We’ve been waiting for this one sweet day: Mariah Carey is coming back to Dubai, 13 years after her last concert in the city.
The best-selling female artist of all time will perform at the 15th Emirates Airline Dubai Jazz Festival at Dubai Media City Amphitheatre on February 23, one day before Latin pop prince Enrique Iglesias.
“It is such an honour to have one of the world’s most remarkable music icons, Mariah Carey, perform on the stage of Dubai Jazz Festival,” said Anthony Younes, CEO of Chillout Productions.
At 46, Carey has the most No 1 singles — 18 — of any solo artist in history, including Touch My Body, Hero, We Belong Together and Always Be My Baby.
FEBRUARY 26, 2004: FIRST TIME IN DUBAI
The last time she performed here, it was before she emancipated Mimi. Back then, she was still known as MC. It was the final date of her Charmbracelet World Tour, which had taken her across three continents.
In true diva fashion, she was half an hour late to Dubai Media City Amphitheatre. But she was forgiven her tardiness — tame compared to Justin Bieber’s two-hour delay in 2013 — when, in a shimmery, two-piece silver number, she belted out the hits. The show obviously focused on Charmbracelet, her ninth out of 14 studio albums, but it also made time for Honey, Always Be My Baby, and even a cover of I’ll Be There by the Jackson Five. Not one for fancy choreography, her cross-stage struts and muscular bod put us to shame.
RE-RE-REWIND
The night before, at a press conference, Carey was in perfect early noughties form: curly hair, a tank top and low-riding flared jeans paired with open-toed wedges. But if you still can’t visualise how long ago 2004 is, here’s a list of the Top 40 Billboard hits the day MC was here:
1. Usher ft. Lil John & Ludacris – Yeah!
2. Twist ft. Kanye, Jamie Foxx – Slow Jamz
3. OutKast ft. Sleepy Brown – The Way You Move
4. Beyonce – Me, Myself And I
5. OutKast – Hey Ya!
6. Chingy ft. J Weav – One Call Away
7. Cassidy ft. R Kelly – Hotel
8. J-Kwon – Tipsy
9. Ruben Studdard – Sorry
10. Alicia Keys – You Don’t Know My Name
11. Ying Yang Twins ft. Lil John & The East Side Boyz – Salt Shaker
12. Linkin Park – Numb
13. Nickelback – Someday
14. Ludacris – Splash Waterfalls
15. Kanye West – Through the Wire
16. Eamon – I Don’t Want You Back
17. 3 Doors Down – Here Without You
18. Britney Spears – Toxic
19. Jessica Simpson – With You
20. Jay-Z – Dirt Off Your Shoulder
21. Sheryl Crow - The First Cut Is The Deepest
22. Evanescence - My Immortal
23. No Doubt - It’s My Life
24. Dido – White Flag
25. Baby Bash ft. Frankie J – Suga Suga
26. Nick Canon ft. R. Kelly - Gigolo
27. Avant - Read Your Mind
28. Toby Keith – American Soldier
29. Alan Jackson - Remember When
30. Jagged Edge – Walked Outta Heaven
31. Ludacris ft. Shawna – Stand Up
32. Tim McGraw - Watch the Wind Blow By
33. Santana ft. Chad Kroeger – Why Don’t You & I
34. Maroon 5 - This Love
35. Kelis - Milkshake
36. Lil Jon & the East Side Boyz Featuring Ying Yang Twins – Get Low
37. G-Unit ft. Joe - Wanna Get To Know You
38. Terri Clark – I Wanna Do It All
39. Young Gunz ft. Rell - No Better Love
40. Sean Paul ft. Sasha - I’m Still In Love With You
Don’t miss it!
Tickets to see Mariah Carey in Dubai on February are Dh395-Dh1,595 from ticketmaster.ae, starting noon on December 6.
Go to dubaijazzfest.com.
