Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel
Encyclopedia
Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel is the twelfth studio album
by American R&B
singer Mariah Carey
. It was released on September 29, 2009 through Island Records
in the U.S. and November 23, 2009 with Mercury Records
in the UK. The album was predominately produced and written by Carey, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash.
The-Dream stated that he and Carey had already begun working on her next studio album: "I think it's about just writing an album that includes the focus of all the hits that she's had. She can't take a loss; she has to do everything to the T. So it's basically like we're trying to make a greatest hits album without using the greatest hits". In February 2009, The-Dream told to MySpace Music that he and Carey had finished seven songs for the album.
In May, Carey revealed that she was calling the album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel because it was going to be "very personal and dedicated to the fans". She says that she chose to use three images for the cover art because "there are a lot of different emotions and stories revealed on this album". Carey also stated that she loves "the whole album" and she's "completely immersed in it". On June 16, Carey said on Twitter that there will be "big ballads" on the album. Carey also said that she "tried to make something for all who love Butterfly, and even older albums". For the first time in her career, Carey worked with American Grammy Award-winning hip-hop and R&B record-producer Timbaland
. They worked on a number of tracks, and although well-documented, none of them made it onto Memoirs. The reasons for which are unspecified. Another song called "Imperfect" written by Carey, dealing with societal pressure on women to "be perfect and look a certain way", also failed to make the track listing. In an interview with BET
, Carey said that she also worked with Jermaine Dupri
, however, none of his songs made the final track listing. Despite the majority of the project being written and produced by Carey, Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, the main goal was to avoid having a "redundant or stale" album.
In an interview with Elle
Carey described the sound of her new album: "Each song is its own snapshot of a moment in a story. But overall, the vibe is R&B hip-hop with a lot of slow jams. [...] Each song has its own mood; some flow seamlessly into each other, and that was the purpose, and others are very different. The album has a sense of humor, [you can hear me laughing out loud at certain points], but it also has deep and introspective moments."
, Carey revealed her inspiration and motivation for the album. "Each song tells its own story. Each one is like an intimate conversation or entry in a private diary. A lot of the songs reflect specific, different times in my life, actual events that happened to me, some of which are from way back in the past. Others were inspired by movies or from a friend of mine that may have told me their story. People can listen to it and pick out certain songs that mean something to them - women especially. It's about women's empowerment and overcoming certain things. It's fun too though. It's got a little bit of something for everybody".
Amazon.com
revealed that the physical release of the album would come as a 3-panel softpack as opposed to the usual plastic CD casing. This was due to the inclusion of two discs, the first housed the album itself whilst the second housed an enhanced CD featuring the music video for lead single "Obsessed" as well as the video for "Obsessed" (official remix featuring Gucci Mane
) and three other remixes. The packaging includes a 34-page Elle
mini-magazine which takes an exclusive in-depth look at Carey's life and career. The mini-magazine is mixed in with lyrics and other traditional liner-note materials as well as upscale ads to cut the production costs of the booklet. The ad-supported booklets — available in a digital format for downloaders — appeared in the first 1 million U.S. copies of the CD and the first 500,000 overseas.
It was also revealed that a limited edition collectors' version of the album would be released on October 20, 2009. It features the album and its bonus disc on both standard CDs
and limited edition white vinyl
LPs plus six rare lithographs, the limited edition Elle mini-magazine, a signature butterfly band and exclusively designed collector's box packaging.
". The episode aired on August 5, 2009. The album was initially pushed back from August 25 to September 15 so that more recording in the studio could take place but it was then revealed that the album was to be pushed back once more to September 29, 2009, with all promotion being delayed so that Carey can put finishing touches on the album. As per most releases, the album was released several days earlier in international territories/markets. Since then the UK release was pushed back from 24 August, to September 14, to October 5 and finally to November 16. British newspaper The Daily Mirror
, got a preview of six tracks on the album, these being "Obsessed", "Standing O", "Candy Bling", "H.A.T.E.U." (which stands for "Having A Typical Emotional Upset"), "Impossible" and a cover of Foreigner
's "I Want to Know What Love Is
". Media playbacks of these six tracks were held in Tokyo, Hong Kong, London and Berlin in August 2009.
Then in September Carey began performing at her Live At the Pearl concerts in Las Vegas
on September 10 and September 11, where she sang several of her famous hits, the first two singles from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, "Obsessed" and "I Want to Know What Love Is
" and premiering two other songs from the album, "Angels Cry" and "Up Out My Face". These were followed by appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show
on September 18, where Carey gave an interview with husband Nick Cannon
and sang "I Want to Know What Love Is". On October 5, Carey performed a concert for select contest winners at the P.C. Richard Theater in TriBeCa, New York where she sang "Obsessed", "H.A.T.E.U.", and "I Want to Know What Love Is" from the album. Also, she sang "Always Be My Baby
" and "We Belong Together
". Carey resumed her Las Vegas shows at Live At the Pearl concerts on October 9 and October 10, this time changing the setlist and performing songs which she has either not sung live this millennium or debuting live performances of songs from previous albums. Carey also sang "H.A.T.E.U.", in order to promote it as her third single, in addition to "Obsessed" and "I Want To Know What Love Is".
Carey performed "I Want To Know What Love Is" on the Italian X factor
on November 11, 2009. and then her third single "H.A.T.E.U." on the Late Show with David Letterman
on November 13, 2009. In the UK, she appeared on the Mariah Carey: T4 Special where she was interviewed, followed by a performance, on November 14, 2009 and then taped a performance of "I Want to Know What Love Is" which aired on November 22 on The X Factor
. On November 19, 2009 she was interviewed and performed on the first show of the second series of Alan Carr
's Chatty Man
as well as switching on the Christmas lights at the Westfield
shopping center in London. She then appeared on GMTV
with Lorraine Kelly
for an encore interview and performance of her album's UK lead single "I Want to Know What Love Is" and later in the week on daily entertainment show This Morning
.
with Trey Songz
before officially beginning on January 2, 2010 in Atlantic City, NJ. The tour is in support of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel and will see Carey performing songs from past and present. The tour was speculated in November but not confirmed until December by Carey's official website.
and special plans for the left over songs from the recording sessions of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, Tricky Stewart revealed to Rap Up magazine that there were plans for a remix album to be titled Angels Advocate. The album would include a Tricky Stewart remix of "I Want to Know What Love Is" as well as the remix to "Obsessed
" which features Gucci Mane
and a remix of "Inseparable" featuring Trey Songz
. Jermaine Dupri
was one of several new producers for the project and helmed the remix of "H.A.T.E.U." which samples Ghost Town DJs' "My Boo" and features rap verses from Big Boi
(of Outkast
), Gucci Mane
, and OJ da Juiceman
. It was first time since 2006's So So Def remix to "Say Somethin'" that Carey has recorded new vocals for a remix. New versions of the songs "Betcha Gon' Know (The Prologue)" and "Candy Bling" respectively featured R. Kelly
and T-Pain
. The latter also sampled a sped-up melody from Jamie Foxx
's "Blame It".
The purpose of the album was about ensuring that Memoirs appealed to more people by putting guests on 90% of the songs. Carey was also planning to collaborate with Westlife
which would have been exclusive to the UK version of the album and a future single release. Throughout the development of the project Carey regularly updated fans through her Twitter
account. She stated that there were several previously unreleased tracks from Memoirs that would appear on the project including one Dupri song and several Timbaland
songs. Swizz Beatz
was also linked to several productions for the project whilst Yahoo!
music linked Snoop Dogg
and Fabolous
to remixes. Finally a press release also confirmed contributions from Mary J. Blige
("Its a Wrap"), The-Dream
and Ludacris
("Ribbon"), Akon
, K-Ci & Jojo. It was confirmed that the missing Dupri track was actually "100%" which was recorded for the movie Precious but then released from the AT&T U.S. Winter Olympics soundtrack to raise money for the U.S. Olympics Team.
following Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009) and second remix album
following The Remixes
(2003). However Rap-Up magazine, HMV Japan
, and Carey's manager Chris Lighty all confirmed the album's cancellation due to the underwhelming performance of the Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel album. It had been slated as an exclusive iTunes Store
and Target release in the U.S. before cancellation. The "MC vs JS" album, which was scheduled for release around the same time, was also subsequently cancelled. Following the cancellation of both remix albums, it was announced that Carey would turn her attention to recording a new full length thirteenth studio album from scratch which would feature production from Jermaine Dupri
and Bryan-Michael Cox. This was later revealed to be Mariah Carey's second Christmas album, titled Merry Christmas II You
.
