Flashback Friday (Part 1 of 2): Mariah Carey - Loverboy | When your suga daddy takes you for a ride and steals your idea

With Mariah's The Rarities now available and the previously never heard original version of Glitter's lead single finally out for all to hear - it only seems right to Flashback to 2001's "Loverboy".

A story that Lambs know well is that "Loverboy" was originally supposed to feature a sample from the Yellow Magic Orchestra's 1978 instrumental bop "Firecracker". But Mariah's ex-husband and Sony exec Tommy Mottola caught wind of Mariah's new song, and had producer Cory Rooney craft a song for Sony artist Jennifer Lopez which sampled the very same song - which would become "I'm Real". So, Mariah said 'Fuck it' and sampled a different song instead. I was excited to hear the original version of "Loverboy", because I never knew Mariah actually recorded the song with "Firecracker". I always assumed that the mess happened before she even put vocals to it. But nope. A bitch recorded the whole damn thing. Having heard the original, I think...well, I wouldn't call it a blessing in disguise given that Glitter received not a single blessing. But the "Loverboy" that we got back in 2001 for me is the superior version.

"Loverboy" works far better with Cameo's "Candy" than it does YMO's "Firecracker". Something about the original version as it stands just feels rough around the edges and unrefined, and not in a cool lo-fi kinda way. Mariah's music is always so polished and refined, so the lack of finesse feels really out of place to me. Jennifer Lopez's "I'm Real" makes better use of "Firecracker" and is better produced as a whole because it features original music around the sample and is far less repetitive. Also, you can't go wrong with Cameo's "Candy". And to also have Cameo feature on the song itself and in the video was a great homage and stamp of approval that folk couldn't fuck with, even if they weren't fans of "Loverboy" itself. And to have Da Brat feature contribute a rap to the melody of "Firecracker" itself? Delicious.

"Loverboy" was not a bad song. If anything, I think the drama surrounding Mariah and Glitter helped give it more of spotlight than it would've gotten otherwise. However, the formula of Mariah's lead singles was laid bare with "Loverboy", which I think is what hurt the song more than anything else. "Loverboy" sounded like "Heartbreaker" which sounded like "Honey", which sounded a bit like "Fantasy". You could shuffle the instrumentals and the vocals between each of these songs, and with some key adjustments they'd fit one another. It's great for establishing a sound and a brand, but "Loverboy" needed to be more for Mariah at that point in her career. She needed something really big, and "Loverboy" just wasn't that song. And it wouldn't have been that song, even in it's original form with "Firecracker".

Then there was the backlash over Mariah's pin-up image; which not only fit the theme of the music video, but was really nothing wildly controversial given that Mariah had given it to us before for the "Heartbreaker" remix video, and that countless other pop stars were giving us legs, hot pants and tank tops. But it was just more fuel for the fire on which to burn Mariah at the stake, because it was cooler to condemn her than support her confidence in her body and her expression to do what the fuck she wanted as a woman who by that point honestly had nothing to prove. 

The biggest mess concerning "Loverboy" and Glitter above all was the media's coverage and treatment of Mariah at the time. And there was none of the support or movements back then to cape for her, as would be the case if it were to happen now.

Bottom line? "Loverboy" is a bop. The Rainbow titties deserved their moment. Mariah looks good in the video. Cameo's "Candy" works better for "Loverboy" than YMO's "Firecracker", but we love "Firecracker". 

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