Mariah Carey — Butterfly
On her sixth studio album, Mariah Carey took control over her own career and successfully blended R&B and Hip-Hop to create what many, including Mariah, view as her best album and her magnum opus.
Mariah Carey with ex-husband Tommy Mottola
During the 1990s, Mariah Carey quickly became a household pop sensation. Before the release of “Butterfly”, Mariah already had 11 number one singles and three number ones albums under her belt. Though it came at a cost, as Mariah wasn’t able to artistically express herself. Her career was more controlled by her record label, Columbia, and the label’s parent company, Sony Music. Additionally, Carey’s career was perhaps also steered by the head of Sony Music, Tommy Motolla, who also happened to be Mariah’s husband at the time. “Daydream”, the album that came out prior to “Butterfly”, was the first glimpse of Mariah choosing what she wanted for her album. A singer who was introduced as Pop singer, Mariah took a left turn and shocked her label by opting for Wu-Tang Clan member, Ol’ Dirty Bastard, to be featured on the remix of her number one single “Fantasy”. It was Mariah’s first real push into the Hip-Hop world and what an introduction it was.
If the label thought that the ODB feature was just a one off moment and Mariah would go back to doing what they wanted, they were sadly mistaken. As Mariah took it another level, for her sixth LP she opted to work with producers from the likes of The Trackmasters, Stevie J and Q-Tip. Mariah dipped her toes into the Hip-Hop world even more and it didn’t stop at just the producers. Similar to previous singles, such as “Fantasy” and “Always Be My Baby”, the album’s first and biggest single, “Honey”, came along with Hip-Hop remixes. There was the So So Def remix, featuring Jermaine Dupri and Da Brat, however the best one was the Bad Boys remix that featured The Lox and Mase.
The Trackmasters, Tone (left) and Poke (right), have produced for the likes of Nas, Jay-Z and Biggie.
In addition, the album’s third single “Breakdown” features Bone Thugs-n-Harmony members Krazie Bone and Wish Bone; a soulful ballad where Mariah sings from the perspective of someone who is masking her pain from a heartbreak. It’s a fantastic and underrated record in Mariah’s catalogue, with both Krazie and Wish Bone vocally fitting well next to Mariah. “Breakdown” marked the first time that Mariah originally featured a Hip-Hop act on her album, prior to that they were only featured on remixes.
The album is one of Mariah’s best produced albums, the blend of Hip-Hop and R&B sonically fits so well. This is shown in one of my personal favourites off the album, “The Roof”. Poke and Tone from The Trackmasters sample Mobb Deep’s classic “Shook Ones Pt. II”, sampling one of the grimiest singles in Hip-Hop history and making it work for Mariah who at that point was seen as a Pop singer is remarkable. The track is about Mariah’s romantic encounter with a man on a roof top and the memory of the encounter continues to stay with her. Along with being a well produced track, it’s also incredibly well written.
Vocally, Mariah is known to be one of the greatest singers of all time, and the biggest reason for that, is that her ability to hit high notes is second to none. However I personally think her soulful ballads where she sings in a lower and relaxed tone are just as amazing, and this is shown throughout the album, with tracks such as the ones mentioned prior, and also tracks such as “Fourth of July” and “The Beautiful Ones” which is a Prince cover and features Dru Hill.
“Butterfly” is one of the most important R&B albums of the 1990s, similar to Janet Jackson’s “The Velvet Rope” and Mary J Blige’s first three albums, Mariah embraced Hip-Hop and showed loved to the genre and supported it. She went against the powers of her label to collaborate with artists that they disagreed with, and artistically went towards a direction that they were afraid of. Her label essentially tried to ruin the album by limiting the release of singles, such as “The Roof” and “Breakdown”. However, against all odds and the high powers of people like her husband; Mariah finally broke free and gave an album that she wanted, and it happened to be her best work. For these reasons, Mariah should be heavily respected and championed.