" was the album's lead single and premiered on June 16, 2009. It was released for digital download on July 6, 2009. The song debuted at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100
, making it Carey's highest debut on this chart since May 1998. It has since peaked at number seven giving Carey her 27th top ten hit in the US, the second among women (behind Madonna
who has 37, the most for any artist) and the fifth among all. "I Want to Know What Love Is", Carey's cover of Foreigner
's hit, was announced as the album's second single. The song premiered to European radio on August 28, 2009 and US radio on September 14, 2009. It was released to US iTunes on September 15, 2009. The song failed to climb further than number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 despite being successful on Adult Contemporary radio, reaching #10 on the AC chart. The song was more successful in Europe. It entered at number 6 in France and became the highest charting version of the song there, and reached number 16 on the European Hot 100. It also reached a peak of 3 in Japan and number 1 in Brazil "H.A.T.E.U.
" was the third single from the album. It was only released in the US. It was made available for radio airplay on November 3, 2009. The song debuted at 76 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart on October 22, 2009, over a week and a half before its official radio release.
" featuring Nicki Minaj
served as one of two lead singles from Angels Advocate. It impacted on radio from January 26, 2010 with its video release a day later through Vevo
. The song was released as a digital download
in the U.S. and Europe on February 16, 2010. It peaked at 152 in Korea, and only just managed charted in the U.S. at 100 on the Billboard Hot 100
. It fared better on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart reaching 39. "Angels Cry
" featuring Ne-Yo
is the other lead single from Angels Advocate. It officially impacted on radio from January 26, 2010 and had its video release on January 27 on Vevo
. It was released in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand and Japan on February 23, 2010. Despite being slated for release in the UK on March 29, 2010 it has not appeared on any of the major retailers' websites. It peaked at #72 in Korea, and #89 in Japan. It also reached #26 on the Adult Contemporary Songs
and number #90 on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart.
" charted on the Korean International Singles Chart at #77. "100%" was originally recorded for the soundtrack to the film Precious and then was tipped to appear on Memoirs. When it failed to appear on the final track listing it was instead released as the lead single from the AT&T Team USA 2010 Winter Olympics soundtrack to raise money for team USA. It charted on the Hot Digital Songs
chart at number 197.
, it has received an average score of 69/100 indicating generally favorable reviews, higher than her previous albums The Emancipation of Mimi
and E=MC2. Allmusic gave the album three and a half stars (out of five) and called it "her most interesting album in a decade", commenting that "Even if it doesn't smack of the confessional autobiography of the title, there's no denying that Memoirs is an album, not a collection of tracks, possessing its own flow and mood, which gives it a personality the slightly desperate E=MC2 lacked" though "it never manages to kick out a song that is all that distinctive on its own terms". Another issue pointed out was that the album lacks "the pandering, heavy-handed sexuality Mariah has relied upon too heavily this decade — and in doing so, it feels age appropriate in a way she hasn't in a long time, despite a collection of silly, jumbled lyrics". The A.V. Club
also gave the album a positive review with a grade of B-, commenting, "Their team-up with Carey is canny: Stewart and Nash loosen up the diva’s sometimes overblown on-record persona, and in return she gives definition to some of their more meandering tunes and backdrops. Memoirs is Carey’s least pyrotechnic album, its flow is as important as its tunes, and while Carey is still given to acrobatic vocal displays, her lattice of subtler vocal overdubs softens and strengthens those flights."
A mixed review came from Slant Magazine
, in which music critic Sal Cinquemani called the album "one of her most sonically consistent". However, finding the album "soulless", he noted that the aural similarity of the tracks led to the production sounding "cheap and same-y, lacking the fullness of her best work". He continues, "Mariah is in fine voice throughout the album, and there are plenty of inspired moments to be found... Which makes it all the more disappointing that the album's final stretch devolves into a mess of old-school Mariah rehashes that should have been left in the past." Entertainment Weekly
music critic Leah Greenblatt gave Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel a B, noting that the album neither impresses nor disappoints, but is merely satisfactory: "imperfections are nowhere to be found on Memoirs, but neither are many true revelations."
Jon Caramanica from The New York Times
gave the album a mixed review, writing that the album "manages simplicity and clutter all at once". Caramanica also criticized Carey's vocal performances, decrying her overuse of her softer vocal registers at the expense of her more powerful lower and mid registers: "When exactly did Mariah Carey stop singing? Even when she began flirting aggressively with hip-hop in the mid-1990s she was happy to impose her titanic vocals atop even the scrappiest production... Of late though, Ms. Carey has been whispering, as if newly scared of grand gestures." A positive review came from Billboard
music critic Mariel Concepcion, who wrote that "Mariah Carey is not only revisiting her past appearance-wise, but she's also taking her sound back to her R&B roots...Overall, Carey's throwback vibe on "Memoirs" is refreshing and much welcomed."
Year-end list entries
Awards
. It opened with first week sales of 168,000 units. The album was certified Gold on December 14, 2009 denoting shipments of over 500,000 units. The album topped the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It is the only album of her multi-decade career not to reach platinum status. In Canada the album debuted at number 5 on the Canadian Albums Chart
. The album charted at #101 in the 2009 year-end Billboard 200
albums chart. The album made one re-entry in beginning week of November 20, 2010 at #88 on the billboard 200
.In South Korea
Carey attended a press conference at the Grand InterContinental Hotel in Seoul on Tuesday (Oct. 13), where she received a plaque from Universal Korea
's CEO Yang Bum-Jun to certify that the album has reached number one and gone platinum. In Japan
the album reached #9. In the UK the album did not reach expectations peaking at number 23, in the Christmas season despite a performance on The X Factor
and visiting various morning shows. It did receive Silver certification for shipments of 60,000. It peaked at number eight on the UK R&B Albums Chart. According to Carey's label, Island/Def Jam
, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel is a worldwide multi-million seller.
Studio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
by American R&B
Contemporary R&B
Contemporary R&B is a music genre that combines elements of hip hop, soul, R&B and funk.Although the abbreviation “R&B” originates from traditional rhythm and blues music, today the term R&B is most often used to describe a style of African American music originating after the demise of disco in...
singer Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey is an American singer-songwriter, record producer, and actress. She made her recording debut with the release of her eponymous studio album in 1990, under the guidance of Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, whom she later married in 1993...
. It was released on September 29, 2009 through Island Records
Island Records
Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group...
in the U.S. and November 23, 2009 with Mercury Records
Mercury Records
Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal...
in the UK. The album was predominately produced and written by Carey, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash.
Background and production
In early 2009, singer-songwriterSinger-songwriter
Singer-songwriters are musicians who write, compose and sing their own musical material including lyrics and melodies. As opposed to contemporary popular music singers who write their own songs, the term singer-songwriter describes a distinct form of artistry, closely associated with the...
The-Dream stated that he and Carey had already begun working on her next studio album: "I think it's about just writing an album that includes the focus of all the hits that she's had. She can't take a loss; she has to do everything to the T. So it's basically like we're trying to make a greatest hits album without using the greatest hits". In February 2009, The-Dream told to MySpace Music that he and Carey had finished seven songs for the album.
