The singles that coulda / shoulda been: Mariah Carey's E=MC²

Mariah's E=MC² was by no means a flop when it first released back in 2008, and it certainly can't be considered one now that it's topped a chart 12 years later. But it had a messy run of singles. Then the news of her marriage to Nick Cannon just put a knife in everything and any chance of this album going on to be the success it deserved to be at the time was dead in the water. And it was a shame, because there were no lack of potential single choices on this thing.

"Touch my body" wasn't a bad single, but it was incredibly safe and gave the impression that the album would be too, which is why it was such a surprise when I listened to it for the first time. Mariah really give herself options.

So here's a list of songs that I personally think should have been singles.


Migrate
Written by Mariah Carey, Nathaniel 'Danja' Hills, Balewa Muhammad & Faheem 'T-Pain' Najm

This was initially due to be the lead single, but it got scrapped in favour of "Touch My Body". This was a song that many fans had heard about, due to Mariah being very vocal about it being a single, that T-Pain was on it and how much she liked it. The Lamb train had done left the station, so it had a lot of hype behind it. So it came as a shock to fans when "Touch My Body" was announced out of nowhere and took its place.

"Touch My Body" wasn't a bad single choice, but it was so safe. Double A-siding it alongside "Migrate" would have been far better solution to cover all bases, if the cocnern with "Migrate" was that it was maybe 'too hood'. Which would be an interesting reason to refute it as a single given that Mariah's last album was lead with "It's Like That".

"Migrate" got off to a shaky start, thanks to a really shaky performance on SNL, which left everybody claiming the song to be a mess and thankful it wasn't a single...up until the album dropped. The we got the studio version, loved it and we all had to backtrack.

This song remains a fan fave for many who like them some Hoodriah.


I'm That Chick
Written by Mariah Carey, Johntá Austin, Mikkel S. Eriksen, Tor E. Hermansen & Rod Temperton

The song after which the album was tentatively to be named. "I'm That Chick" was produced by Stargate, who were producing for pretty much every female artist at the time. But this was a very different style to what we were used to hearing from them. It was far more smooth and soulful, setting it in the same vein as the likes of "Say Something" from The Emancipation of Mimi. What makes this song so good is how understated it is. It doesn't have this massive chorus or production which smacks you in-between the eyes, which is part of its charm. The same can also be said for Mariahs vocals which are like silk. Part of why I liked this song is because it felt like something from Glitter or Charmbracelet. Something that some may not see as a compliment. But hey, I didn't think those albums were the dumpster fires many thought they were. 80s and Disco suits Mariah down to a tee. I'm glad we got to hear her work the sound on later albums, but this song deserved to have its moment.


For The Record
Written by Mariah Carey, Bryan-Michael Cox & Adonis Shropshire

This song was first teased in a commercial for Mariah's debut fragrance, marking the first new ANYTHING we'd heard from Mariah post The Emancipation of Mimi. At this point we had no info on the album other than Mariah was working on it. So the Lambily were up in arms wanting to know if this was a taste of her new single, when the fuck the album was dropping and if this was even a full song at all and not just a jingle for the commercial. Thankfully it turned out to be a full song. It's strange that this wasn't released as a single off the back of it featuring in one of Mariah's perfume commercials, given that there was so buzz around the song. More so than the fragrance itself. That and it's a bop. There's also a Hip-Hop vibe which underlies the production to this which would have lent itself well to a guest feature rap. Young Jeezy comes to mind. Something about this voice and flow would have sounded good on this. That contrast of crusty 'n' smooth.


Side Effects
Written by Mariah Carey, Jay Jenkins, Crystal Nicole Johnson & Scott Storch

Running with Hoodriah, "Side effect". This was and remains a standout song on the album, because it sticks out in such a fashion. On an album that is so jovial and celebratory, "Side Effects" feels like a sucker punch moment; detailing Mariah's marriage with Tommy Mottola and how it's still left a bitch messed up. This would have made a great single. Not only for the tea factor, but to showcase a sound that Mariah has never really served before and outreach to those outside of her core fanbase. Especially after the safe-as-shit release of "Touch My Body". The inclusion of Young Jeezy was also a touch of genius given his popularity at the time; all the more reason this should have been an official single.

In retrospect this is actually a much more poignant song than it was given credit for at the time. Despite Mariah depicting a very specific moment in her life, there's a lot in the song to be said for a women who are put down and have their light dimmed by a man insecure enough in himself to deal with it. Mariah is never given props the trails she's blazed as a female artist and the hardships she faced in and out of the public eye.


I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
Written by Mariah Carey, Aldrin Davis, Crystal Nicole Johnson, Mark DeBarge & Etterlene Jordan

The DJ Toomp produced "I'll be loving U long time" was indeed a single. But I'm adding it to the list because I was #JusticeForIllBeLovinULongTime. The release came far too late in the album cycle with barely any promotion. And whilst the T.I feature on the single version followed the trend of Mariah adding rappers to songs, and made sense given T.I's main producer helmed the song, he added nothing to it. This is my personal favourite songs from E=MC² and have always felt that it never got the love that it deserved. It just hits every mark.

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E=MC² is one of those albums where any song off of it could have been a single. Every song is cut like it was intended to be a single. But the songs that were chosen were not only released at the wrong times, but were given awful music videos. And the selection of singles collectively didn't do a great job of really selling the album. Especially in comparison to the singles from Te Emancipation of Mimi. The range between "It's Like That", "We Belong Together", "Shake It Off", "Get Your Number" and "Say Something" was ridiculous.

Given that Mariah is not shy about a throwback these days and has seen the value re-presenting songs from the old catalog, it'd be great to see her do something with some of these songs or at least one of them.

🦋 Stream E=MC² : Spotify | Apple Music | YouTube Music | Google Play Music
📝 Album reviews: Glitter | E=MC² | Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel | Caution
🔊 Playlist: Mariah Carey featuring...
🎛️ A mashup that nobody asked for: Mariah Carey x Sonic the Hedgehog