MARIA CAREY: THE LATEST INTERVIEW ON HER NEW CD

Mariah Carey - Tim Etheridge
July 14, 2005, 1:02:18 Mariah Carey - stunningly beautiful, hugely talented, the most successful female recording artist, often described as a diva,yet Mariah Carey remains intensely private. Femalefirst takes a close look at Mariah Carey in this exclusive special feature...

Mariah Carey is set to storm the UK charts this week with her new single 'We Belong Together' as her popularity and place in the world of celebrity soars to new levels.

Every day Mariah's reported diva demands and alleged outrageous behaviour is splashed across newspapers the world over, yet still she remains one of the most popular singers of all time.

The second hit from her new album 'The Emancipation of Mimi' has already seen her top America's single chart for the past two weeks. The album is clearly a deeply personal album for Mariah, both in its title and her need for it to be successful after she has endured a tough few years both personally and professionally.

The sexy singer has recently asked fans to call her by the nickname Mimi. She explained: "Mimi is a very personal nickname only used by those closest to me. It's just one of those little things that I've kept for myself in an attempt to have some delineation between a public persona and a private life."

But now Mariah has revealed her personal nickname in a bid to show fans the 'real' her. She said in a message posted on her website: "I am letting my guard down and inviting my fans to be that much closer to me. Most importantly, I am celebrating the fact that I've grown into a person and artist who no longer feels imprisoned by my insecurities or compelled to try and live up to someone else's vision of 'Mariah Carey.' I now feel I can honestly say, 'This is me, the real me, take it or leave it.'" The album's title, with its reference to Mariah's personal freedom hints that her troubles extricating herself from her marriage to Sony boss Tommy Mottola and record deals with Sony and Virgin are firmly behind her. Some critics may have struggled to sympathise with a singer who received a reported £15.5 million payoff from Virgin.

However, if she had fulfilled that contract she would have allegedly received three times the cash from Virgin, who dropped her like a hot potato after both the film and album entitled 'Glitter' flopped in 2001. The following year's 'Charmbracelet' did nothing to dispel the idea that Carey's career was now on an unstoppable downward spiral, like it's predecessor it was panned by critics and ignored by fans. But three years on and the pop princess appears to have made a remarkable comeback, sales are up, fans and critics are happy again. The 'The Emancipation of Mimi' has dance tunes, mid tempo and slow jams to fit every mood, lyrically it is a superb album. Mariah's voice is a pleasure to listen to, as she is now following a simpler singing style rather than trying to hit a ridiculous number of notes whenever she opens her mouth. Mariah confirms: "I no longer feel the pressure to bring the house down from the first note."

The New York born singer has endured a rough few years personally, she was treated for exhaustion after the 'Glitter' debacle and since her divorce has made it absolutely clear that her marriage to a domineering father-figure 20 years her senior, Sony record boss Tommy Mottola, was little short of hellish.

At times she has likened the relationship to imprisonment. The pop diva explained how their weekend trips to the country town of Hillsdale made her feel bored and trapped.

Mariah said: "Tommy loved it. He was very much like, 'Let's go stare at the foliage'. After a while though, I got to calling it Hills-jail. After that first three-and-a-half-hour ride in the car, when the radio station stops about an hour into the journey we would make every Thursday." And the 35-year-old revealed that the mismatched couple could not even agree on musical taste.

She added: "I would want to put on my Wu-Tang Clan CD and he would want to listen to Frank Sinatra."

In the past the pop babe has gone even further confessing her marriage almost killed her, saying the shackles of being married to the millionaire almost pushed her over the edge.

She said: "People think I've had this fairy-tale life. That I met this rich prince who put me in a mansion and made me a star. It wasn't that way. In fact it almost killed me."

The diva said although she lived in the lap of luxury the relationship was emotionally abusive. "I was in a beautiful house, surrounded by beautiful things, but I couldn't be who I really was. There were moments when I thought I was going to die in this relationship."

But the sexy star says the 2001 breakdown helped to get her back on track. She said: "It forced me to put the breaks on everything and admit my life wasn't working. I had to revaluate myself and get re-centred." Mariah's new work is taking her career back to the heights of the nineties and she it looks like she is ready to start dating again.

The curvy singer invited Robbie Williams on a dinner date after he impressed her with his show-stopping Live 8 performance.

However her insensitive demands for water onstage at Live 8 brought her image as a demanding diva into a sharp focus.

The star never travels without a huge wardrobe and extensive entourage, she is famed for outrageous riders at her shows. Earlier this year Mariah infuriated organisers at an award ceremony in London by holding up the show for 90 minutes because of a broken fingernail.

She later confirmed her diva status by getting staff at her hotel to roll out a red carpet accompanied by lit candles for her arrival at 2am. However, Mariah says she is happy to be called a diva as long as the context is right.

She said: "Well, my mother was an opera singer so I'm comfortable with the old-fashioned meaning of the world diva. And if somebody said you were the cupcake diva of Manhattan, that would be OK too."

But the pop princess was at pains to point out her reputation for tantrums is undeserved.

She added: "I'm not like this hysterical woman - I promise you!"