In May, Carey revealed that she was calling the album Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel because it was going to be "very personal and dedicated to the fans". She says that she chose to use three images for the cover art because "there are a lot of different emotions and stories revealed on this album". Carey also stated that she loves "the whole album" and she's "completely immersed in it". On June 16, Carey said on Twitter that there will be "big ballads" on the album. Carey also said that she "tried to make something for all who love Butterfly, and even older albums". For the first time in her career, Carey worked with American Grammy Award-winning hip-hop and R&B record-producer Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
. They worked on a number of tracks, and although well-documented, none of them made it onto Memoirs. The reasons for which are unspecified. Another song called "Imperfect" written by Carey, dealing with societal pressure on women to "be perfect and look a certain way", also failed to make the track listing. In an interview with BET
Black Entertainment Television
Black Entertainment Television is an American, Viacom-owned cable network based in Washington, D.C.. Currently viewed in more than 90 million homes worldwide, it is the most prominent television network targeting young Black-American audiences. The network was launched on January 25, 1980, by its...
, Carey said that she also worked with Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
, however, none of his songs made the final track listing. Despite the majority of the project being written and produced by Carey, Tricky Stewart and The-Dream, the main goal was to avoid having a "redundant or stale" album.
In an interview with Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
Carey described the sound of her new album: "Each song is its own snapshot of a moment in a story. But overall, the vibe is R&B hip-hop with a lot of slow jams. [...] Each song has its own mood; some flow seamlessly into each other, and that was the purpose, and others are very different. The album has a sense of humor, [you can hear me laughing out loud at certain points], but it also has deep and introspective moments."
Concept and packaging
During an interview with music retailer Amazon.comAmazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
, Carey revealed her inspiration and motivation for the album. "Each song tells its own story. Each one is like an intimate conversation or entry in a private diary. A lot of the songs reflect specific, different times in my life, actual events that happened to me, some of which are from way back in the past. Others were inspired by movies or from a friend of mine that may have told me their story. People can listen to it and pick out certain songs that mean something to them - women especially. It's about women's empowerment and overcoming certain things. It's fun too though. It's got a little bit of something for everybody".
Amazon.com
Amazon.com
Amazon.com, Inc. is a multinational electronic commerce company headquartered in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is the world's largest online retailer. Amazon has separate websites for the following countries: United States, Canada, United Kingdom, Germany, France, Italy, Spain, Japan, and...
revealed that the physical release of the album would come as a 3-panel softpack as opposed to the usual plastic CD casing. This was due to the inclusion of two discs, the first housed the album itself whilst the second housed an enhanced CD featuring the music video for lead single "Obsessed" as well as the video for "Obsessed" (official remix featuring Gucci Mane
Gucci Mane
Radric Davis , better known by his stage name Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He debuted in 2005 with Trap House and followed with albums such as Hard to Kill in 2006, Trap-A-Thon and Back to the Trap House in 2007. In 2009, his second studio album The State vs. Radric Davis was released...
) and three other remixes. The packaging includes a 34-page Elle
Elle (magazine)
Elle is a worldwide magazine of French origin that focuses on women's fashion, beauty, health, and entertainment. Elle is also the world's largest fashion magazine. It was founded by Pierre Lazareff and his wife Hélène Gordon in 1945. The title, in French, means "she".-History:Elle was founded in...
mini-magazine which takes an exclusive in-depth look at Carey's life and career. The mini-magazine is mixed in with lyrics and other traditional liner-note materials as well as upscale ads to cut the production costs of the booklet. The ad-supported booklets — available in a digital format for downloaders — appeared in the first 1 million U.S. copies of the CD and the first 500,000 overseas.
It was also revealed that a limited edition collectors' version of the album would be released on October 20, 2009. It features the album and its bonus disc on both standard CDs
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
and limited edition white vinyl
Gramophone record
A gramophone record, commonly known as a phonograph record , vinyl record , or colloquially, a record, is an analog sound storage medium consisting of a flat disc with an inscribed, modulated spiral groove...
LPs plus six rare lithographs, the limited edition Elle mini-magazine, a signature butterfly band and exclusively designed collector's box packaging.
Marketing and promotion
Carey first made a promotional appearance on August 2, 2009 on Americas Got Talent, where she taped her performance of "ObsessedObsessed (song)
"Obsessed" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, taken from her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel . It was written and produced by Carey, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash, and was released as the album's lead single on June 16, 2009...
". The episode aired on August 5, 2009. The album was initially pushed back from August 25 to September 15 so that more recording in the studio could take place but it was then revealed that the album was to be pushed back once more to September 29, 2009, with all promotion being delayed so that Carey can put finishing touches on the album. As per most releases, the album was released several days earlier in international territories/markets. Since then the UK release was pushed back from 24 August, to September 14, to October 5 and finally to November 16. British newspaper The Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror
The Daily Mirror is a British national daily tabloid newspaper which was founded in 1903. Twice in its history, from 1985 to 1987, and from 1997 to 2002, the title on its masthead was changed to read simply The Mirror, which is how the paper is often referred to in popular parlance. It had an...
, got a preview of six tracks on the album, these being "Obsessed", "Standing O", "Candy Bling", "H.A.T.E.U." (which stands for "Having A Typical Emotional Upset"), "Impossible" and a cover of Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
's "I Want to Know What Love Is
I Want to Know What Love Is
"I Want to Know What Love Is" is a 1984 power ballad recorded by the British-American rock band Foreigner. The song hit #1 in both the UK and the U.S. and is the band's biggest hit...
". Media playbacks of these six tracks were held in Tokyo, Hong Kong, London and Berlin in August 2009.
Then in September Carey began performing at her Live At the Pearl concerts in Las Vegas
Las Vegas, Nevada
Las Vegas is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Nevada and is also the county seat of Clark County, Nevada. Las Vegas is an internationally renowned major resort city for gambling, shopping, and fine dining. The city bills itself as The Entertainment Capital of the World, and is famous...
on September 10 and September 11, where she sang several of her famous hits, the first two singles from Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, "Obsessed" and "I Want to Know What Love Is
I Want to Know What Love Is
"I Want to Know What Love Is" is a 1984 power ballad recorded by the British-American rock band Foreigner. The song hit #1 in both the UK and the U.S. and is the band's biggest hit...
" and premiering two other songs from the album, "Angels Cry" and "Up Out My Face". These were followed by appearing on The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show
The Oprah Winfrey Show is an American syndicated talk show hosted and produced by its namesake Oprah Winfrey. It ran nationally for 25 seasons beginning in 1986, before concluding in 2011. It is the highest-rated talk show in American television history....
on September 18, where Carey gave an interview with husband Nick Cannon
Nick Cannon
Nicholas Scott "Nick" Cannon is an American actor, comedian, rapper, entrepreneur, record producer, radio, and television personality. On television, Cannon began as a teenage sketch comedian on All That before going on to host The Nick Cannon Show, Wild 'N Out, and America's Got Talent...
and sang "I Want to Know What Love Is". On October 5, Carey performed a concert for select contest winners at the P.C. Richard Theater in TriBeCa, New York where she sang "Obsessed", "H.A.T.E.U.", and "I Want to Know What Love Is" from the album. Also, she sang "Always Be My Baby
Always Be My Baby
"Always Be My Baby" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey from her fifth studio album, Daydream. It was released by Columbia Records on March 9, 1996 as the third US single and fourth overall. The song was written by Carey, Jermaine Dupri and Manuel Seal, who also produced the song...
" and "We Belong Together
We Belong Together
"We Belong Together" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey from her tenth studio album, The Emancipation of Mimi . The song was released on March 29, 2005, through Island Records as the second single from the album. "We Belong Together" was written by Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel...
