Carey is opening up her heart and the doors to her 12,000-ft triplex apartment in Manhattan. 

“In life there can be ups and downs,” she opines. “You can’t be happy every day, because then you wouldn’t appreciate it.”

For sure. And as Hello! nods at such sage words we wonder if Mariah would appreciate the vast splendour of her home in the sky more were she to be evicted and forced to live in a studio flat or a cardboard box?

But Mariah has known hardship. She tells us how she once owned only one pair of shoes; how she would look at her money and wonder if she hold have lunch or a ride on the Subway; how she starred in the film Glitter. 

But what of her new movie? Against what looked like insurmountable odds (see Glitter) Carey is filming something called Tennessee. 

But while Carey talks about that, Hello!’s eye wanders about her massive home. 

There is a dressing room modelled on a scaled up version of Bergdorf Goodman’s third floor. 

There’s the Marrakesh Room, so called because it is exactly the same size as Marrakesh. And the Mermaid room, which would be a great place for real mermaids to live in with a school of blue whales for company. 

And it would have to be filled with water – something Mariah has tried. Hello! relives the horror of the burst water pipe and how Carey’s home was, momentarily, transformed into the world’s largest inland sea. 

Luckily, everything can be restored. Things were put back together piece by piece. Carey’s 1,000 pairs of shoes were placed back on their shelves in their racks. 

The palace is rich with what Hello! calls “symbolism”. Carey says the butterflies on the handcrafted fireplace symbolise freedom. 

The climate-controlled closets in which clothes are cross referenced by colour, fabric and occasion are symbolic of a woman in tune with her past, reality and the streets many, many feet below her windows... 
Source: Anorak (All rights reserved)
Heroes note: Hello! magazine can be found in many stores in Belgium.  Keep checking starting Thuesday or Friday.
Posted on February the 27th.

Filming started Monday in Dunlap, Tennessee, outside Chattanooga.  Cameras will start rolling in Nashville on Wednesday. 
Producers tapped the 70-year-old Cardwell's Market on Hermitage Avenue near Riverfront Park for one......scene.  Owner and Metro Trustee Charlie Cardwell said filmmakers liked the old-school feel of his place. 

Other locations include historic Second Avenue, honky-tonk packed lower Broadway, the Greyhound station, Printer's Alley, the Willow Street Railroad Crossing and the riverfront, where the new Sounds’ Stadium is will be. 

The filming will continue through Friday.  City officials said there won't be any street closures.
Source: WKRN (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 27th.

So, will Carey get married again? "We'll see," she answers. 
The Grammy-winning singer also says she's not in any rush to have children. "What I want is to have children in a good way, with the right husband, with the right family life." 
Asked if that means she'd only have children if she were married, "I think so," she says. "But who knows? Five years from now I might get hysterical and say, 'I have to have kids!' But I don't think so."
Source: People (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 27th.

Can you see that standard being applied to Whites that none could run for president unless they could prove they were descendants of slave masters? Do you rule out Blacks who were indentured servants or were rescued from slavery by Native Americans? What about the millions of Blacks whose parents or themselves were immigrants from Africa, the Caribbean, Australia or other parts of the world, such as Shirley Chisholm, Gen. Colin Powell or Sidney Portier? Are their contributions invalid? 
When the Rev. Jesse Jackson ran for president, he was disliked for being "too Black" because he had the audacity to raise issues critical to people of color, farmers and others locked out of the system. 

What is the heritage of Black Americans?

Surely it is victimization, but it is also bravery, fighting in many wars, even as we were treated worse than the enemies; of being the moral compass of the nation and dying for freedoms that helps define this nation as a democracy. 

Is there anything about Sen. Obama that disqualifies him from that heritage? 

Moreover, when you look at people like Tiger Woods, Alicia Keys, Mariah Carey, CNN's Soledad O'Brien, they are mere reminders that we are seeing the rise of a blended America. In the last decades the growth of ethnic so-called minorities in America has been phenomenal. Since 1980, the Asian American population has almost tripled, Hispanic Americans more than doubled, Native Americans increased 62 percent, and African-Americans increased 31 percent, while the non-ethnic population has remained almost the same. The U.S. Census Bureau predicts that by the year 2050, people of color will comprise fully half the U.S. population.
Source: Louisiana Weekly (All rights reserved) (extract)
Posted on February the 24th.

FEED HISTORY:+ NEW SHOWBIZ 3
INTRO: Mariah Carey charms fans at London fashion store launch. 

TV AND WEB RESTRICTIONS~**NONE**~

Pop icon Mariah Carey models clothes from latest collection of Italian fashion store in London.
SHOWS:
LONDON, ENGLAND, UNITED KINGDOM (FEBRUARY 15, 2007)  ACCESS ALL
1. VARIOUS OF MARIAH CAREY POSING FOR PHOTOGRAPHERS
2. (SOUNDBITE) (English) MARIAH CAREY, SAYING
"I've never followed a trend you know , I just wear what I feel like and I know that makes some people mad but the thing is is that it should be about you expressing yourself when you are a musician, songwriter, an artist, and some people feel like they need to follow the trend so they get on those pages every day, you know who worked better and for me it's about being yourself and maybe people end up following you, you know what I mean."
3. CUTAWAY POSTER SHOWING CAREY'S FACE
4. (SOUNDBITE) (English) MARIAH CAREY, SAYING
"I don't know about (being) a trend-setter but I have seen a lot of looks that look really familiar on other popstars, if we call them that, you know so I mean it's like that's cool that's fine, but I like clothes and this is fun."
5. CUTAWAY CAREY'S JEANS/WIDESHOT CAREY
6. (SOUNDBITE) (English) MARIAH CAREY, ABOUT UPCOMING OSCARS, SAYING
"Sometimes I have my favourite movies that I watch, obviously I think everybody loves 'The Queen' and Helen Mirren. I really love 'Devil Wears Prada' too. I love Meryl Streep, I love that movie so, I'm conflicted."
7. EXTERIOR SHOT OF PINKO STORE
8. FANS WAITING
9. TWO KIDS LOOKING INTO CAMERA
10. (SOUNDBITE) (English) FEMALE FAN, SAYING
"I think she's great and I think she's good to her fans as well. She keeps in touch with them and I think she's achieved a lot , I think she's gone through a lot and made a great, what they say comeback, but I think she's been there the whole time just waiting to come through again."
11. (SOUNDBITE) (English) FEMALE FANS, SAYING
"She's an amazing singer and we love her so."
12. (SOUNDBITE) (English) MALE FAN, SAYING
"Everything. Her voice, her body, hi Mariah, everything."
13. MARIAH CAREY EXITING STORE AND SIGNING AUTOGRAPH
14. CAREY WAVING TO FANS BEFORE SHE GETS INTO CAR 
Posted on February the 24th.

