Mariah Carey was born on March 27, 1969, on Long Island, New York, to Patricia Hickey, of Irish-American descent, and Alfred Roy Carey, of African-American and Venezuelan ancestry. She attended Greenlawn's Harborfields High School.
Mariah Carey made her debut in June 1990 with her self-titled album, which entered at #73 but reached #1 on August 4, 1990. Her debut album went multi-platinum and spawned four consecutive #1 singles: "Vision of Love," "Love Takes Time," "Someday," and "I Don't Wanna Cry," earning her Grammy Awards for Best New Artist and Best Female Vocalist.
Her 1993 album Music Box went ten-times platinum, and on September 30, 1995, she made music history with her single "Fantasy" from her 1995 Daydream album, which debuted at #1 on the Billboard Hot 100, making her the first female artist to accomplish a number one debut in the U.S.
Mariah Carey's other Daydream single "One Sweet Day" remained at the top of the charts for 16 weeks. She is the only artist since The Beatles to have so many #1 singles and albums.
With "Heartbreaker," the first single from her 1999 album Rainbow, she became the only artist to top the charts in each year of the 1990s, and with "Heartbreaker" at its 60th week atop the Billboard's charts, she pushed ahead of The Beatles's 59-week record as the only artist with the most cumulative weeks spent atop Billboard's Hot 100 Singles chart.
Following "Heartbreaker," her second single "Thank God I Found You" from her Rainbow album became her 15th #1. "We Belong Together" from her 2005 album The Emancipation of Mimi became her 16th #1 single and was also her first #1 without any guest artists since her song "My All" (also a #1 single) captured the top spot in May 1998.
The single "Don't Forget About Us" also from her 2005 album Emancipation of Mimi became her 17th #1 single, tying her with Elvis Presley's 17 #1 singles. Three more Grammy Awards were gained from The Emancipation of Mimi album.
She is the most successful selling female artist in music history and is the only female artist to have the most #1 singles and albums and also holds the record for straight #1 singles and albums each year. Along with numerous awards and incredible vocal range, she also composes all of her own material, with the exception of song covers.
In April 2008, the single "Touch My Body" became her 18th #1 single, pushing her ahead of Elvis Presley's 17 #1 singles. Now she is the only artist since The Beatles to have as many number one singles and the only singer alive likely to succeed them.