". Carey resumed her Las Vegas shows at Live At the Pearl concerts on October 9 and October 10, this time changing the setlist and performing songs which she has either not sung live this millennium or debuting live performances of songs from previous albums. Carey also sang "H.A.T.E.U.", in order to promote it as her third single, in addition to "Obsessed" and "I Want To Know What Love Is".
Carey performed "I Want To Know What Love Is" on the Italian X factor
X Factor (Italy)
X Factor is a successful TV show airing on prime time in Italy. The singing competition is the Italian version of The X Factor franchise...
on November 11, 2009. and then her third single "H.A.T.E.U." on the Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman
Late Show with David Letterman is a U.S. late-night talk show hosted by David Letterman on CBS. The show debuted on August 30, 1993, and is produced by Letterman's production company, Worldwide Pants Incorporated. The show's music director and band-leader of the house band, the CBS Orchestra, is...
on November 13, 2009. In the UK, she appeared on the Mariah Carey: T4 Special where she was interviewed, followed by a performance, on November 14, 2009 and then taped a performance of "I Want to Know What Love Is" which aired on November 22 on The X Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
. On November 19, 2009 she was interviewed and performed on the first show of the second series of Alan Carr
Alan Carr
Alan Carr is an English comedian and television personality. Born in Weymouth, he was raised in Northampton before moving to Manchester during his early 20's....
's Chatty Man
Alan Carr: Chatty Man
Alan Carr: Chatty Man is a British comedy chat show presented by comedian Alan Carr. The award-winning show is on Channel 4. The show features interviews with celebrity guests, sketches, topical chat and music....
as well as switching on the Christmas lights at the Westfield
Westfield London
Westfield London is a shopping centre in White City in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham. The centre was developed by the Westfield Group at a cost of £1.6bn,...
shopping center in London. She then appeared on GMTV
GMTV
GMTV was the national Channel 3 breakfast television contractor, broadcasting in the United Kingdom from 1 January 1993 to 3 September 2010. It became a wholly owned subsidiary of ITV plc. in November 2009. Shortly after, ITV plc announced the programme would end...
with Lorraine Kelly
Lorraine Kelly
Lorraine Kelly is a Scottish television presenter, journalist and actress, best known as a presenter for TV-am, and later GMTV and ITV Breakfast, on Lorraine.-Early life:...
for an encore interview and performance of her album's UK lead single "I Want to Know What Love Is" and later in the week on daily entertainment show This Morning
This Morning (TV series)
This Morning is a British daytime television programme broadcast on ITV. As of September 2011, its main presenters are Phillip Schofield and Holly Willoughby, and Ruth Langsford and Eamonn Holmes, with various other presenters standing in for illness or contributing to sections of the programme.The...
.
Tour
The Angels Advocate Tour in support of the album kicked off with a pre-tour show on December 31, 2009 at Madison Square GardenMadison Square Garden
Madison Square Garden, often abbreviated as MSG and known colloquially as The Garden, is a multi-purpose indoor arena in the New York City borough of Manhattan and located at 8th Avenue, between 31st and 33rd Streets, situated on top of Pennsylvania Station.Opened on February 11, 1968, it is the...
with Trey Songz
Trey Songz
Tremaine "Trey" Aldon Neverson , better known by his stage name Trey Songz, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor. His debut album, I Gotta Make It, was released in 2005, while his second album, Trey Day, was released in 2007...
before officially beginning on January 2, 2010 in Atlantic City, NJ. The tour is in support of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel and will see Carey performing songs from past and present. The tour was speculated in November but not confirmed until December by Carey's official website.
Angels Advocate
Following the announcement of the Angels Advocate TourAngels Advocate Tour
The Angels Advocate Tour is the seventh concert tour by American R&B singer Mariah Carey, in support of her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel. The tour visited North America, also Egypt, Brazil and Singapore...
and special plans for the left over songs from the recording sessions of Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel, Tricky Stewart revealed to Rap Up magazine that there were plans for a remix album to be titled Angels Advocate. The album would include a Tricky Stewart remix of "I Want to Know What Love Is" as well as the remix to "Obsessed
Obsessed (song)
"Obsessed" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, taken from her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel . It was written and produced by Carey, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash, and was released as the album's lead single on June 16, 2009...
" which features Gucci Mane
Gucci Mane
Radric Davis , better known by his stage name Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He debuted in 2005 with Trap House and followed with albums such as Hard to Kill in 2006, Trap-A-Thon and Back to the Trap House in 2007. In 2009, his second studio album The State vs. Radric Davis was released...
and a remix of "Inseparable" featuring Trey Songz
Trey Songz
Tremaine "Trey" Aldon Neverson , better known by his stage name Trey Songz, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer and actor. His debut album, I Gotta Make It, was released in 2005, while his second album, Trey Day, was released in 2007...
. Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
was one of several new producers for the project and helmed the remix of "H.A.T.E.U." which samples Ghost Town DJs' "My Boo" and features rap verses from Big Boi
Big Boi
Antwan André Patton , better known by his stage name Big Boi, is an American rapper, song-writer, record producer and actor, best known for being a member of American hip hop duo OutKast alongside André 3000. His work in the duo has produced six studio albums. During the duo's hiatus, he and André...
(of Outkast
OutKast
Outkast is an American hip hop duo based in East Point, Georgia, consisting of Atlanta native André "André 3000" Benjamin and Savannah, Georgia-born Antwan "Big Boi" Patton. They were originally known as Two Shades Deep but later changed the group's name to OutKast...
), Gucci Mane
Gucci Mane
Radric Davis , better known by his stage name Gucci Mane, is an American rapper. He debuted in 2005 with Trap House and followed with albums such as Hard to Kill in 2006, Trap-A-Thon and Back to the Trap House in 2007. In 2009, his second studio album The State vs. Radric Davis was released...
, and OJ da Juiceman
OJ da Juiceman
Otis Williams, Jr. ,better known as OJ Da Juiceman, is an American Southern Rapper and a member of 1017 Brick Squad. OJ Da Juiceman is also founder of vanity label 32 Entertainment.-Early life:Otis Williams, Jr...
. It was first time since 2006's So So Def remix to "Say Somethin'" that Carey has recorded new vocals for a remix. New versions of the songs "Betcha Gon' Know (The Prologue)" and "Candy Bling" respectively featured R. Kelly
R. Kelly
Robert Sylvester Kelly , better known by his stage name R. Kelly, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. A native of Chicago, Kelly began performing during the late 1980s and debuted in 1992 with the group Public Announcement. In 1993, Kelly went solo with the album 12 Play...
and T-Pain
T-Pain
Faheem Rasheed Najm , better known by his stage name T-Pain, is an American singer-songwriter, rapper, record producer, and actor, currently signed to Young Money Entertainment. His debut album, Rappa Ternt Sanga, was released in 2005. In 2007, T-Pain released his second studio album Epiphany,...
. The latter also sampled a sped-up melody from Jamie Foxx
Jamie Foxx
Eric Marlon Bishop , professionally known as Jamie Foxx, is an American actor, singer-songwriter, stand-up comedian, and talk radio host. As an actor, his work in the film Ray earned him the Academy Award and BAFTA Award for Best Actor as well as the Golden Globe Award for Best Actor in a...
's "Blame It".
The purpose of the album was about ensuring that Memoirs appealed to more people by putting guests on 90% of the songs. Carey was also planning to collaborate with Westlife
Westlife
Westlife are an Irish boy band established on 3 July 1998. They are to disband in 2012. The group's line-up was Nicky Byrne, Kian Egan, Mark Feehily, Shane Filan, and Brian McFadden . The group are the only act in British and Irish history to have their first seven singles peak at number one...
which would have been exclusive to the UK version of the album and a future single release. Throughout the development of the project Carey regularly updated fans through her Twitter
Twitter
Twitter is an online social networking and microblogging service that enables its users to send and read text-based posts of up to 140 characters, informally known as "tweets".Twitter was created in March 2006 by Jack Dorsey and launched that July...
account. She stated that there were several previously unreleased tracks from Memoirs that would appear on the project including one Dupri song and several Timbaland
Timbaland
Timothy Zachery Mosley , better known by his stage name Timbaland, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper....
songs. Swizz Beatz
Swizz Beatz
Kasseem Dean , better known by his stage name, Swizz Beatz, is an American record producer, DJ, rapper and painter. At the age of 17, he gained attention in the hip-hop world through his friendship with rapper DMX. Grady Spivey and rapper Cassidy helped launch his label Full Surface Records...
was also linked to several productions for the project whilst Yahoo!
