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What makes a Mariah Carey song so hard to sing? a THREAD
Mariah Carey is renowned for being one of the greatest vocalists of all time. Her songs are also known for being almost impossible to sing, but what exactly makes her songs so challenging?
1. Melisma
Mariah’s vocal agility is off the charts. She can effortlessly slide from note to note at a lightning quick speed, and very rarely does she go off pitch while doing so. She’s also demonstrated phenomenal agility in every register. Yep, every single register.
Mariah’s vocal agility is off the charts. She can effortlessly slide from note to note at a lightning quick speed, and very rarely does she go off pitch while doing so. She’s also demonstrated phenomenal agility in every register. Yep, every single register.
Here she is sprinting through her whistle register in a performance of Joy To The World in 2013!
And here she is running through both her chest and head voice (or falsetto, we’ll chat about that later) in a performance of Vision of Love at MSG in 1995!
Finally, here’s an example of predominately chesty melismas employed in her Vision of Love performance at GMA in 1990.
2. Vocal Range
Mariah’s vocal range is HUGE, we know this (Eb2-Bb5-Eb6-B7). Obviously this is going to make a lot of her songs quite difficult to sing. However, many don’t realise that if we take the whistle register out of the equation, her range is still... well, huge.
Mariah’s vocal range is HUGE, we know this (Eb2-Bb5-Eb6-B7). Obviously this is going to make a lot of her songs quite difficult to sing. However, many don’t realise that if we take the whistle register out of the equation, her range is still... well, huge.
Let’s use Emotions as an example. Yes, there’s a *lot* of whistle register employed in this song, but we’re gonna just put that aside for now. This song requires one to consistently belt within the E5-G5 range which shouldn’t be impossible for a trained soprano.
However, the song *also* extends all the way down to a C3, which is difficult for many sopranos to support. Vision of Love is also a prime example of this, extending down to Eb3 and up to a G5 belt. Not the easiest range to support, which brings me to #3...
3. Lower Register
Mariah can go really, really low. She *can* support below Eb3 (I think she’s supported as low as B2), however here she gets a bit inconsistent. Let’s say you want to sing My All. Have fun sustaining that B2! Melt Away? Again, good luck with that B2!
Mariah can go really, really low. She *can* support below Eb3 (I think she’s supported as low as B2), however here she gets a bit inconsistent. Let’s say you want to sing My All. Have fun sustaining that B2! Melt Away? Again, good luck with that B2!
I Don’t Wanna Cry? Yeah, there’s a C#3 in that. Thank God I Found You? D3. What about a more recent song, like Giving Me Life! Oop, a C3’s lurking in there too. Do *not* underestimate Mariah’s lower register. These notes are not easy to support.
4. Falsetto
Now, there is some controversy surrounding the use of the term ‘falsetto’ for female vocalists, but I consider Mariah’s ‘breathy’ vocals to be falsetto (disconnected head voice). Now, excessive breathiness dries out the vocal cords like you would not believe.
Now, there is some controversy surrounding the use of the term ‘falsetto’ for female vocalists, but I consider Mariah’s ‘breathy’ vocals to be falsetto (disconnected head voice). Now, excessive breathiness dries out the vocal cords like you would not believe.
Some have speculated that Mariah’s supposed ‘decline’ in vocal quality within her chest range is due to excessive breathiness (which is another conversation entirely). So, you wanna sing Outside. Good luck singing in your head range a majority of the time!
Mariah’s breathy falsetto also extends quite low. Here she extends down to an A3 during an impromptu performance with fans after filming a Jimmy Fallon segment in 2013!
5. Whistle Register
Probably the most obvious vocal obstacle within her discography is her whistle register. Sis can really whistle all the way up to a B7. However, most of her whistle notes are within the sixth or lower-to-mid seventh octave.
Probably the most obvious vocal obstacle within her discography is her whistle register. Sis can really whistle all the way up to a B7. However, most of her whistle notes are within the sixth or lower-to-mid seventh octave.
Let’s have a look at some of Mariah’s biggest hits that include whistle notes. Emotions (undoubtedly her most iconic display of her whistle register) incorporates multiple arpeggios within the whistle register that extend all the way up to E7. Have fun with that!
Someday requires one to transition into the whistle register from chest voice, peaking at B6 (the very edge of the sixth octave). Mariah makes it look easy but it’s not. Here’s a clip of her transitioning into whistle register while performing Someday at the Tatto Club in 1990.
Vision of Love incorporates a C7 whistle in the background (which you can avoid while performing this song if you absolutely must). Dreamlover opens with an impressive run in the whistle register, beginning at C7 and fluttering down to a F6... impressive stuff!
Can’t Let Go concludes with a beautiful ensemble of whistle notes, which go as follows; F#6-Bb6-B6-Bb6-G#6-Eb6-F#6-Eb6-C#6-B5. This is excluding the harmonies on top of this, which peak at B7.
Here is a video by THI HILLS Music that showcases her whistle range on this song.
6. Transitions
Finally, we have Mariah’s ability to transition seamlessly between registers that really exacerbates the difficulty of her songs vocally. She can transition through multiple registers in one single breath; nothing is beyond her capabilities in this department!
Finally, we have Mariah’s ability to transition seamlessly between registers that really exacerbates the difficulty of her songs vocally. She can transition through multiple registers in one single breath; nothing is beyond her capabilities in this department!
Here she is transitioning effortlessly into whistle register from chest voice during a SNL rehearsal performance of Vanishing in 1990.
Here she is transitioning from chest voice to head voice to whistle register in less than two seconds in I Wish You Knew from TEOM. Legendary.
And here she is seamlessly transitioning through chest voice and falsetto in her performance of Vision of Live at MSG in 1995, which we saw earlier on.
So yeah, all these factors combined make Mariah Carey not only one of the greatest vocalists of all time, but her discography one of the most vocally challenging of all time.
Thanks everyone for all the support! I’m really proud of this thread. I have *another* thread I just posted (that I’ll hopefully be updating regularly) discussing Mariah Carey songs that are deceptively difficult to sing. https://twitter.com/mariconcarey/status/1292240142598410240