The multi-octave diva also let it slip that she was looking to buy a London flat in the heart of Knightsbridge. Her reason? "Well, a girl loves to shop," she told me.

Mariah was viewing properties up to the value of £8 million, but stipulated: "They must have high ceilings so that I can practice my vocals."
Source: Neil Sean for Sky Showbiz (All rights reserved)
Heroes comment: There's no wonder Mariah would like to have her own property in London, she loves the city, her great friend Jasmine lives there, Dame Dash has also his property where Mariah goes often, and London is a very nice city who never sleeps.
Posted on February the 23rd.

Instead of returning to the Pittsburgh area where she had been raised, she went straight from her 1999 graduation from the University of Virginia to the storied music halls of New York City.

Two years later, her love of music would prove not only to be life-changing but also lifesaving.

On her way to the 105th floor of the World Trade Center South Tower, where she worked as a financial analyst, Ms. Botkin chose to dawdle in the tower's concourse. It was the day her favorite artist, Mariah Carey, was releasing a new album, "Glitter."

"I'm a huge Mariah Carey fan. I always, always buy her music the morning it's released. I went to Sam Goody to buy that CD, which was why I was a little behind.

"I was waiting for my elevator when the first plane hit," she said. "When I saw people running, I did think, is this a bomb or something intentional? I thought about Oklahoma City and said, 'Wow, I wonder if I'm going to be hurt today.' "

Ms. Botkin was not hurt, but more than 100 of her co-workers at AON Corp. would perish as United Airlines Flight 175 crashed 20-some floors beneath them. The full impact of what had happened didn't dawn on her, she said, until she headed home on the subway.

As her train emerged from the Manhattan tunnel onto the elevated tracks in Queens, she saw the two towers in flames.
Source: Post Gazette (All rights reserved) (extract) - Honour Mariah
Posted on February the 23rd.

First, Carey recorded a track with Bone Thugs-N-Harmony for the group's comeback album, Strength and Loyalty, due April 17, according to the group's label rep. "She promised that she was gonna do a song with us once, and she kept her promise," Krayzie Bone previously told MTV News.

Carey not only kept her word, but she brought along Bow Wow to sweeten her offering on the song "Lil L.O.V.E." "I call it 'Little Little,' " she told MTV Europe. "It's a favorite of mine. It's a nice song, and I think it really kind of gives you the back-in-the-day Bone vibe but also a very new take on who they are as artists."

Carey said that she and other artists owe a debt to Bone Thugs-N-Harmony because their influence is so widespread in rap and hip-hop. "A lot of times people are like, 'I will make up a part,' and people actually think they made up that part," she said. "But I am so influenced by their style that it kind of merges together. It's funny, because so many artists today are influenced by Bone, and they may not even realize it."

Carey's got another influence her fans might not recognize — at least for the song in her upcoming movie "Tennessee." Her character, Krystal, is a waitress — just like Carey's role in 2002's "WiseGirls" — but this time, she's also an aspiring songwriter. Through the course of the story, as she joins two brothers on their journey to find their estranged father, she writes a song and performs it in a bar.

Krystal's song is being co-written by Carey and Willie Nelson. Carey hasn't shot the scene yet (it will be filmed next week), but in another part of the movie, she'll hint at her influence by singing a bit of Nelson's "Help Me Make It Through the Night" a cappella, according to the film's rep.

"This character is really far from who I am in a lot of ways," Carey said. "There are some parallels, some internal things, nothing that people would ever look at and go, 'That's very Mariah.' But this is not me at all. The character is so not what you would think. This is not about hairdos and ensembles. The girl's in the trenches. And I'm the third lead, so it's nice to work with an ensemble cast and to really just be able to do my work and go home at night."
Carey started shooting "Tennessee" in and around Albuquerque, New Mexico, last month. She's back there shooting this week, before shooting her bar scenes in Nashville and wrapping her one month of production. No release date has been set for the film.

Meanwhile, her next album, "which is really early on in the creative process," is due this fall, according to her label rep.
Source: MTV (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 21st.

In between jaunts, Mariah found the time to catch up with MTV News International and was enthusiastic to talk about collaborating with rap group Bone Thugs-n-Harmony on their highly anticipated comeback album "Strength & Loyalty".

Mariah Carey revealed that she will feature on their single "Lil L.O.V.E", and explained, "it’s a favourite song of mine, I love working with them, and Bow wow is also on that record, and it’s a nice song and I think it really kind of gives you the back in the day Bone vibe, but also a very new take on who they are as artists."

"I have always loved blending my voice with theirs, and a lot of times people are like, I will make up a part, and people will think they made up the part, but I am so influenced by their style, that it kind of merges together. 

She went on to add, "It’s funny because so many rap artists today are influenced by Bone and they may not even realize it".
Source: MTV Europe and International (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 20th.

And with their midriffs and thongs showing during television appearances and within the pages of a plethora of magazines, the craze over low-riding pants may seem like the newest passing trend.

