On the last day of the year, 2016 claimed its final victim, Cabot Phillips wrote on Twitter: Mariah Carey’s career. The tweet was among a number of jokes that began to crop up after the singer’s New Year’s Eve performance, during which alleged technical problems led to Carey roaming the stage, occasionally addressing the audience, while pre-recorded vocal tracks played in the background.
Carey opened the show with a brief, but powerfully sung “Auld Lang Syne.”
During the second song of the performance, “Emotions,” something went wrong, leaving Carey uncertain while walking back and forth across the stage, at times attempting to perform, but for the most part not singing at all.
Carey, who had intended to lip-sync throughout the performance, claims she was unable to hear the pre-recorded music because of a broken earpiece and other malfunctioning equipment. Dick Clark Productions has denied any equipment problems, and several critics have dismissed Carey’s claims as the singer’s inability to take accountability for a bad performance.
Behind the memes and witty Twitter criticisms is a concept that isn’t new, but is becoming increasingly prevalent. As a whole, the American entertainment consumer has little empathy for aging stars.
Between the cold temperatures and the sheer number of people in the audience, it made sense for Carey to plan on lip-syncing for the event. Beyond that, it may not be as easy for Mariah Carey to sing like she used to. A New York Times blog explained that as humans grow older, their voices change. For women, this often means developing a deeper voice due to atrophy of the vocal chords over time, and not even the stunning pop diva can avoid the effects that aging has on the body.
That’s not to insinuate Carey has lost her five-octave vocal range, but that it’s likely much harder for the pop star to hit the more challenging notes in songs she first recorded in her 20s without a little help.
This is a woman who has had an exceptional career. Her debut album had four chart-topping singles. Her 1995 hit with Boyz II Men, “One Sweet Day,” remains the longest-running No. 1 song in US chart history. She was honored as the world’s best-selling recording artist of the ‘90s and named the best-selling female artist of the millennium in 2000. Mariah Carey has also won five Grammy Awards, 19 World Music Awards, 11 American Music Awards and 14 Billboard Music Awards.
Mariah Carey’s New Year’s Eve performance contained little of the sultry prowess of the performances that first launched her into stardom in the ‘90s. To put it plainly, it was bad. But she’s also a mother of two in her mid-forties trying to keep up with an ever-evolving music industry.
Whether the equipment malfunctioned or Carey was having an off day, she handled the situation with considerable composure. She still worked to fulfill her role as a performer by encouraging the audience to become engaged in the performance and participate by singing the lyrics themselves. She attempted to dance and work the stage, rather than just storming off of it. She put on a brave face and decided not to run from a situation that she was clearly frustrated by.
Despite this, internet users showed little mercy for the star.
Very few know what it’s like to stand in front of millions of people on live television, wearing little clothing in the freezing cold, and perform under the expectation that they’re 20 years younger. It’s no easy task for young artists whose careers are just beginning, and yet, we like to pretend like we could have done better at 46 years old.
After 20 years of a strong music career, Mariah Carey deserves better.
Corrin Bond can be reached at [email protected]