Yahoo!
Yahoo! Inc. is an American multinational internet corporation headquartered in Sunnyvale, California, United States. The company is perhaps best known for its web portal, search engine , Yahoo! Directory, Yahoo! Mail, Yahoo! News, Yahoo! Groups, Yahoo! Answers, advertising, online mapping ,...
music linked Snoop Dogg
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus, Jr. , better known by his stage name Snoop Dogg, is an American rapper, record producer, and actor. Snoop is best known as a rapper in the West Coast hip hop scene, and for being one of Dr. Dre's most notable protégés. Snoop Dogg was a Crip gang member while in high school...
and Fabolous
Fabolous
John David Jackson , better known by his stage name Fabolous, is an American rapper of African American and Dominican descent. He grew up in the Bedford-Stuyvesant neighborhood of Brooklyn, New York. Part of his early popularity arose from his hit single "Can't Deny It" in 2001, from his debut...
to remixes. Finally a press release also confirmed contributions from Mary J. Blige
Mary J. Blige
Mary Jane Blige is an American singer-songwriter, record producer and occasional actress. She is a recipient of nine Grammy Awards and four American Music Awards, and has recorded eight multi-platinum albums. She is the only artist with Grammy Award wins in Pop, Rap, Gospel, and R&B. Blige has...
("Its a Wrap"), The-Dream
The-Dream
Terius Youngdell Nash , better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. He is known for co-writing "Umbrella" for Rihanna and "Single Ladies " for Beyoncé, as well as for his three solo albums, Love Hate, Love vs...
and Ludacris
Ludacris
Christopher Brian Bridges , better known by his stage name Ludacris, is an American rapper and actor. Along with his manager, Chaka Zulu, Ludacris is the co-founder of Disturbing tha Peace, an imprint distributed by Def Jam Recordings...
("Ribbon"), Akon
Akon
Aliaune Damala Badara Thiam, better known as simply Akon , is a Senegalese American R&B recording artist and songwriter.According to Forbes, Akon grossed $21 million in 2010, $20 million in 2009 and $12 million in 2008. He rose to prominence in 2004 following the release of "Locked Up", the first...
, K-Ci & Jojo. It was confirmed that the missing Dupri track was actually "100%" which was recorded for the movie Precious but then released from the AT&T U.S. Winter Olympics soundtrack to raise money for the U.S. Olympics Team.
Cancellation
Angels Advocate had been confirmed for release on March 29, 2010 in Poland and the Philippines, March 30 in the United States, March 31 in Japan as both a deluxe and standard edition, and in the UK on April 26, 2010. Had it been released it would have been Carey's thirteenth studio albumStudio album
A studio album is an album made up of tracks recorded in the controlled environment of a recording studio. A studio album contains newly written and recorded or previously unreleased or remixed material, distinguishing itself from a compilation or reissue album of previously recorded material, or...
following Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel (2009) and second remix album
Remix album
A remix album is an album consisting mostly of remixes or re-recorded versions of a music artists' earlier released material.One of the earliest remix albums was 1971's Aerial Pandemonium Ballet by Harry Nilsson, which was released by Nilsson after the successes of Everybody's Talkin and The Point!...
following The Remixes
The Remixes (Mariah Carey album)
The Remixes is the first remix album by American singer Mariah Carey, released in the United States on October 14, 2003 by Columbia Records...
(2003). However Rap-Up magazine, HMV Japan
HMV Group
HMV is a British global entertainment retail chain and is the largest of its kind in the United Kingdom and Ireland. The company also operates in Hong Kong and Singapore. It is listed on the London Stock Exchange and is a constituent of the FTSE Fledgling Index...
, and Carey's manager Chris Lighty all confirmed the album's cancellation due to the underwhelming performance of the Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel album. It had been slated as an exclusive iTunes Store
ITunes Store
The iTunes Store is a software-based online digital media store operated by Apple. Opening as the iTunes Music Store on April 28, 2003, with over 200,000 items to purchase, it is, as of April 2008, the number-one music vendor in the United States...
and Target release in the U.S. before cancellation. The "MC vs JS" album, which was scheduled for release around the same time, was also subsequently cancelled. Following the cancellation of both remix albums, it was announced that Carey would turn her attention to recording a new full length thirteenth studio album from scratch which would feature production from Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri
Jermaine Dupri Mauldin , known as Jermaine Dupri or JD, is an American record producer, songwriter and rapper.- Early life and career :...
and Bryan-Michael Cox. This was later revealed to be Mariah Carey's second Christmas album, titled Merry Christmas II You
Merry Christmas II You
Merry Christmas II You is the thirteenth studio album and second Christmas album by American singer Mariah Carey. The album was released on November 2, 2010 and features four original songs, all-time Christmas classics and a re-recorded version of her 1994 Christmas hit "All I Want for Christmas Is...
.
Singles
"ObsessedObsessed (song)
"Obsessed" is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, taken from her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel . It was written and produced by Carey, Christopher "Tricky" Stewart and Terius "The-Dream" Nash, and was released as the album's lead single on June 16, 2009...
" was the album's lead single and premiered on June 16, 2009. It was released for digital download on July 6, 2009. The song debuted at number eleven on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
, making it Carey's highest debut on this chart since May 1998. It has since peaked at number seven giving Carey her 27th top ten hit in the US, the second among women (behind Madonna
Madonna (entertainer)
Madonna is an American singer-songwriter, actress and entrepreneur. Born in Bay City, Michigan, she moved to New York City in 1977 to pursue a career in modern dance. After performing in the music groups Breakfast Club and Emmy, she released her debut album in 1983...
who has 37, the most for any artist) and the fifth among all. "I Want to Know What Love Is", Carey's cover of Foreigner
Foreigner (band)
Foreigner is a British-American rock band, originally formed in 1976 by veteran English musicians Mick Jones and ex-King Crimson member Ian McDonald along with American vocalist Lou Gramm...
's hit, was announced as the album's second single. The song premiered to European radio on August 28, 2009 and US radio on September 14, 2009. It was released to US iTunes on September 15, 2009. The song failed to climb further than number 60 on the Billboard Hot 100 despite being successful on Adult Contemporary radio, reaching #10 on the AC chart. The song was more successful in Europe. It entered at number 6 in France and became the highest charting version of the song there, and reached number 16 on the European Hot 100. It also reached a peak of 3 in Japan and number 1 in Brazil "H.A.T.E.U.
H.A.T.E.U.
"H.A.T.E.U." is a song by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey, taken from her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel . It was written and produced by Carey, along with Terius "The-Dream" Nash and Christopher "Tricky" Stewart...
" was the third single from the album. It was only released in the US. It was made available for radio airplay on November 3, 2009. The song debuted at 76 on the Hot R&B/Hip-Hop Songs chart on October 22, 2009, over a week and a half before its official radio release.
Angels Advocate remix singles
"Up Out My FaceUp Out My Face
"Up Out My Face" is a song performed by American R&B singer Mariah Carey. Written by Carey, Terius Nash, Christopher Stewart the song features on her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel...
