Mariah Carey on Las Vegas residency, being a single mom
Mariah Carey is the newest megastar in Las Vegas, kicking off her next chapter with a larger-than-life Vegas show and a new greatest hits album, "Mariah #1 To Infinity". "It's like a clean slate," Carey told Good Morning America's Michael Strahan during an exclusive backstage tour of her show.
"It's not just a show," she said of her residency at Caesars Palace. "It's the album, #1 To Infinity. It's the show, #1 To Infinity, and it's the place I'm at in my life, which is a brand new moment for me."
Carey split from her husband, Nick Cannon, in 2014. The couple's 4-year-old twins, Moroccan and Monroe, are joining their mom on her Las Vegas journey. "It's even harder now because as a single mom, it's not like, woo, I'm going out tonight to do this and that," Carey said. "I occasionally, on a rare occasion, I will, but it's much more about watching movies with the kids and having fun and reading them stories or making up stories with them or playing with them when I have free time."
Carey calls Moroccan a "rock star" who loves music and says Monroe has asked her mom for her own microphone, saying, "I love microphone." The "Hero" singer says she and Cannon are paying close attention to how they co-parent their two children.
"I feel like the most important thing is how the kids grow up," she said. "They're human beings and they have to be treated as such. They're sensitive and they're going to feel any kind of tension. So, for me, it's not about how I deal with anything. It's about how they're going to feel after the day is over and they're going to sleep at night, you know what I mean."
On the stage in Las Vegas, she performs all 18 of her number one singles, night after night. Carey debuted her show last night and will perform 17 more shows in May and July. "I think it's fun," Carey said of performing at Caesars Palace. "I mean, it's just that being here, there's so much different stuff going on, between the fights and the entertainers and different people here doing residencies, it's not the same thing as it used to be."
She added: "And I wanted to get closer to my fans from all over the world who do come and travel and want to have an experience. And this is the first time I've ever, ever done all 18 number ones in a show. I've never done this before."
When Strahan asked her whether she had any pre-show rituals or superstitions, she replied: "No. Just say a nice prayer." Mentioning the fact that Carey has been a superstar for most of her life, Strahan asked her whether there was anything else she wanted from life.
"What do I want? I want love and happiness," she said. "I want people to be nice and to be appreciative of - things that they have, 'cause I really am appreciative of all the things that I have." As for whether she had any tips for up-and-coming artists, Carey said they had to work hard and "want it more than anything".
She added: "If you're not wanting it the most, you probably won't be able to keep it or sustain it. I mean, a lot of people don't want to do that and they're busy Instagramming and trying to do too much, and their whole life becomes absorbed in it. I think you have to be motivated by the music first. But not everybody feels the same way. I can't help that."