D FOR DAKOVA

I have met the controversial Nigerian Fashion designer Dakova who is in a class of his own. I met him twice and I was inspired to compose a poem in his honour. Then, I was promoting some up coming Nigerian models. But, comically Dakova made fun of two of them. And he still considered them. But, some of the girls told me that Dakova wanted to see them topless. And they did not like that. Dakova said, "I will only look at them to see whether they are upright or dangling. Because, all my models must have upright boobs.I will not touch them." The girls said, Dakova should have assigned a female associate to do such a sensitive inspection for him and that would be fine. But, for Dakova to see them topless would be a violation of their privacy.

I found the whole episode very funny. Dakova wanted to see my favourite darling topless! She refused. I mean there are special assets a lady should reserve for only the eyes of her husband or future husband. Imagine if Dakova has sampled the topless views of my beloved what he would be saying behind her back. Your guess is as good as mine.

Here is a speacial report on Dakova.
DAKOVA faults Face Of Africa show- Says event must change the lives of our girls
South Africa

One of Nigeria’s most gifted designers, David Kolawole Vaughan, aka DAKOVA, who represented West Africa as a judge in the recently held Face Of Africa, sponsored by cell phone giant Nokia in Sun City, South Africa is up in arms fighting the cause of the very object of the pageant, pretty goddesses of Africa. The models
“I have followed this event for quite a while now, and it pains me that our ladies just represent the various countries of Africa and go back home empty handed”, a rueful DAKOVA told Saturday Sun in South Africa.

In his estimation, it makes no sense that all the young, pretty and most appropriately stunning ladies from Africa will come/attend the Face of Africa and go home empty handed.

Speaking at the end of the event, Dakova postulated that the event is one that can easily be likened to the World Cup of football, and like the World Cup; every player that attends the event always see their lives changed for the better.

“Now tell me, why should our girls attend this event and come home dry and empty with only the first top three winners taking all the glory? I have seen parents whose girls represent their country hoping that their daughter will come home and change the lives of their home front.

“But it is sad. This is not usually the case, My idea is that any girl that represents her country in the event should return home and see her life changing for the better. If you look back to what Oluchi did at the event during its debut, you should have clear insight about what I’m talking about.

“First it was Oluchi,then Bevinda of Namibia then the South Africa queen Nombuleleo, now after many years of staging this event, what hope is there left for the other girls? Situation whereby the girls that didn’t win any top prize go home empty handed is nothing but hypocritical and for the event to live up to expectations, I have proposed that something should be done for all the girls that come all the way from their countries to represent them at the grand finale. That they be compensated with both monetary incentive and moral incentives.

Return to poverty
It is not out of nothing that Dakova is championing this new campaign. He has had an unpleasant encounter. Hear him: “I was recently in Ghana and I saw the girl that took the second position when Oluchi took the crown. You won’t believe what I saw, she was languishing in the City of Accra, under normal circumstances. Her life ought to have changed for good with the goodwill that ought to have followed her paticipation at the maiden edition of the M-Net Face of Africa”, and finishing as runner up.

Dakova says this “brings us to the much talked about glory that we are talking about. That ought to be the same story that we should be talking of the Nigerian girls that followed Oluchi on her way to glory (i.e. Uri Jones and Ayo Balogun). Now I ask loudly: where are they? While Oluchi is still enjoying that glory the others while away in slumber”. And determined to see that his proposal sees the light of the day, Dakova says he has succeeded in making his point clear to the new sponsors of the event,Nokia and for them to succeed where M-Net did not, there is the highest level of need to make a change.

Dakova as judge
Speaking of his choice as a judge in the event and the voice of Africa on the high table at the beautiful town of Sun City, Dakova says when his name was mentioned as a judge, he saw tears unknowingly running down his cheeks.
“That means, all I have been doing all these years, my efforts have not gone in vain. The invitation that was sent to me to be a judge says I was nominated to represent West Africa because of all the efforts I have committed to the fashion and style market in Africa. To me, what this means is that my involvement in the needle/thread business is not in any way in vain.

Eyes on South Africa.
Speaking on his dream for the much hyped South African market, Dakova says having visited here for quite a while and having staged a couple of shows, he now feels it is high time a satellite shop is opened here in the heart of South Africa..

“Any designer, or in fact any business name, worth his salt will be deceiving himself or herself without a base in South Africa, because the place has come to be seen as the capital of Africa. It boast of opportunity for all, it is easily the New York of Africa, and not ready to play second fiddle, I think its high time Dakova comes in here”, he divulged.

However he was so humble to say that he has no alternative than to wait for God’s voice before hitting the Rainbow town because of the many options that is available for him here.

“I have a lot of people I cloth in Johannesburg, but one visit to Capetown saw me falling in love with the diverse nature of the tourist city … and I see my label making a very huge impact here; I see the town as lacking the brand of cloths I make, I was carried away when I went shopping and people stop me on the way saying they love what I do; unknown to them that is my life, designing is my life.

The design of politics
Beyond designing outfits, Dakova has another well known interest: politics. “Let it be known that though I design for a living, I have not given up my dreams of politics”, he told Saturday Sun.

“I still believe I am the right man to make Lagos what it is and in future I will bid to be chosen as the Lagos State Governor. This might sound funny but that is what I saw in my dream, and I’m sure one day God will make me the Governor of one of the biggest cities in Africa. I believe my recent appointment as the Special Adviser to the Honorable Minister of Work, is the beginning of my entry into politics all over again. So to put it straight, Dakova is not about fashion alone, but also about politics” says the needle and thread king.

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