| Thursday 22 December 2005 |
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Press release
Performer and songwriter Mariah Carey, whose 5x-platinum Island Records album The Emancipation Of Mimi generated 8 Grammy nominations, earns her 17th #1 career single this week for "Don't Forget About Us" - to tie one of the most enduring chart records in Billboard Hot 100 history, Elvis Presley's 17 #1's, it was announced today by Antonio "L.A." Reid, Chairman, Island Def Jam Music Group.
The news arrives in the wake of another historic announcement - that Mariah will be the first live performer on Times Square in the 34-year history of ABC Television's "New Year's Rockin' Eve" spectacular, when she takes the stage next Saturday night, December 31st. The broadcast marks the welcome return of host Dick Clark to the show he pioneered.
Both announcements follow up Monday night's Radio Music Awards, at which Mariah was honored with the Legend Award and was named Artist of the Year/Urban and Rhythmic Radio, in addition to "We Belong Together" winning both Song of the Year/Main Stream Hit Radio and Song of the Year/Urban and Rhythmic Radio.
Meanwhile, with "Don't Forget About Us" in its first week at the top, Mariah now logs 76 total career weeks at #1, which ranks second only to Presley's 79 weeks. And she is now positioned as the only active recording artist in the 47 years of the Hot 100 with the potential to match or surpass the Beatles' all-time high 20 #1 hits.
With a total weekly radio audience over 145 million, "Don't Forget About Us" - written and produced by Mariah and Jermaine Dupri - is Mariah's third consecutive #1 with total audience airplay, following "We Belong Together" and "Shake It Off". "Don't Forget About Us", her 10th overall #1 R&B hit since 1990, hits #1 on the R&R (Radio & Records) Mediabase Rhythmic chart and #1 on the Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Monitor - which now ties Mariah with an all-time high of 5 #1's for a female on the Monitor. At the same time, the song debuts at #1 on the Digital chart, after last week's Internet retail roll-out made it available as a digital download for the first time. Five different remixes of the tune, each one exclusive to a separate digital retailer - iTunes, MSN Music, Napster, Real/Rhapsody, and Yahoo! Music Engine - contributed to the single's surge to #1.
The Emancipation Of Mimi has sold more than 8 million copies world wide, bringing Mariah's career sales over 160 million units world wide. Mimi generated Grammy Award nominations across the board in several areas, including the General Field (Record Of the Year and Song of the Year for "We Belong Together", and Album Of the Year), and the Pop Field (Best Female Pop Vocal Performance for "It's Like That"). In the R&B Field, "We Belong Together" was nominated for Best Female R&B Vocal Performance and Best R&B Song, "Mine Again" was nominated for Best Traditional R&B Vocal Performance, and Mimi was nominated for Best Contemporary R&B Album. Grammy winners will be announced on Wednesday, February 8, 2006, at Staples Center in Los Angeles, broad cast on the CBS television network (and around the world), 8:00-11:30 p.m. (EST/PST).
Mariah's Grammy Awards nominations follow her string of wins over the past month, starting at the 33rd annual American Music Awards (where was voted Favorite Soul/Rhythm & Blues Female Artist by the 20,000 record-buyers whose votes determine the winners); followed by the 3rd annual VIBE Awards, where Mariah won for Artist Of The Year, Album Of The Year, R&B Voice Of The Year, and Best R&B Song for "We Belong Together", the most awards won by any individual artist this year. At the 2005 Billboard Music Awards, Mariah was named Top R&B Singles Artist-Female, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Artist-Female, Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Artist-Female, and Top Overall Albums Artist-Female, with "We Belong Together" named the #1 Hot 100 Single Of the Year.
Ultra Platinum Edition (which arrived in stores November 15th), the expanded new configuration, stays inside the top 10 on the pop and R&B charts in its 36th week out. Ultra Platinum Edition recaps all 14 tracks on The Emancipation Of Mimi and adds four new tracks: "Don't Forget About Us", "So Lonely (One and Only Part 2)", Mariah's collaboration with Twista (with a new extra verse written by Mariah); the remix of "We Belong Together" featuring Jadakiss and Styles P. (previously only available digitally online); and "Making It Last All Night (What It Do)", featuring Jermaine Dupri.
Ultra Platinum Edition is also available as a special deluxe limited edition two-disc (CD + DVD) package. The exclusive DVD contains full-length video clips for "It's Like That", "We Belong Together", "Shake It Off", and "Get Your Number" (featuring Jermaine Dupri, making its U.S. debut here); a never-before-seen interview - "Mariah: In Her Own Words", plus a link to access the brand new video for "Don't Forget About Us". (MariahCarey.com)
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