But the commotion is nothing new.

Instead, Tonya Twist, Mariah Carey’s former stylist, is to blame for what she started some four years ago.

“She cut off the waistband of Mariah Carey’s Levi’s and that caused a sensation,” said Suzie Yalof Schwartz, executive fashion editor for Glamour. “Ever since then, we’ve been seeing them everywhere.”
Source: The State News (All rights reserved) (extract)
Heroes note: Read of course Tonjua instead of Tonya, and I don't know if it's an old article which surfaced, but it's not 4 years ago, it's almost 7 years.  We all remember Tonjua Twist who commited suicide in 2000 and to whom Mariah dedicated her song "Twister".
Posted on February the 20th.

She went on to say that she didn't even fly to the set in Tennessee, she took the bus to give her a better experience of being from that part of America.

She explained, "I took my tour bus down because I wanted to be in the environment, like experience what it would be like to live in the area where we are filming and just go to real places to eat, and meet people along the way and stuff like that, the real people who are living down more towards the southern western area."

Let's now see if the medias will correct it, or what other stupid stuff they will find out 
Posted on February the 17th.

Carey says that if it wasn't for Wise Girls she wouldn't have been chosen for the role. "Lee Daniels saw Wise Girls at Sundance (film festival) and we knew each other sort of and it all came together," she said.

"He (Lee) is a creative genius. He is a risk taker but I feel safe. The script was amazing.

"All three (characters) find their way in the end. It will hopefully come out in the fall."

The film is being shot in New Mexico and filming is expected to finish by the end of March.
Source: Blackpool (All rights reserved) (extract)
Posted on February the 16th.

The Pinko campaign featuring Carey was shot by photographer Michelangelo Di Battista and art directed by Giovanni Bianco. The images depict Carey in strong sultry poses wearing Pinko’s signature urban designs. 

I was one of the few media and fashionistas to receive an invite to Pinko's cocktail party to celebrate the new campaign and their newly refurbished store on Brompton Road. The store was lit up and there were paparazzi and police surrounding the area, not to mention the many fans waiting outside in the cold to catch a glimpse of their idol. Inside the store was a different story, it was full of glamorous people sipping on the neverending glasses of pink champagne and cocktails, and waiters handing out canapees (tiny sized food to us little people). As time went on, more and more celebrities arrived including Kimberley Stewart, Calum Best, Duncan from Blue, Ronan and Yvonne Keating, Benny Medina (Mariah's manager) and JC Chasez (from 'N Sync).

Suddenly the cameras outside started clicking like crazy and I caught a sneaky peek at Naomi Campbell (a previous model for Pinko) outside posing with her new look hair style. Not long after, Mariah Carey herself joined her looking relaxed but she spoke little words. They entered Pinko together and the paparazzi took photos of them. Naomi went off to circulate while Mariah was whisked upstairs. The place was packed and everyone wanted to speak with her. Making our way back down the stairs was a mission and Benny Medina was looking a bit frustrated, he said "Why can't people think of waiting and not going down the stairs like everyone else?!" and then started bopping to a Mariah song.

After only about ten minutes, Mariah and her entourage made their way to the door. I was introduced to her by Michael Richardson and she autographed my invitation (bless her) which proves she never turns down autographs no matter how busy it is around her. Michael let me know where they were having dinner so I made my way there. San Lorenzo's on Beauchamp Place had paparazzi waiting outside already to take a few more shots after dinner. The restaurant was very cosy and they had their own big table on the top floor with candles scatting the surface. Benny Medina, Michael Richardson, Connie Filippello, Mark Sudack and Mariah were all there together and looked like they were having a grand old time. I said my goodbyes and went home while they went back to Claridge's. I finally met Mariah Carey, my favourite singer and most probably the most talented person I will ever meet.
Source: 360 X - Rashmi by e-mail
Posted on February the 16th.

You’re rumoured to have a serious walk-in closet.
I have four if you include storage. I live on three floors of a block in Tribeca, so I have space. There’s one for lingerie, a shoe closet I designed with the architect Mario Buatta, and a pretty area for clothes with moving wardrobes and a bunch of shelves where I do fittings with stylists. The closets are a big part of my life, but it’s a work environment, too. It sounds obsessive — and it is pretty fabulous. But when I was 17 I had to wear my mum’s shoes and my feet poked through them. It was a really snowy winter and I thought, “One day I’m going to have so many shoes”. The money thing was weird, like I went to bed poor and woke up rich. 

How do you accentuate your best features? 
I’m not sure I have best features. I had things I hated about myself. But I always believed in my voice and my music writing. At the start, I was offered $5,000 for my music rights and that was a fortune to me, but I knew enough about the business and my talent not to accept it. I would have ended up with nothing.

Worst fashion looks? 
At the age of 12 I dyed my hair orange by mistake, and I shaved my eyebrows. You get a complex from that. 

How much pressure does the industry put on everyone to look the same? 
The industry doesn’t really know what it wants until it sees something successful and then tries to carbon-copy it. At the start of my career I didn’t see it as being about style; it was about talent. My mum was an opera singer and I'm privileged to have sung with Pavarotti. I hang out with a lot of singers and musicians — who aren’t size zero, so my body image is not part of that world. 

What was with all the raunch? 
People always said that I was raunchy, but how can I be raunchy? I’m eternally 12. The photographer David LaChapelle says I look like Mary Poppins. At the start I deliberately didn’t do bare midriffs because I wanted people to concentrate on my voice. I was being advised by people well into their forties on what was cool, and they wanted me to be wholesome and All-American, which I’m so not. My father’s black, my mother’s Irish-American, and the way I grew up was hardly The Brady Bunch . 
But once they got the voice, I really had to push to wear things that were more revealing. It was probably because I was rebelling — I was married young and my husband was very specific about my look. I couldn’t even do my hair the way I wanted because he wanted it his way. I cannot believe now that I was married. When we got divorced I just wanted to have some fun. 