" featuring Nicki Minaj
Nicki Minaj
Onika Tanya Maraj , better known by her stage name Nicki Minaj; ), is a Trinidadian-born American recording artist...
served as one of two lead singles from Angels Advocate. It impacted on radio from January 26, 2010 with its video release a day later through Vevo
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
. The song was released as a digital download
Music download
A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment...
in the U.S. and Europe on February 16, 2010. It peaked at 152 in Korea, and only just managed charted in the U.S. at 100 on the Billboard Hot 100
Billboard Hot 100
The Billboard Hot 100 is the United States music industry standard singles popularity chart issued weekly by Billboard magazine. Chart rankings are based on radio play and sales; the tracking-week for sales begins on Monday and ends on Sunday, while the radio play tracking-week runs from Wednesday...
. It fared better on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart reaching 39. "Angels Cry
Angels Cry (song)
"Angels Cry" is a song performed by American R&B singer Mariah Carey. Written by Carey, Christopher Stewart, Crystal Johnson, James Wright the song features on her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel...
" featuring Ne-Yo
Ne-Yo
Shaffer Chimere Smith, Jr. , better known by his stage name Ne-Yo, is an American pop and R&B singer-songwriter, record producer, dancer and actor. Beginning his career as a songwriter, Ne-Yo penned the hit "Let Me Love You" for singer Mario...
is the other lead single from Angels Advocate. It officially impacted on radio from January 26, 2010 and had its video release on January 27 on Vevo
Vevo
Vevo is a music video website. It is a joint venture among Sony Music Entertainment, Universal Music Group, and Abu Dhabi Media with EMI licensing its content to the group without taking an ownership stake. The service was launched officially on December 8, 2009...
. It was released in the U.S., Australia, New Zealand and Japan on February 23, 2010. Despite being slated for release in the UK on March 29, 2010 it has not appeared on any of the major retailers' websites. It peaked at #72 in Korea, and #89 in Japan. It also reached #26 on the Adult Contemporary Songs
Hot Adult Contemporary Tracks
The Adult Contemporary chart is a weekly chart published in Billboard magazine that lists the most popular songs on adult contemporary and "lite-pop" radio stations in the United States...
and number #90 on the Hot R&B/Hip Hop Songs chart.
Other notable songs
"Angels CryAngels Cry (song)
"Angels Cry" is a song performed by American R&B singer Mariah Carey. Written by Carey, Christopher Stewart, Crystal Johnson, James Wright the song features on her twelfth studio album, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel...
" charted on the Korean International Singles Chart at #77. "100%" was originally recorded for the soundtrack to the film Precious and then was tipped to appear on Memoirs. When it failed to appear on the final track listing it was instead released as the lead single from the AT&T Team USA 2010 Winter Olympics soundtrack to raise money for team USA. It charted on the Hot Digital Songs
Hot Digital Songs
The Hot Digital Songs chart ranks the best-selling digital singles in the United States, according to Billboard.Beginning in February 2005, digital sales have been incorporated into many of Billboards music single charts. It was decided to do so mainly because of the dramatic rise in popularity of...
chart at number 197.
Critical reception
The album has received generally favorable reviews from music critics. According to the music review aggregater MetacriticMetacritic
Metacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...
, it has received an average score of 69/100 indicating generally favorable reviews, higher than her previous albums The Emancipation of Mimi
The Emancipation of Mimi
The Emancipation of Mimi is the tenth studio album by American recording artist Mariah Carey, released in the United States on April 12, 2005, by Island Records. Following the relatively poor critical and commercial responses to her albums, Glitter and Charmbracelet , The Emancipation of Mimi...
and E=MC2. Allmusic gave the album three and a half stars (out of five) and called it "her most interesting album in a decade", commenting that "Even if it doesn't smack of the confessional autobiography of the title, there's no denying that Memoirs is an album, not a collection of tracks, possessing its own flow and mood, which gives it a personality the slightly desperate E=MC2 lacked" though "it never manages to kick out a song that is all that distinctive on its own terms". Another issue pointed out was that the album lacks "the pandering, heavy-handed sexuality Mariah has relied upon too heavily this decade — and in doing so, it feels age appropriate in a way she hasn't in a long time, despite a collection of silly, jumbled lyrics". The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club
The A.V. Club is an entertainment newspaper and website published by The Onion. Its features include reviews of new films, music, television, books, games and DVDs, as well as interviews and other regular offerings examining both new and classic media and other elements of pop culture. Unlike its...
also gave the album a positive review with a grade of B-, commenting, "Their team-up with Carey is canny: Stewart and Nash loosen up the diva’s sometimes overblown on-record persona, and in return she gives definition to some of their more meandering tunes and backdrops. Memoirs is Carey’s least pyrotechnic album, its flow is as important as its tunes, and while Carey is still given to acrobatic vocal displays, her lattice of subtler vocal overdubs softens and strengthens those flights."
A mixed review came from Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine
Slant Magazine is an online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York Film Festival.- History :...
, in which music critic Sal Cinquemani called the album "one of her most sonically consistent". However, finding the album "soulless", he noted that the aural similarity of the tracks led to the production sounding "cheap and same-y, lacking the fullness of her best work". He continues, "Mariah is in fine voice throughout the album, and there are plenty of inspired moments to be found... Which makes it all the more disappointing that the album's final stretch devolves into a mess of old-school Mariah rehashes that should have been left in the past." Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly
Entertainment Weekly is an American magazine, published by the Time division of Time Warner, that covers film, television, music, broadway theatre, books and popular culture...
music critic Leah Greenblatt gave Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel a B, noting that the album neither impresses nor disappoints, but is merely satisfactory: "imperfections are nowhere to be found on Memoirs, but neither are many true revelations."
Jon Caramanica from The New York Times
The New York Times
The New York Times is an American daily newspaper founded and continuously published in New York City since 1851. The New York Times has won 106 Pulitzer Prizes, the most of any news organization...
gave the album a mixed review, writing that the album "manages simplicity and clutter all at once". Caramanica also criticized Carey's vocal performances, decrying her overuse of her softer vocal registers at the expense of her more powerful lower and mid registers: "When exactly did Mariah Carey stop singing? Even when she began flirting aggressively with hip-hop in the mid-1990s she was happy to impose her titanic vocals atop even the scrappiest production... Of late though, Ms. Carey has been whispering, as if newly scared of grand gestures." A positive review came from Billboard
Billboard (magazine)
Billboard is a weekly American magazine devoted to the music industry, and is one of the oldest trade magazines in the world. It maintains several internationally recognized music charts that track the most popular songs and albums in various categories on a weekly basis...
music critic Mariel Concepcion, who wrote that "Mariah Carey is not only revisiting her past appearance-wise, but she's also taking her sound back to her R&B roots...Overall, Carey's throwback vibe on "Memoirs" is refreshing and much welcomed."
Year-end list entries
- 4th – Nekesa Mumbi Moody, Associated PressAssociated PressThe Associated Press is an American news agency. The AP is a cooperative owned by its contributing newspapers, radio and television stations in the United States, which both contribute stories to the AP and use material written by its staff journalists...
Awards
| Year | Region | Award | Category | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2010 | United States | NAACP Image Awards | Outstanding Album |
Commercial performance
The album debuted in the US at number three on the Billboard 200Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
. It opened with first week sales of 168,000 units. The album was certified Gold on December 14, 2009 denoting shipments of over 500,000 units. The album topped the R&B/Hip-Hop Albums chart. It is the only album of her multi-decade career not to reach platinum status. In Canada the album debuted at number 5 on the Canadian Albums Chart
Canadian Albums Chart
The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS...
. The album charted at #101 in the 2009 year-end Billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
albums chart. The album made one re-entry in beginning week of November 20, 2010 at #88 on the billboard 200
Billboard 200
The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists...
.In South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
Carey attended a press conference at the Grand InterContinental Hotel in Seoul on Tuesday (Oct. 13), where she received a plaque from Universal Korea
Universal Music Group
Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations...
