Mariah Carey (album)

Mariah Carey is the debut studio album by American singer Mariah Carey. It was released on June 12, 1990, by Columbia Records. Its music incorporates a range of contemporary genres with a mix of slow ballads and up-tempo tracks. Originally, she wrote four songs with Ben Margulies, which solely constituted her demo tape. After Carey was signed to Columbia, all four songs, after being altered and partially re-recorded, made the final cut for the album. Aside from Margulies, Carey worked with a range of professional writers and producers, including Rhett Lawrence, Ric Wake and Narada Michael Walden, all of whom were hired by then-Columbia Chief executive officer (CEO), Tommy Mottola.

Mariah Carey received generally positive reviews, with critics praising Carey's vocal performance and technique, but were ambivalent towards the songwriting. It became a commercial success, topping the US Billboard 200 for eleven consecutive weeks. Mariah Carey was certified nine-times platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), denoting shipments of nine million copies in the US. The album experienced similar success in Canada, where it topped the charts and was certified seven-times platinum. Mariah Carey fared well in other worldwide territories, reaching the top ten of charts in Australia, the Netherlands, New Zealand, Norway, Sweden and the UK. Worldwide, the album has sold more than 15 million copies.

Five singles were released from the album, four of which reached number-one on the US Billboard Hot 100. Her debut single, "Vision of Love" was chosen as the album's lead single, topping the charts in Canada, New Zealand and the US. The song was critically lauded, and is regarded as one of the greatest debut singles by a female artist. With the following three singles, "Love Takes Time", "Someday" and "I Don't Wanna Cry" reaching number one in the US, Carey became the first artist since the Jackson 5 to have their first four singles top the charts in the United States.