Do you regret any outfit? 
Many, oh so many. But if I tell you which ones, you’re gonna run them huge, right? 

Hot date: what do you wear? 
I haven’t really gone on many, believe it or not. But I’ll wear whatever I think is sexy — it doesn’t mean that I’m going to bed with that person. 

High maintenance? 
Completely. Everything about me is high maintenance, starting with the voice, which I look after like a child. I take a humidifier wherever I go and I sleep in a steam room to protect it. The TV in there is behind glass. 
Then there’s the body, and my trainer, who is about the size of my pinkie finger, but she understands my body. I’m very muscular, so if I wear a wrong-shaped dress, people always think that I’ve gained weight. Actually I’ve stopped weighing myself. I’ve got thighs and buttocks and I’m never going to be a size zero. I like my curves. But I'm not gonna lie — if there’s a sample that’s a size two and I fit into it, I feel great. I don’t do enough gym. I don’t do facials because I have rosacea and having people poke at your face is not good for that. But I have home remedies: I make little packs of milk and ice to calm it down. I’m a beauty school dropout. I did 500 hours, so I can do my own make-up and hair. Now the hair is high maintenance. It’s really curly and can take hours. 

Favourite designers? 
That’s difficult. It’s more about favourite pieces. Today I’m in Gucci [camel poncho] and Alexander McQueen [but-ton-up black stiletto ankle boots] and these two rings from Van Cleef and Arpels [enormous diamond-encrust-ed butterflies, a tribute to her album Butterfly ]. It’s quite pared-down, mainly because I spilt something over myself and had to take off the blouse that I was wearing. 

Is there anything you wouldn’t wear? 
Flat shoes — they give me blisters. My babysitter used to laugh at me because when I was 12 I was always on tiptoe. I couldn’t walk flat. Even my trainer said to me, “Mariah, you canNOT wear flats” — and I’m like, but they’re Hermãs and they match my bikini. I guess I’m a heel girl. I can run in them. I could swim in them if necessary. 

Would you ever contemplate cosmetic surgery? 
I hope when I get to that stage there will be a cream. Botox? Well, we’re still not sure what’s in that stuff. I’m lucky — because of my ethnicity, I think that I’ll be able to live with the lines. 

Are you for ageing gracefully or disgracefully?
What’s disgracefully? 
I think ageing at all is just horrible. 

Do you follow trends? 
Not really, because I don’t read magazines — you see all these pictures of yourself getting bashed. My friends cut out the nice ones. I’m oblivious to the other stuff. The press has put me through the wringer, but at this point in my career, let’s be honest, it doesn’t really matter. 

Pinko is available from Harrods, Harvey Nichols, Selfridges and its flagship store at 161 Brompton Road, London SW3.
Source: Times Online (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 15th.

Mariah, who was met by a crowd of around 30 photographers and members of the public outside the Pinko store in Knightsbridge, London, said: "It is really exciting. I have visited Pinko stores when I've visited Italy and any time I go shopping there I end up in a Pinko store." 
The singer, who flew in from filming the independent move Tennessee in New Mexico, also waded into the Size Zero debate. 

She said: "I don't think anyone should be banned from anything. There should not be a precedent. That cannot work if you are naturally a Size Zero. As long as it's not leading people to do harmful things to themselves to achieve that then it's fine." 
Mariah follows in the footsteps of supermodels Elle Macpherson, Eva Herzigova and Naomi Campbell who have also been faces for Pinko. 
The new campaign, which will be featured in 750 stores worldwide, was shot by renowned photographer Michelangelo Di Battista. 

When Mariah, who had last visited Britain a year ago, left the Brompton Road store there was a crowd of around 60 people shouting her name and taking photos of her with mobile phones. 

The specially made jeans she was wearing were estimated to be worth around £3,000. A similar design will be available in the Pinko stores. 
Although there is no exact figure for Mariah's deal with Pinko, a spokeswoman said: "It's a very, very big deal."
Source: Launch UK (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 15th.

According to World Peace One, Celine Dion will record the song in Las Vegas, and U2 will do it in Hawaii. Mariah Carey will also record it in New York on February 19 since she has a busy schedule doing a film. All the participating stars will record the song in various studios and send the demo to the producer to make up one song. 

After the recording session, some performers are scheduled to participate in "A Call for an End to War" concert August 15. Organizers said the event should reach an audience of 3.5 billion worldwide through television, radio, Internet and cell phones. 
Click here to hear  the original "Give Your Love"version.
Source: CCTV  - World Peace One (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 15th.

I slightly-related news, someone reminded us of a Mariah story from a few years back. Hungry one night, Carey decided she fancied a bagel so decided to pop to Brick Lane to pick one up. Not only going in herself, she waited in line with everyone else while they salted the beef (or whatever happens in bagel houses). See, she gets the diva tag, but having interviewed her, we think Miss Mariah is in fact very cool, pretty down to earth (well, for a popstress) and actually a very nice person. So there!
Source: RWD (All rights reserved) (extract)
Posted on February the 13th.

15 February, 2007
11.30am - 11.45am: Mariah is expected to leave hotel and arrive at "Pinko UK" flag store.
12.00pm: Mariah will do a press conference/photo call.
12.30pm - 12.45pm: Mariah expected to leave store.
1.00pm - 1.30pm: Arrive back at hotel.
7.30pm - 7.45pm: Leave Hotel to go to "Pinko UK" flagship store cocktail party.
8.00pm: Expected to arrive at "Pinko UK" cocktail party.
8.30pm to 9pm: Leave party, grab a bite to eat and fly back to the USA.

Important Locations
Claridge’s Hotel 
The hotel is located in the heart of the West End, just two minutes walk from Bond Street underground station. 

Pinko UK Store
The store is located at 161 Brompton Road, London, SW3. The store is situated close to Harrods.