's CEO Yang Bum-Jun to certify that the album has reached number one and gone platinum. In Japan
Japan
Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south...
the album reached #9. In the UK the album did not reach expectations peaking at number 23, in the Christmas season despite a performance on The X Factor
The X Factor (UK)
The X Factor is a British television music competition to find new singing talent. Created by Simon Cowell, it began in September 2004 and is contested by aspiring singers drawn from public auditions. It is the originator of the international X Factor franchise. The seven series of the show to date...
and visiting various morning shows. It did receive Silver certification for shipments of 60,000. It peaked at number eight on the UK R&B Albums Chart. According to Carey's label, Island/Def Jam
The Island Def Jam Music Group
The Island Def Jam Motown Music Group, formerly The Island Def Jam Music Group, is an umbrella label formed in 1999 when Universal Music Group merged two of its daughter companies, Island Records and Def Jam Recordings, to create a label group. In 2011, Motown Records was split from the Universal...
, Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel is a worldwide multi-million seller.
Track listing
Sample credits- Track four, "Candy Bling", contains a sample of "Back in the DayBack in the Day (Ahmad song)"Back in the Day" is a 1994 West Coast hip hop single by Ahmad. Released when Ahmad was only 18, the song is a nostalgic remembrance of childhood and young teenage years, from a somewhat jaded adult perspective...
", written by Ahmad LewisAhmad (rapper)Ahmad Ali Lewis, who was born October 12, 1975 , in Los Angeles, California, is an American emcee. Credited simply as Ahmad, he is best known for the 1994 single "Back in the Day," a nostalgic song that became a signifier for nostalgia in hip-hop culture.Ahmad is also a member of the Christian hip...
, Stefan Gordy and John KlemmerJohn KlemmerJohn Klemmer is an American saxophonist, composer, song writer and arranger.He was born in Chicago, Illinois and began playing guitar at age 5 and alto saxophone at age 11. His other early interests included graphics and visual art, writing, dance, puppetry, painting, sculpting and poetry...
. - Track six, "Inseparable", interpolates "Time After TimeTime after Time (Cyndi Lauper song)"Time After Time" is a song by American singer Cyndi Lauper, released as the second single from her album She's So Unusual. It reached number one on the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart on June 9, 1984, and remained there for two weeks...
", written by Robert HymanRob HymanRobert Andrew "Rob" Hyman is an American singer, songwriter, keyboard player, accordion player, producer, arranger and recording studio owner, best known for being a founding member of the rock band The Hooters.-Early life:Hyman started taking piano lessons at the age of four and grew up playing...
and Cyndi LauperCyndi LauperCynthia Ann Stephanie "Cyndi" Lauper is an American singer, songwriter, actress and LGBT rights activist. She achieved success in the mid-1980s with the release of the album She's So Unusual and became the first female singer to have four top-five singles released from one album...
. - Track eight, "It's a Wrap", recreates elements of "I Belong to YouI Belong to You (Love Unlimited song)I Belong To You is a 1974 single by trio Love Unlimited, which was their only single to go to number one on the R&B chart and did so, for one week, in early 1975. It was their second and last Top 40 entry, peaking at number twenty-seven. The ballad was done in a retro girl group singing style and...
" by The Love Unlimited OrchestraThe Love Unlimited OrchestraThe Love Unlimited Orchestra, formed by American R&B/soul musician, Barry White, was a 40-piece string-laden orchestra that served as a backing unit for White and female vocal trio Love Unlimited. From the mid 1970s on, they also recorded several albums under their own name.Their biggest hit...
, written by Barry WhiteBarry WhiteBarry White, born Barry Eugene Carter , was an American composer and singer-songwriter.A five-time Grammy Award-winner known for his distinctive bass voice and romantic image, White's greatest success came in the 1970s as a solo singer and with the Love Unlimited Orchestra, crafting many enduring...
. - Track eleven "More Than Just Friends", samples "One More Chance" / "Stay with Me (Remix)", written by Sean CombsSean CombsSean John Combs , also known by his stage names Diddy and P. Diddy, is an American rapper, singer, record producer, actor, and entrepreneur. He has won three Grammy Awards and two MTV Video Music Awards, and his clothing line earned a Council of Fashion Designers of America award. He was originally...
, Chris WallaceThe Notorious B.I.G.Christopher George Latore Wallace , best known as The Notorious B.I.G., was an American rapper. He was also known as Biggie Smalls , Big Poppa, and The Black Frank White .Wallace was raised in the Brooklyn borough...
, Rashad Smith, Mark DeBargeMark DeBargeMark "Marty" DeBarge is an American R&B/soul singer-songwriter, trumpeter and flugelhorn player best known for his work as member of 1980s Motown singing family group DeBarge...
and Etterlene Jordan. - Tracks twelve "The Impossible, and thirteen "The Impossible (The Reprise)", contain interpolations of "Forever My LadyForever My Lady (song)"Forever My Lady" is a song by American R&B group Jodeci from their debut album Forever My Lady . The song was the second single released in promotion for the album in August of 1991. "Forever My Lady" was the first of five number one R&B hits for the group, spending three weeks at number-one on...
" written by Albert BrownAl B. Sure!Albert Jason Brown III is an American singer, songwriter, and record producer. He grew up in Leonia, New Jersey and Mount Vernon, New York. During the late 1980s under the stage name Al B...
and Donald DeGrateDeVante SwingDonald Earle DeGrate, Jr. , better known by his stage name DeVante Swing, is an American record producer, singer, rapper and songwriter. Swing rose to fame in the 1990s as the founding member of the trendsetting R&B group Jodeci, one of the more popular R&B acts of its time...
.
Personnel
- Tara Bryan – A&R administration
- Kristofer Buckle – make-up
- Mariah Carey – executive producerExecutive producerAn executive producer is a producer who is not involved in any technical aspects of the film making or music process, but who is still responsible for the overall production...
, vocal, producerRecord producerA record producer is an individual working within the music industry, whose job is to oversee and manage the recording of an artist's music...
, writerWriterA writer is a person who produces literature, such as novels, short stories, plays, screenplays, poetry, or other literary art. Skilled writers are able to use language to portray ideas and images.... - Carol Corless – package production
- Jaycen-Joshua Fowler – mixing
- Brian Gardner – mastering
- Karen Kwak – A&R
- Scott Marcus – management, A&R coordination
- Terius "The-DreamThe-DreamTerius Youngdell Nash , better known by his stage name The-Dream, is an American singer-songwriter and record producer. He is known for co-writing "Umbrella" for Rihanna and "Single Ladies " for Beyoncé, as well as for his three solo albums, Love Hate, Love vs...
" Nash – producer, writer - Oribe – hair
- Dave Pensando – mixing
- Antonio "L.A." Reid – co-executive producer,
- Garrett Schaeffer – product manager
- Christopher "Tricky Stewart"Christopher Stewart (music producer)Christopher "Tricky" Stewart is an American songwriter, music producer, music publisher, executive producer, recording industry executive and recording studio owner. In a career spanning 16 years, Stewart, at the helm of his company RedZone Entertainment, is responsible for over 25 million...
– producer, writer, organOrgan (music)The organ , is a keyboard instrument of one or more divisions, each played with its own keyboard operated either with the hands or with the feet. The organ is a relatively old musical instrument in the Western musical tradition, dating from the time of Ctesibius of Alexandria who is credited with...
, keyboardKeyboard instrumentA keyboard instrument is a musical instrument which is played using a musical keyboard. The most common of these is the piano. Other widely used keyboard instruments include organs of various types as well as other mechanical, electromechanical and electronic instruments... - Phil Tan – mixing
- Michael Thompson – design photography
- Andy West – art direction and design
- James "Big Jim" Wright – organ, keyboards, producer, writer
- Kristen Yiengst – art and photography coordination
- Management: Maroon Entertainment, Violator Management, Wong Management
- Mastered at: Bernie Grundman Mastering, Los Angeles, CA
- Sample clearances: Deborah Mannis-Gardner for DMG Clearances, Inc.
