Mariah Carey’s Oprah Transcript
Contributed by a_rod221:
Today Millions tuned in to Oprah to hear for one of the first times what Mariah Carey had to say about her breakdown and everything that really needed to be cleared up. Mariah Belted out two beautiful ballads ‘Through the Rain’ and ‘My Saving Grace’ which is the first time Mariah has performed it. Both songs along with 13 others are on the new album ‘Charmbracelet’ which is out today. To hear what Mariah herself had to say, read on for a transcript.
Oprah: When did you start to worry that you might be in the beginning phases of some sort of physical breakdown?
Mariah: Before I even went out on a promotional tour for Glitter, my doctor said I needed a break because I have low blood-sugar. She said, ‘You can’t be working yourself this hard, you need five days off.’ And I said I didn’t have five days to take. I don’t usually say ‘No’ [to my career].
Oprah: You didn’t know how to say ‘No’ for years? That will make you crazy!
Mariah: I just learned to this year! At a certain point, I said I couldn’t do a second video for the Glitter soundtrack, and they said, ‘What do you mean?’ Because I had never said, ‘No.’ I said, ‘It’s too much for me, it’s too intense, I’m too tired, I haven’t slept in two months. No more.’ Nobody could believe I was saying it. They continued to call me. I ended up at my mom’s house and collapsed. … I literally passed out on the kitchen floor. In addition to not sleeping, I wasn’t eating properly.
The Suicide Rumor
Oprah: There were even rumors that you tried to kill yourself.
Mariah: The suicide rumor really upset me, because I would never do that. I am too spiritual of a person. It is not my place to say when I leave this world, that’s up to God. I was concerned that a 13-year-old fan who tries to emulate me and the things that I do might try to duplicate that behavior. And it did not happen.
Oprah: Even the ambulance driver said that did not happen.
Mariah: I went to the hospital because I thought that maybe the people who are trying to work me like a machine would see me as a human being and realize that this is serious. This is not me being a diva. This is not me playing a joke because I can be a prankster. This is serious.
Oprah: How long did it take you to recover?
Mariah: Just a couple of weeks. But the press continued their barrage. … Meanwhile, I was living in the solution, not the problem. There comes a time when you have to say ‘That was then, this is now, and we’re not going to rehash the past.’
Mariah Carey Today
At 32 years old, Mariah says her collapse was a wake-up call. She reveals the lessons she learned, and how she’s preventing it from happening again.
Learning to Say “No”
After her traumatic experience, Mariah now recognizes that in order to remain healthy she needs to say “No” sometimes. “I never wanted to disappoint people. I never wanted to let the fans down. I never wanted to do less promotion than I could do, even if that meant four countries in one day. But by doing that, I was doing the opposite, and I hurt myself.”
Although she’s changing her work habits, Mariah’s determined to keep her good-spirited nature. “I don’t want this whole experience to ruin me as an open-hearted person, or as a person who is vulnerable or who likes to joke around.”
New Contract on Life
After Mariah rested for a few weeks, she realized she needed to rearrange her life. “I have to have at least six hours of sleep everywhere we go—I don’t care how many countries we go to a day. I have to have a lunch break.”
Mariah also tackled her insomnia. “I’ve always had problems sleeping since I was a little girl. I talked to a nutritionist who helped me in terms of what foods I can eat that will help me sleep at the end of the day. [Sleep deprivation] is not good for your physical health—you can die—and I didn’t realize it before!
These were the main highlights of the conversation for more tune into Dateline NBC at 10:00 ET where there will be another great interview!