Source: Mariah Connection UK
Posted on February the 12th.

The Pinko campaign featuring Carey was shot by renowned photographer Michelangelo Di Battista and art directed by Giovanni Bianco. The striking images depict Carey in strong sultry poses wearing Pinko’s signature sassy, urban designs. 

Mariah Carey said; "I’m really flattered to have been asked to be the new face of Pinko. I first discovered this spectacular fashion house while working in Italy, in my favourite place in the world, the Isle of Capri, while recording my latest CD ‘The Emancipation of Mimi’. I immediately became a huge fan of the brand, and I bought almost everything in the store. So as you can imagine, when I was approached about doing the Pinko campaign I was beyond excited. The clothes are so stylish and fun, and I’m really looking forward to our new venture together.”

Pietro Negra, Pinko’s president and founder said: “All our campaigns feature famously beautiful women, but this time we wanted not only a beautiful woman, but a musical artist, because music is the greatest channel of communication, it reaches across the generations, perfectly reflecting the Pinko brand’s goal: to design clothes for women of all ages.”

Mariah Carey joins an impressive roll call with previous faces of Pinko including elite supermodels Elle Macpherson, Eva Herzigova and Naomi Campbell. The latest campaign for Pinko launches in London, and can be seen throughout Pinko’s 750 stores worldwide, including a flagship store in London SW3 (Brompton Road 161) and shop in shops in Harrods, Selfridges and Harvey Nichols.
Source: Mariah Connection UK
Posted on February the 12th.

Also, Rashmi (music journalist) let me know that there will be cocktails from 8-10pm in the newly refurbished Pinko store and there will be other famous people making appearances.
Posted on February the 12th.

US-born Carey said: "I first discovered this spectacular fashion house while working in Italy…. I immediately became a huge fan of the brand, and I bought almost everything in the store. 

"So as you can imagine, when I was approached about doing the Pinko campaign I was beyond excited.  The clothes are so stylish and fun, and I'm really looking forward to our new venture together."

Pinko president and founder Pietro Negra said the company had searched for "not only a beautiful woman, but a musical artist, because music is the greatest channel of communication".

Previous faces of Pinko include supermodels Elle Macpherson, Eva Herzigova and Naomi Campbell.
Source: Just Style (All rights reserved)
Heroes note: This could maybe explain the rumor of a Mariah visit in the UK as London's Fashion Week is 11-16 February.
Posted on February the 9th.

However, it isn’t Mariah’s lack of nudity that’s twisting Stern, but instead it’s her pointed comments, blaming him for her mental breakdown in 2001: “Howard Stern had said a lot of mean stuff about me that morning, as he does about everybody every morning, and I think it really got to me. So I gained five pounds. It’s not the end of the freakin’ world. But I was exhausted, and I did collapse later. Then everybody blew it out of proportion.”

Now Howard, who along with Mariah, grew up on Long Island, NY, so you might think that when a girl with big hair comes complaining, he wouldn’t really take umbrage, but Howard has returned fire, and continues to comment. The last few days on his show, the man who broadcasts from space has demonstrated disgust with Mimi’s disparagement, stating plainly that he felt justified in describing what he thought of her body, and that any celebrity who freaks out over his words wasn’t that stable to start with.

He also claims she had called him on it, literally calling him and expressing outrage at someone she felt was a friend. Stern said they had met briefly in the past, but they hardly had a relationship. He says she was really aggravated, and he tried to play it off as “pulling pigtails” on a girl he couldn’t have, but she remained unhappy and the conversation didn’t end with any resolution. She has since stuck to her guns that the ‘Sirius’ star sent her to the loony bin.
Source: Cinemablend (All rights reserved) (extract)
Posted on February the 8th.

- "Mottola was also tripping.  After a secret love affair with a Japanese super star singer on Sony, who was in fact Morita's goddaughter (note: Morita was the big boss of Sony Music Japan), he was also carrying on with his own super star signing, Mariah Carey, while divorcing his wife who called me to complain how he was screwing her financially.  With my approval, Mottola had put in place a management team of his own.  I'd thought he was the right guy to run Columbia Records.  Now I was slowly getting the idea that he was getting ready to run me out.  Every time Tommy came near my dog, a benign and gentle spirit, the dog would growl like the devil himself was approaching."
Posted on February the 8th.

"Jermaine's career has grown from strength to strength over the years," said Mr. Reid, "as a producer and songwriter and recording artist in his own right, as a respected label executive and entrepreneur, and as a highly esteemed developer of new talent. His deep ties to Atlanta's creative R&B and hip-hop community have been the springboard to working with the greatest names in contemporary music. This is a tremendous step forward for Island Records and its established roster of artists who will benefit enormously from Jermaine's presence."

"I'm so excited to be reunited with L.A. Reid because most of my biggest hits were when he and I worked together," said Mr. Dupri. "And then to be working side by side with Steve Bartels -- I don't think there's a better team because he's by far the best in the game. I can't wait for us to start stuntin' on y'all."

"I am thrilled that Jermaine has decided to join the Island Def Jam family," said Mr. Bartels. "Jermaine is a prestigious hitmaker as well as a production wizard. I personally look forward to helping be part of once again, adding to and continuing his illustrious legacy."

Jermaine Dupri is one of the preeminent figures in Urban Music today. He has written, produced, or mixed hit records for many of the industry's top artists. His long-distance run of hits with Usher, which began in 1997, culminated with 2004's string of "Burn," "Confessions Part II," and "My Boo" (a duet with Alicia Keys) which drove 8-times platinum sales of Usher's Confessions album, making it the best-selling album of the year.