- Legal: Allen Grubman, Joe Brenner & Sonya Guardo
- Business management: Ron Nash & Rosemarie Passerino
- Business affairs: Michael Seltzer, Antoinette Trotman, Ian Allen
Charts
| Chart (2009) | Peak Position |
|---|---|
| Australian Albums Chart ARIA Charts The ARIA charts are the main Australian music sales charts, issued weekly by the Australian Recording Industry Association. The charts are a record of the highest selling singles and albums in various genres in Australia. ARIA commenced compiling its own charts in-house from the week ending 26 June... |
6 |
| Austrian Albums Chart | 39 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Flanders) |
44 |
| Belgian Albums Chart Ultratop Ultratop is an organization which generates and publishes the official record charts in Belgium, and it is also the name of most of those charts... (Wallonia) |
24 |
| Canadian Albums Chart Canadian Albums Chart The Canadian Albums Chart is the official album sales chart in Canada. It is compiled every Wednesday by U.S.-based music sales tracking company Nielsen Soundscan, and published every Thursday by Jam! Canoe and Billboard, along with its sister charts the Canadian Singles Chart and the Canadian BDS... |
5 |
| Czech Albums Chart | 27 |
| Danish Albums Chart Tracklisten Tracklisten is a Danish top 40 record chart that is presented every Thursday midnight at .The weekly Danish Singles Chart also known as Track Top-40 combines the 40 best selling tracks from legal music downloads and the sales of music singles on either CD or vinyl... |
5 |
| Dutch Albums Chart MegaCharts MegaCharts is responsible for the composition and exploitation of a broad collection of official charts in the Netherlands, of which the Mega Top 50 and the Mega Album Top 100 are the most known ones. Mega Charts also provides information to the Stichting Nederlandse Top 40, of which the Dutch Top... |
26 |
| French Albums Chart Syndicat National de l'Edition Phonographique The Syndicat national de l'édition phonographique is the inter-professional organization which protects the interests of the French record industry... |
10 |
| German Albums Chart Media Control Charts The official music charts in Germany are gathered and published by the company Media Control GfK International on behalf of Bundesverband Musikindustrie... |
27 |
| Hungarian Albums Chart Mahasz Mahasz is the Hungarian music industry association, founded in 1992. Mahasz hands out the Hungarian Music Awards and maintains the music charts for Hungary.... |
32 |
| Italian Albums Chart Federation of the Italian Music Industry The Federation of the Italian Music Industry is an umbrella organization that keeps track of virtually all aspects of the music recording industry in Italy.... |
17 |
| Japanese Albums Chart Oricon , established in 1999, is the holding company at the head of a Japanese corporate group that supplies statistics and information on music and the music industry in Japan. It started as , which was founded by Sōkō Koike in November 1967 and became known for its music charts. Oricon Inc... |
9 |
| Mexican Albums Chart | 49 |
| New Zealand Albums Chart Recording Industry Association of New Zealand The Recording Industry Association of New Zealand is a non-profit trade association of record producers, distributors and recording artists who sell music in New Zealand... |
25 |
| Spanish Albums Chart | 23 |
| Swedish Albums Chart Sverigetopplistan Sverigetopplistan, earlier known as Topplistan and Hitlistan and other names, is since October 2007 the Swedish national record chart, based on sales data from Swedish Recording Industry Association .... |
44 |
| Swiss Albums Chart Swiss Music Charts The Swiss Music Charts are Switzerland's main music sales charts. The charts are a record of the highest-selling singles and albums in various genres in Switzerland.The Swiss Charts include:* Singles Top 75... |
18 |
| UK Albums Chart UK Albums Chart The UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart... |
23 |
| UK R&B Albums Chart UK R&B Chart The Official UK R&B Chart is a forty-position R&B/Hip-Hop chart compiled by The Official UK Charts Company. Although the chart does not receive any airplay, its compilation is viewed on BBC Radio 1's website and publications such as ChartsPlus and Music Week... |
8 |
| U.S. Billboard 200 Billboard 200 The Billboard 200 is a ranking of the 200 highest-selling music albums and EPs in the United States, published weekly by Billboard magazine. It is frequently used to convey the popularity of an artist or groups of artists... |
3 |
| U.S. R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums is a chart published by Billboard magazine that ranks R&B and hip hop albums based on sales compiled by Nielsen SoundScan. The name of the chart was changed from Top R&B Albums in 1999... |
1 |
Certifications
| Region (Provider) | Certification Music recording sales certification Music recording sales certification is a system of certifying that a music recording has shipped or sold a certain number of copies, where the threshold quantity varies by type and by nation or territory .Almost all countries follow variations of the RIAA certification categories,... (sales thresholds) |
|---|---|
| Brazil (ABPD) | Gold |
| South Korea (IFPI) | Platinum |
| United Kingdom (BPI British Phonographic Industry The British Phonographic Industry is the British record industry's trade association.-Structure:Its membership comprises hundreds of music companies including all four "major" record companies , associate members such as manufacturers and distributors, and hundreds of independent music companies... ) |
Silver |
| United States (RIAA Recording Industry Association of America The Recording Industry Association of America is a trade organization that represents the recording industry distributors in the United States... ) |
Gold |
Release history
| Country | Date | Format | Label | Catalogue |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hong Kong | September 28, 2009 | Standard edition (CD Compact Disc The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,... , digital Music download A music download is the transferral of music from an Internet-facing computer or website to a user's local computer. This term encompasses both legal downloads and downloads of copyright material without permission or payment... ) |
Universal Music Universal Music Group Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations... |
2720462 |
| Philippines | MCA Music MCA Records MCA Records was an American-based record company owned by MCA Inc., which later gave way to the larger MCA Music Entertainment Group , of which MCA Records was still part. MCA Records was absorbed by Geffen Records in 2003... |
|||
| United States | September 29, 2009 | Island Records Island Records Island Records is a record label that was founded by Chris Blackwell in Jamaica. It was based in the United Kingdom for many years and is now owned by Universal Music Group... |
602527133652 | |
| Canada | Universal Music Universal Music Group Universal Music Group is an American music group, the largest of the "big four" record companies by its commanding market share and its multitude of global operations... |
B001322602 | ||
| Taiwan | 2720462 | |||
| Denmark | September 30, 2009 | 060252720462 | ||
| Finland | ||||
| Sweden | ||||
| Netherlands | October 2, 2009 | |||
| Norway | ||||
| Germany | ||||
| Italy | ||||
| Australia | ||||
| Japan | October 3, 2009 | UICL9079 | ||
| France | October 5, 2009 | 060252720462 | ||
| Brazil | October 24, 2009 | 602527205489 | ||
| United States | October 27, 2009 | Collectors edition (box set) | Island Records | 602527142166 |
| Poland | November 3, 2009 | Standard edition (CD, Digital) | Universal Music | 060252720462 |
| United Kingdom | November 22, 2009 | Standard edition (Digital) | Mercury Records Mercury Records Mercury Records is a record label operating as a standalone company in the UK and as part of the Island Def Jam Motown Music Group in the US; both are subsidiaries of Universal Music Group. There is also a Mercury Records in Australia, which is a local artist and repertoire division of Universal... |
060252715927 |
| November 23, 2009 | Standard edition (CD) | 060252721461 | ||
| Ireland | 060252720462 |
External links
- MariahCarey.com — Mariah Carey's official website
- Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel at MetacriticMetacriticMetacritic.com is a website that collates reviews of music albums, games, movies, TV shows and DVDs. For each product, a numerical score from each review is obtained and the total is averaged. An excerpt of each review is provided along with a hyperlink to the source. Three colour codes of Green,...