Janet Jackson vs. Mariah Carey

[NUTELLA 30,303]

1 minute ago, NUTELLA said:

Aretha & Mariah >

Whitney, Celine & Janet

[MACATL 2,169]

Singer - Mariah (duh) 

not at all a fair comparison, vocally.  But when it comes to performance and overall artistry/songwriting, I prefer Janet.  Mariah is a fabulous songwriter as well though.  
Janet always had that X factor / star quality that drew me to her much more.  

Edited yesterday at 01:10 PM by MACATL

[RochesterJoannster 4,184]

Mariah is very obviously a better singer. I love Janet too.

Edited yesterday at 01:12 PM by RochesterJoannster

[Horny Chicken 11,125]

4 minutes ago, NUTELLA said:

Aretha & Mariah >

Whitney, Celine & Janet

 

 

 

[PartySick 174,324]

4 minutes ago, MACATL said:

Janet always had that X factor / star quality that drew me to her much more.  

It's also her variety which is what I value most in the artists I listen to. She's covered such a wide range of sounds in such interesting and engaging ways.

I've tried to get into Mariah but I have the same problem with her as I do with Madonna and a few other icons - their music just sounds like a chore.

I've barely scratched the surface of her discography but it all seems very one note and boring. Talent? Duh. But when you want more than a good voice you look to artists like Janet who is a great singer in her own right anyway but comes with that extra UMPH to really make listening worthwhile.

Mariah makes me think of Christmas and a flying lawn mower  

[LordByron28 1,287]

5 hours ago, PartySick said:

It's also her variety which is what I value most in the artists I listen to. She's covered such a wide range of sounds in such interesting and engaging ways.

I've tried to get into Mariah but I have the same problem with her as I do with Madonna and a few other icons - their music just sounds like a chore.

I've barely scratched the surface of her discography but it all seems very one note and boring. Talent? Duh. But when you want more than a good voice you look to artists like Janet who is a great singer in her own right anyway but comes with that extra UMPH to really make listening worthwhile.

Mariah makes me think of Christmas and a flying lawn mower  

5 hours ago, PartySick said:

I can name two Mariah songs and one of them I keep thinking is a Whitney Houston song  

The Jacksons have always been politically messy so I don't even factor that into the equation  

Janet simply has the better discography and is a better entertainer and performer.

You should really listen to Obsessed, We Belong Together, Always Be My Baby, Touch My Body, Dreamlover, Fantasy (ft. ol dirty bastard) and the solo version, My All, Breakdown, One Sweet Day, Hero, Heartbreaker, Emotions, etc. for variety.  Those are just hits not counting she has a plethora of solid deeper cuts such as It’s a wrap. She also did a number of features on rappers albums in the 2000’s that turned out pretty well. 

In terms of albums, I’d say The Emancipation Of Mimi album with It’s Like That, We Belong Together, Shake It Off, Stay The Night, Fly Like A Bird, and Don’t Forget About Us and Daydream album with Fantasy, Always Be My Baby, Underneath The Stars, One Sweet Day, and Melt Away are amazing albums that are good representations of Mariah. 
 

Her first three albums were a lot more molded after Whitney Houston and Celine Dion’s music. Although the first one has more of a Motown feel to it. She recorded and released her Xmas album reluctantly at the time. Mid 90s-00 she began blending a lot more rap and hip-hop to her R&B sound. Her remixing Fantasy with Ole Dirty Bastard was shocking at the time as she was seen more as America’s sweet heart and went to collaborating with the grimiest member of the Wu Tang Clan. Also started the whole rap features in pop and R&B music trend that dominated the 00s. She also really did a lot with layering backing vocals and creating a wall of sound with tons of different vocal layers. During this time she also did a lot of club and dance remixes where she would add new lyrics, re-record vocals, make new music videos for the remixes and direct some of them.  Glitter which is getting an anniversary edition release, is probably her more eclectic with it being 80s inspired and very disco. It flopped due to being released on 9/11.
 

2005/Emancipation was her major comeback. After she dominated for a decade straight(90-00), her two albums flopped(glitter and charm bracelet), she divorced her husband who recruited J-Lo and pushed her as the new Mariah Carey in the music industry, she was labeled difficult to work with, mocked for her weight, and alcohol usage. Paparazzi had labeled her a has been and her career being over. She even had a slight mental breakdown on TRL and was diagnosed with bipolar disorder. She came back with Emancipation of Mimi. It was her ‘blackest’ album to date with a lot more confidence, style, and refinement. We Belong Together became her signature song, her “I will always love you” as well as the album having a number of other solid tracks. The other albums released in the second half of the 00s were more pop and a lot more catchy and melodic than focusing on her powerhouse vocals as can be heard on obsessed, touch my body, I’m that chick, it’s a wrap, and ribbon. 2010s she had two more albums with #beautiful being the only hit off of them which is a shame as 2018 was her most electro pop album. She released one album last year but it was a lot more of a stripped back classic sound.

[SimonBaetens 9,626]

Janet is not very famous outside the US I think? Mariah is a global icon.

[phantasmas 12,448]

i chose Janet but i listen to Mimi more often