Dupri is no stranger to the Island roster, having co-written and produced the Mariah Carey #1 hits "We Belong Together" (for which he shared the Grammy award for Best R&B Song), "Shake It Off," and "Don't Forget About Us." All three were from The Emancipation of Mimi, the #1 top-selling album of 2005. In addition to his collaborations with IDJ artists Jay-Z, Ludacris, and Lionel Richie, Dupri has turned out hits with Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, TLC, Run-DMC, Toni Braxton, Alicia Keyes, Nelly, Chingy, Janet Jackson, Monica, Aaliyah, Ciara, and many others.

Jermaine Dupri was 19 years old when he produced his first #1 record on the Billboard Hot 100, Kris Kross' 1992 single, "Jump." The 5-times platinum sales of the teen duo's debut album led to Dupri's founding of the So So Def label in 1993. He was quickly marked as one of the foremost young entrepreneurs driving the arrival of hip-hop as a central creative and commercial force in mainstream music. So So Def became known as an engine not only of hit records, but of artist development, as Dupri went on to sign and nurture the careers of many gold, platinum, and multi-platinum selling artists including Xscape, Da Brat, Jagged Edge, Lil' Bow Wow, Dem Franchize Boyz, J-Kwon, Youngbloodz, and Anthony Hamilton.
Source: Island Def Jam Music Group (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 7th.

Dupri stepped down as president of urban music at Virgin in October 2006. At Virgin he was responsible for signing Dem Franchize Boyz and pacted with OutKast member Big Boi's Purple Ribbon imprint. Dupri exited Virgin following lackluster sales of his girlfriend Janet Jackson's latest disc, "20 Y.O," which Dupri co-executive produced.

As a producer, he's helmed hits for Usher, Mariah Carey and TLC, among many others.

UMG could not be reached for comment at deadline.
Source: Billboard (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 6th.

Mariah Carey
Our sexy cover girl with the big voice reveals all about that tiff with Eminem, acting goofy on MTV, her wardrobe malfunction and why, at heart, she's really a prude by Jason Buhrmester

Q1
Playboy: On the song "Get Your Number" from your album The Emancipation of Mimi, you sing about picking up a guy at a club and taking him home. Is that something you would ever do?
Carey: No. Here's the problem with me -- well, one of them. [laughs] I can be flirtatious when I don't mean to be. Let's say we are at a club, me and some friends, and we're hanging out with guys. If I'm sitting there and a song I like comes on, because I'm a singer, I start moving. It's just what I do. I don't realize I'm sitting there doing a video in somebody's face. I end up being very flirtatious, and people take it the wrong way. I'm very much a prude. But I don't want to disappoint people, so maybe we shouldn't discuss that.

Q2
Playboy: But on the song "Say Somethin'" you sing, "I'm over here looking at you/You're over there watching me too/Both painting pictures of how we'll kiss and f***." That doesn't sound prudish to us.
Carey: I didn't say that! There's an f and a few squiggly little letters. [laughs] And that was the producer Pharrell's idea. He just wanted to shock everybody. I was like, "All right, Pharrell, if this will make you happy." That was one of those little sexy moments.

Q3
Playboy: Last year you clashed with Eminem after he claimed the two of you had been romantically involved. Then he reportedly sent you a letter of apology. What did it say?
Carey: Something is clearly askew with him, and I'm not quite sure what it is. I just heard something else he recently said about me. I'm curious as to why he's so obsessed with me. I never got an apology letter, by the way; I don't know what they're talking about. Then again, I wasn't exactly searching my mailbox for it.

Q4
Playboy: Your mother is Irish American and your father was African American and Venezuelan. When did you realize being biracial made you different?
Carey: When I was in kindergarten. Our assignment was to draw our family. The two kindergarten teachers were really young. I don't think they meant any harm, but they were looking over my shoulder and giggling because I drew my family the way I saw them. My mom was peach, my brother and sister and I were in the middle somewhere, and my father was brown. They said to me, "You made a mistake, Mariah." I said, "No, that's my father. That's what he looks like." They didn't believe me. It was as though I'd taken a green crayon and made him green. All of a sudden they stopped laughing because I was confused and upset. Their laughter kind of trickled off, and they walked away and started whispering. They never looked at me the same way again.

Q5
Playboy: On "I Wish You Knew" you sing about having an inferiority complex. What makes you shy?
Carey: I think I have an all-around inferiority complex from growing up biracial and feeling as if I didn't fit in. I didn't feel pretty as a little girl. The entertainment business is an extension of high school, so I'm still my own little class clown. Maybe I overcompensate by having a big personality. I'm usually pretty boisterous now.

Q6
Playboy: How old were you when you started singing?
Carey: I was four. My mom used to sing with the New York City Opera. She made her debut at Lincoln Center and had gone to Juilliard. I think by the time I came around she wasn't singing professionally, but she still practiced here and there. She tells the story of when she was doing the opera Rigoletto, and at one point I corrected her because she'd made a mistake. That's when she realized I had a good ear.

Q7
Playboy: At what point did you know you wanted to make singing your career?
Carey: From the point I knew one could have a career, I knew it was what I wanted to do. I wanted to be either a singer or a genie. [laughs] When I realized that being a genie wasn't an actual option, I went with singing.

Q8
Playboy: How did you start your career in music?
Carey: When I was little I auditioned for Annie. I wanted to be in Annie because it was the big show on Broadway. I was too tall, but I'm kind of thinking I was too ethnic as well. [laughs] I auditioned with a black wig. Even the wig color wasn't right which is weird because my nana on my father's side had a penchant for red wigs. I probably could have borrowed one of hers, but nobody thought of it.

Q9
Playboy: If American Idol had existed when you were young, would you have auditioned?
Carey: Remember Star Search? That was around, and I didn't audition for it. I didn't think it was for me. I know everybody thinks I'm the poster child for American Idol, but I was really shy when I first came out as a performer. My mother wasn't a stage mom. She was more of a hippie.

