50 Things You Probably Didn't Know about Mariah Carey

With hits such as "Vision of Love" and "I Don't Wanna Cry," pop diva Mariah Carey holds the record for most No. 1 debuts in Billboard Hot 100 history. Find out 50 interesting things you probably didn't know about this award-winning singer and diva.

1. She was clearly born to sing! Carey was named after "They Call The Wind Mariah," a song from the musical "Paint Your Wagon."

2. Her full name is Mariah Angela Carey. She was born in Huntington, New York, on March 27, 1970, to an Irish-American mother Patricia Hickey and an African American/Venezuelan father Alfred Roy Carey.

3. Her mother was a mezzo-soprano New York City opera singer and a freelance vocal coach; whereas, her father was an aeronautical engineer.

4. One day Carey, shocked her mother by imitating her singing opera. She was two years old and had her first voice lessons at age 4.

5. Her family was target for their multiracial roots - people would burn crosses on their lawn, poison their dogs, their car was blown up, and a shot fired through the kitchen window while they were eating dinner.

6. Mirage was her high school nickname because she cut class so often.

7. Before hitting it big, she worked a number of odd jobs to support herself, including hat/coat-checker, hostess, hair sweeper in hairdressing salons, and waitress.

8. Carey studied cosmetology in Manhattan.

9. Mariah Carey started out as a backup singer for Brenda K. Starr.

10. Her big break came when one of her demo tapes got into the hands of Sony Music executive Tommy Mottola. She got a contract with Columbia Records, and released her self-titled debut album in 1990.

11. Her debut record earned her two Grammy Awards.
12. Her godmother is R&B icon Patti LaBelle.
    

13. Some music critics say Mariah sang one of the highest notes ever produced by a human voice during a performance of "Emotions" at the 1991 MTV Music Video Awards.

14. Her first marriage was to the president of Columbia Records (Tommy Mottola) in 1993 but they divorced in 1998. She became vegetarian while she was married to him.

15. She was then romantically linked to singer Luis Miguel.

16. In 1994, Carey released her holiday album Merry Christmas has sold over 15 million copies worldwide, and is the best-selling Christmas album of all time.

17. "All I Want For Christmas is You," is the second Christmas song to bear that title. Vince Vance & The Valiants' released a popular song called "All I Want For Christmas is You" in 1989, but Carey's song bears no similarities with their Christmas country staple.

18. She sang back up on Babyface's 1997 hit "Every Time I Close My Eyes."

19. Mariah has her own personal limo for her dog, jack russell terrier, Jack.

20. She has a five octave range, which is two octaves higher than normal soprano.

21. Her song with Boys II Men, "One Sweet Day" holds the record for being the longest running number one song in history after spending 16 weeks on the Billboard 100.

22. She bought Marilyn Monroe's white baby grand piano for $662,500.

23. She left Columbia in 2000 and signed a $100 million recording contract with Virgin Records.

24. Her 2001 movie "Glitter"earned her the Razzie Award for "Worst Actress" for her role.

25. 2001 was a difficult year for the singer. According to her publicist at the time, Carey had issues with exhaustion due to her hectic schedule and she experienced a short period of hospitalization.

26. Her song Obsessed is directed at Eminem. He claimed the two had a sexual relationship, although she denied it and said they just spent time together.

27. She signed a contract with shaving company Gillette to head their "Legs Of A Goddess" advertisement campaign which then prompted her to insure her legs for $1 billion.

28. Her musical influences among others are Aretha Franklin, Whitney Houston, Janet Jackson, Gladys Knight, Minnie Riperton and Stevie Wonder.

29. Mariah Carey graced the cover of the March 2007 "Sex & Music" issue of PlayBoy in a swimsuit. Mariah refused to do any nudity in any of the pictures.

30. She has more number one hit singles than Elvis Presley. The Beatles are the only artists ahead of her in that category.

31. Cary met actor/comedian Nick Cannon while they were shooting a music video for "Bye Bye", on an island off the coast of Antigua. They got married shortly after in a private ceremony at her private estate on Windermere Island in The Bahamas. When asked about their 11-year age gap by Oprah, Mariah said "Age ain't nothing but a number."

32. She became pregnant shortly after they married but unfortunately had a miscarriage. She did not share this personal information until 2010 when they announced she was pregnant with twins.

33. Mariah and Nick welcomed Monroe and Moroccan Cannon via c-section in April 2011.

34. After giving birth, she signed up to become the global ambassador for Jenny Craig and she claims to have lost 70 pounds (32kg) om the program.

35. Her favorite actor / actress is James Dean and Marilyn Monroe which inspired her daughters name, Monroe Cannon. Meanwhile, their son Moroccan Scott was named after the location in which Cannon proposed to Carey in her Moroccan-style room and Scott is Cannon's middle name.

36. Dembabies is the website they use to share photos of their adorable children.

37. Carey always labels her albums, videos, photographs, and clothing with butterflies.

38. She writes, co-writes, produces and co-produces her own songs, including all of her number one hits, except her cover of "I'll Be There."

39. Mariah has worked with a range of musicians, as Brian McKnight, Whitney Houston, Boyz II Men, Jay-Z, Snoop Dogg, Cam-ron, Carole King, Celine Dion, Michael Jackson, 98 Degrees, Joe, Da Brat, Missy Elliott, Aretha Franklin, Shania Twain, Miguel, Nicki Minaj and many more.

40. She is the most successful selling female artist in music history and is the only female artist to have straight #1 singles and albums.

41. Mariah has a host of awards including 5 Grammy Awards, 18 World Music Awards, 10 American Music Awards, 32 Billboard Music Awards and a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.

42. Of all of her No. 1 hits, 2005′s "We Belong Together" spent the most time at the top of the charts with a 14-week run.

43. With 18 Billboard Hot 100 chart-toppers, Mariah holds the record for the most No. 1s by a female artist.

44. Her favorite place to relax is either at a beach or at an amusement park.

45. She is a practicing Episcopalian Christian.

46. Carey fans are known as her "Lambily. According to the Lambily website, Mariah started calling her loved ones, friends, and fans "lambs" in 2000.

47. Mariah Carey's net worth is $510 million.

48. Mariah loves swimming and water aerobics.

49. Referred to as the "songbird supreme" by the Guinness World Records, she is famed for her vocal range, power, melismatic style and signature use of the whistle register.

50. She works with the Fresh Air Fund that enables inner-city youth to embrace the arts and introduces them to career opportunities. She is the co-founder of a camp located in Fishkill, New York and set up Camp Mariah.

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