Not to take anything away from her, BUT… Will Mimi be able to pull off the “surprise” album in the same fashion that Beyoncé did? Mariah Carey Reveals Plans To Surprise Fans With New Album We know she has a legion of fans but still! Billboard Magazine just revealed Carey’s plans as part of their upcoming cover story on the diva: Carey will be taking a surprise approach to the project by revealing her new album’s title, track listing, artwork and music all at once via to-be-announced digital partners (a physical release at retail is expected the following week.) “I have to be the one that announces this, especially the title,” Carey says, noting that the album takes its name from a “personal possession of mine that’s part of an entity that I’ve had almost all my life.” Though Carey doesn’t mention other artists in describing her strategy, it’s clear she’s taking a page out of the “Beyoncé” playbook. It’s a particularly direct parallel when you consider that Beyoncé herself was coming off an underperforming album (2011′s “4″) before opting to go the surprise route — much in the way that Carey’s last album, 2009′s “Memoirs Of An Imperfect Angel,” produced just one top 10 hit (“Obsessed”) and sold a disappointing 549,000 copies, low enough to cancel a planned remix album. Though last summer’s Miguel duet “#Beautiful” was a bonafide hit, peaking at No. 15 on the Hot 100 and selling 1.2 million downloads, a string of other singles (“Triumphant,” “Almost Home,” “Eternal [You’re Mine]“) have failed to catch fire along the way. In the Billboard cover story, out Monday, Carey and her new manager Jermaine Dupri talk candidly about the rocky road to the album’s launch – from the failed singles to her drama-plagued stint on “American Idol” in 2013 to the shoulder injury that nearly derailed her plans altogether (“I really downplayed that incident.”) And wait, how much of a surprise is this album really going to be now that the cat is out of the proverbial bag? The full Billboard interview drops Monday but here’s a couple more tidbits from the preview: Frequent collaborators Rodney Jerkins and Dupri are back for Album No. 14, but so is a surprisingly diverse roster that ranges from of-the-moment producers like Hit-Boy and Mike Will Made It, guest features from Wale, Nas and Trey Songz and even contributions from veteran arranger Larry Gold and the Love Unlimited Orchestra. There’s also “a special guest star that I’m not allowed to reveal,” Carey teases. Let’s just hope it’s not her hubby Nick Cannon! Mariah also says she isn’t ready to give up the mic : Despite recent comments to Bravo’s Andy Cohen on “Watch What Happens Live” (“If this were to be my last album, people would hear everything they needed to hear”), Carey is not calling it quits anytime soon. “I will always make music. When I said it could be my last, that’s because tomorrow’s not promised to anyone.” She’s also planning to return to the small screen: Her rocky stint with Nicki Minaj on “American Idol” last year notwithstanding, Carey says she’d like her next reality-competition venture to be something where she was executive producer. “I have another project that I’m so very excited about that’s finally coming to fruition.” Are you excited about Mimi’s new album? How about the TV project? Instagram/Billboard
Read this article:
You Ain’t Beyoncé: Mariah Carey Plotting To Drop 14th Album Using A Surprise Approach