Q10
Playboy: Randy Jackson from American Idol has worked as your director for several years. Did you ever imagine he'd be a star?
Carey: Randy Jackson -- well, now we have to call him Randy Jackson of American Idol -- had worked with me since my first record. I've known him for so long, and now he's a huge star. It's just weird to me. We'll get mobbed walking down the street. You know how the band is introduced at a show? My little joke used to be that he was Michael Jackson's brother, and the crowd would believe me and go crazy.

Q11
Playboy: You have a lot of wardrobe changes during your show. Have you ever had a malfunction?
Carey: Oh please, there have been so many. [laughs] On this tour there was a really bad malfunction when my top popped open. It was this little top with a hook and eye on the front. It was a nightmare. The top was so tight that night because we girls have moments when the top might be tighter, but I caught it, and that's how you know a pro. I had to continue singing as well. So the microphone was in one hand, and with the other hand I scooped the upper region together and kept singing the words, "Stop the track! Stop the track! Stop it!" They did not understand. I had to go back and come out in a fabulous dress and tell the crowd, "Guys, I'm sorry, but we would have had a major malfunction, and I'm not going to be the one responsible for that happening."

Q12
Playboy: What would we have heard on the demo that got you signed?
Carey: I think it sounded really good, actually, I always wanted to work. I would record and write all night and then go to school. I was on my own. I was in high school, and I would drive into the city and try to drive home and always get lost. I'd wind up in the Bronx or somewhere in Queens, not knowing where I was going at all. I don't have any sense of direction.

Q13
Playboy: You were a backup singer for Brenda K. Starr when she gave your demo to Tommy Mottola from Sony Music Entertainment. How did that happen?
Carey: I was pretty broke. I was working for Brenda, but that was an on-again, off-again thing. In the winter when I didn't have a coat, she and her mom brought me a winter coat and some food. They felt bad for me. I was this girl who would sing and write songs. At one point Brenda asked me if I wanted her to record some of the songs from my demo, but I said, "No, I'm going to be recording these songs." I always believed I was going to do this. There was never a lack of faith or determination or belief in myself. When Tommy Mottola first saw me, he was like, "Who's that?" Brenda told him I was a backup singer and her friend and gave him my tape. I'll never forget that moment. It was one of the destined-to-be moments, like from an after-school special.

Q14
Playboy: Mottola signed you to Sony, and you two later married but then divorced after four years, which led to struggles with your record label. What was going on?
Carey: Well, let's face it, as the professional relationship turned into a personal one, it all became a complete and total mess. When we met I didn't know he was married. I didn't know he had kids. I didn't know the folklore about him. People would tell me stuff and then be like, "Oops! You didn't know that?" It was weird. Once I became a celebrity, Tommy decided we were going to live in the boondocks. In a way it protected me, but then it got to be too much protection. I guess because I grew up in a pretty dysfunctional environment I allowed myself to deal with things most people wouldn't. My tolerance level for dysfunction was really high. I refer to the home we shared as Sing Sing because all I did was sing, sing, sing. It really wasn't a stone groove, as I would say. [laughs] I think I would have still been in the relationship because that's the way I am as far as loyalty. I would have remained in that relationship had it been one inch less confining. Even though I was miserable in my personal life, I lived vicariously through the girl on TV wearing Pumas and jean shorts and a flannel.

Q15
Playboy: Where is your wedding ring now?
Carey: It somehow miraculously became earrings. Then I lost them. I lost them in Amsterdam, no less.

Q16
Playboy: In 2001 it was reported that you had suffered an emotional breakdown. What really happened?
Carey: What happened was that people made a big deal of when my old publicist pulled the microphone out of my hand because I was venting about Howard Stern. [laughs] No one knew it, actually. Howard Stern had said a lot of mean stuff about me that morning, as he does about everybody every morning, and I think it really got to me. I handle him pretty well, but that particular day it was about how I looked fat. Calm down. So I gained five pounds. It's not the end of the freakin' world. Maybe what he was talking about was relevant; maybe it was time to lose a few pounds. But I was exhausted, and I did collapse later. Then everybody blew it out of proportion.

Q17
Playboy: A big deal was made of the messages you recorded for your website and an appearance on TRL during which you handed our Popsicles and performed a brief striptease.
Carey: I thought it was strange that the legitimate press talked about TRL and things geared toward 14-year-old kids. Come on -- I've been on MTV, having food fights and doing stupid stuff for I don't even know how long. That's what it's about. It's not about taking oneself seriously. It's not a Barbara Walters moment. It's not Larry King or Charlie Rose. It was amazing to me how things got blown out of proportion because there was nothing else to talk about. And then my movie Glitter was such a bomb, but no one ever pointed out that it came out around September 11, 2001.

Q18
Playboy: When was the last time you watched Glitter?
Carey: I try not to. I try to avoid it. Actually, I don't mind it. There are moments that make me laugh, and I don't care. I was fortunate to do Wisegirls right after that, with Mira Sorvino. A lot of people didn't see it, but it received a standing ovation at Sundance and did very well critically. It was an amazing experience for me because I got to play a character role. I did a lot of ad-libbing and worked with an Academy Award-winning actress.

Q19
Playboy: You bought Marilyn Monroe's childhood piano for more than $600,000. What made you want it?
Carey: I had to fight for it. It was pretty cool. I'd never done any type of bidding on anything before. My world-famous decorator was on the phone, asking me how high I wanted to go, and I kept telling him, "I have to have this piano!" That piano is a symbolic thing. In Marilyn's autobiography there is a chapter called "How I Rescued a White Piano." It was the only thing she had from her childhood. I know it was expensive, but it was important to me. It's in my will that if anything should happen to me, the piano goes to a museum, which is where I think it should have gone in the first place.

Q20
Playboy: This year you'll have your star added to the Hollywood Walk of Fame. If you could rearrange the stars, whose would you like yours to be next to?
Carey: You mean I can't move them all around? Come on! I'm going to request a reshuffling, then we can talk about it.

Source: Playboy - MariahJournal
Heroes note: Please go on MariahJournal for great scans of the magazine
Posted on February the 6th.

