a very romantic person. He's a very good person. The wedding was great, it was beautiful.
Who caught that bouquet?
There were some fans waiting outside who had been there all night. It was I am, so I threw it to them. I didn't do the traditional thing.
Did you and Tommy waltz to one of your ballads?
No, we danced to a song by Steve Wonder called "You and I". I love that song.
Did you ever considering changing your name to Mariah Mottola?
Nope! No way. See, Mariah is such an unusual name that you have to have a really simple last name to go along with it or it'd be pretty bad!
Are you enjoying married life? Yeah. It's not really much different, but it's good.
What do you say to the critic that accuse you of marrying Tommy as a career move?
Anybody that says that isn't really worth a comment. All I can say is that I had a lot of success before I married him. Somebody that's powerful can help people get started, but they can't make people sell millions of albums and they can't make the public go out and buy the record. People can only do so much and then the public has to grasp it. The public are the ones who make or break somebody. Nobody - no matter who it is - can make or break somebody.
What did Michael Jackson tell you after he heard your version of "I'll Be There"?
He told me he really liked it and thought I did a really beautiful rendition. That was really flattering because, when he was a little kid, his voice was incrediable, and that's definately what inspired that song.
Do you prefer your smoochy ballards or your groovy club hits?
I like doing both. It's fun for me to do different things. With "Dreamlover" we did a remix which was really big in the clubs. It was a really different version and a really different things for me than just always having to a ballad.
Have any of your songs made you cry?
Sometimes you get caught up in the emotion of what you're doing. The songs are like a little piece of you and you're singing about something important. I can remember "Without You" from when I was a little girl, and I've always loved that song. So, yeah, things can get pretty emotional!
If you could ever star in a TV show, which one would you choose?
(giggles) I never watch TV, so I couldn't tell you! I only watch certain shows, but I'm never home! When am I home to watch TV? I like 90210, but I haven' seen it in awhile. It's pretty funny, it amusing sometimes. I like Living Color (comedy show) and the talk shows. I like Ricki Lake (US chat show). It's really cool 'cause it's young people doing it and giving a different perspective.
Do you have any plans to go into acting?
Not really. I mean, just because I write my owns songs and I produce and everything, it's really a very all-consuming thing for me. A lot of people just go in and sing and then they leave and have a lot of time to do other things. But for me, it's like, "Here I am back in the studio again!"
Finally, do you have a message for your Australian fans?
I'd just like to say thank you so much to all my Australian fans and I hope to come Down Under and meet you soon. And thank you so much for your support. It means so much to me to know my music has reached so many people so far away. It feels great!