As she stated, it is not her fault that she looks the way she does. She didn’t choose to be biracial, or her skin's colour, as none of us did... and if her light skin is what attracts others to her, then they are the one’s with the issues, not her. 

I just hate that people act as if her being biracial was a strategic move on her part. Mariah isn't taking advantage of anything. Her sales have done nothing but decline since she became more ‘black’ (as foolishly stated in this article), but guess what... she's still doing hip-hop and R&B music a decade later even though she is criticised for it. 

And really, I bet she'd be selling loads more if she were doing conservative pop music! 

Both as a black person and fan of Mariah, it annoys and saddens me how people react to Mariah as if she's trying to be some black poser just because she has refused to conform to the stereotypes of black or white culture. 

She doesn't wear braids like Alicia Keys, she isn't a great dancer like Mya, doesn't have a big ass, etc...nor does she associate with white people exclusively or succumb to conservative standards like Celine Dion. 

Sometimes I think the skin colour thing is just a cop-out because I've seen many people who are fully black that are just as light as Mariah...one of them is my mother. 

The bigger issue is: the fact that Mariah hasn't ‘chosen’ makes people uncomfortable because they can't put her in a box. They think just because she doesn't act like a stereotypical black or white person, that she must just be using her biracial heritage to get ahead.
Posted on February the 5th.

Jeff, 35, who is single, said: "I love Mariah and listen to her over and over again, but other people obviously didn't share my musical taste.

"At the start when the landlord threatened to bar me I thought he was joking. All my mates drink there. I'm gutted. I don't want to find another local, I like this one."
The chef added: "I've tried appealing to Roy to let me back in, but he's adamant I am barred for life."

Roy, 32, of the Gordon Arms in Southampton, said: "To start with we found it amusing. I actually used to like Mariah before. But the other customers just had enough of listening to the same songs over and over again.
"I gave him plenty of warnings but he just laughed and told me the customer is always right.
"All the regulars used to whinge at him to stop, but he wouldn't listen and never put any other songs on.
"I don't care what he says now, he's not coming back into my pub."
Source: Mirror (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 5th.

Markus: "Mariah's in great shape. She works out. She's a very, very hot girl. Mariah's always sexy. She's a fashion icon."
Indrani: "She works out all the time."

Wearing a cut-out, one-piece suit, Mariah glitters in gold with every curve perfectly in place. 

Markus: "I think gold works great on Mariah, I mean, she's the golden girl."
Indrani: "That was actually our stylist. He has always found amazing things for her."

But sorry, fellas. This is as much Mariah as you're gonna get.

Source: Markus Klinko & Indrani - E! News - Mariah Journal 
Posted on February the 3rd.

Donnamour
Choose jou favourite love song on Belgian radio, click here to request a Mariah song.
Posted on February the 2nd.

The pair clashed last year when Carey - who doesn't take it all off for Playboy but still shows a Mimi-licious amount of skin - denied she'd ever had a relationship with the "Slim Shady" rapper. 

He retaliated, calling her a liar on the air and in some mighty foul lyrics on his December 2006 release, "The Re-Up." 

"I just heard something else he recently said about me," Carey says. "I'm curious as to why he's so obsessed with me. I never got an apology letter, by the way. ... Then, again, I wasn't exactly searching my mailbox for it." 
Source: New York Daily News - TMZ (All rights reserved)
Posted on February the 2nd.

The worldwide media event is projected to reach 3.5 billion people in more than 180 countries, via television, radio, internet and streaming cellular telephones. WP1, a non-profit 501(c)3 will be the recipient and beneficiary of all donor funds and contributions. WORLD PEACE 1 will showcase international musicians, dancers, drummers, acrobats, child performers, film stars, political and religious leaders, Nobel Prize winners, artists, best-selling authors, and diplomats. Live, pre-produced and interactive segments aim to inspire, empower and re-educate the people of the world... for all of us to be the difference we seek in the world. 

Among the invited artists are:
U2, Madonna, Pink Floyd, Carlos Santana, Yes, Shakira, the Rolling Stones, Earth Wind & Fire, Paul McCartney, Elton John, Sting, David Bowie, Lionel Ritchie, the Goo Goo Dolls, Aerosmith, Bruce Springsteen, The Who, Led Zeppelin, Tina Turner, The Eagles, Pearl Jam, Moby, Alanis Morissette, Phil Collins, Eminem, Wyclef Jean, Will Smith, Usher, Mary J. Blige, Jay-Z, Beyonce, Pink, Peter Gabriel, Eric Clapton, Alicia Keys, Lenny Kravitz, Janet Jackson, Baby Face, Greenday, Stevie Wonder, Chaka Khan, Patti Labelle, Aretha Franklin, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Justin Timberlake, Christina Aguilera, Celine Dion, Mariah Carey, Britney Spears, Bon Jovi, Outkast, Sarah McLachlan, Enya, Paul Simon, The Dixie Chicks, Willie Nelson, Brad Paisley, Garth Brooks, Rascal Flatts, Tricia Yearwood, Keith Urban, Shania Twain, Martina McBride, Faith Hill, Tim McGraw, Ricky Martin, Mark Antony, David Bisbal, Juanes, Luis Miguel, Olga Tanon, Alejandro Sanz, Gilberto Gil, Ivan Lins, Barbra Streisand, Bette Midler, Tony Bennett, Andrea Bocelli, Josh Groban, Autograph, Jane Zhang, David Lee, Prince Ali; and regional talent popular in many parts of the world. 

The event will take place on 11 August 2007 in Sydney, Tokyo, Seoul, Beijing, Mumbai, Moscow, Dubai, Johannesburg, Cairo, Berlin, London, Rio de Janeiro, New York, Las Vegas, Los Angeles; and other Secondary Host Cities to be announced.
Source: World Peace One - Xinhua
Posted on February the 1st.