Mariah Carey supports Marrige Equality and was raised by two gay guys
I was aware that a gay couple was involved with helping raising her when she was young for quite a few years, but I didn`t know they broke up in the end and one of them already passed away. That makes me a little sad. It is wonderful though that she officially comes out to support marriage equality. I knew a gay fan of hers proposed to his boyfriend in one of her concerts last year.
I`ve never heard of lesbian rumor about her before though. Don`t know what`s that about.
Full interview:
http://advocate.com/Arts_and_Entertainment/Music/Mariah,_Unwrapped/
Whether it's those surprised concertgoers on Oprah last year or the "Party in the FIP" boys who just made a YouTube video for "All I Want for Christmas Is You," your gay fans aren't shy about expressing their love. When did you first feel that support from the gay audience?
I've never really categorized it like that. But I've always been able to connect with different kinds of people, because whoever connects with me realizes that I do truly appreciate and care about them. And ... wait, what was I saying? You touched on something I wanted to discuss ... Sorry, when you're pregnant you don't remember things from one second ago.
Your connection with gay fans.
Yeah, maybe part of the connection is that I do write songs from an outsider perspective. A lot of my die-hard gay fans don't just know my singles, but they also know all the album cuts. I have songs about feeling different and alienated, because I grew up with my own issues, being biracial and not having money. Some of those lyrics can apply to anybody who feels different. My die-hard gay fans listen to songs like "Outside" and "Close My Eyes," songs that most people wouldn't know, and these songs have become anthemic for them for their own personal reasons.
Do you have any words of encouragement for the young victims of antigay bullying?
It's horrible that it's almost 2011 and this is still going on, but I don't want to get on my podium and say, "Just keep believing!" — I know that's cliche, and it would be typical of me to say something like that. It's almost impossible to say anything, really, except you must be aware that dealing with that in high school is a passing place. You have to stay strong, rely on your true friends, and try to get through it, as opposed to drowning in it. Look at how many people suffered during high school and came out of it a better, stronger adult. That's the thing to focus on.
You also returned the support from gay fans last year when you invited a young gay couple onstage at a Las Vegas concert to help facilitate their marriage proposal.
If two people want to get married, it's their prerogative — we hope. Everybody should be able to do what they want to do and be in the pursuit of happiness. Ever since I was a little girl, my mother was very open-minded and had many different types of friends, so being gay never seemed wrong or strange to me. Her best friends were a gay couple, Ernie and Mort, and they kind of co-raised me. They were the nicest guys ever, and they would watch my little shows when I'd sing. Today, I guess they'd be called my guncles. Sometimes they'd put us up when we didn't have a place to go. I couldn't wait to go stay at their house because it was so beautifully done.
Are they still in your life?
One of them passed away. They weren't together at the very end, but they were together for a long, long time.
Back to your gay fans, Marc Jacobs's ex-boyfriend Jason Preston got a big tattoo of your name on his stomach a few years ago. Isn't that a bit much?
I've seen it. How can I say it's a bit much? No, it's amazing. I mean, it is very surprising when you see something like that, but he's a fun guy, so I thought it was adorable.
How might you and Nick handle it if your child turned out to be gay?
I guess we'd handle it as best we could in terms of being supportive.
You strike me as one of those people who might secretly hope for a gay son.
[Laughs] I just hope for whoever's going to be happy and that I can be a great mother to.
What if you have a little lesbian who won't wear your tight hand-me-down dresses and butterfly jewelry?
No comment. [Laughs] No, the thing is that you can't try to make somebody something they're not. Everybody's like, "Oh, if she has a girl, everything's going to be pink, blah, blah, blah." But I don't think you should go totally overboard on that. You should wait and see what the child wants.
What do you think about today's female artists like Lady Gaga, Katy Perry, Nicki Minaj, Ke$ha, and Christina Aguilera, who flirt with bisexuality in their lyrics, videos, and in the press?
Many view it as a disingenuous marketing strategy.
Maybe it's more a reflection of society becoming more accepting. Some of those different artists might really be expressing themselves, but yes, some might just be looking for a little more attention. You never know.
Bisexual rumors have surrounded you for years.
If it makes somebody happy to say that, then whatever, but that's not the reality. I don't have a discriminatory policy of who I'm friends with, so yes, I'm friends with women who are gay — gay, straight, it doesn't matter to me. So I don't get upset when I hear that, because it is what it is. I guess I could lie about it to seem more exciting.
Is Nick comfortable around your gay friends?
He's fine. Honestly, he does his own thing and doesn't really care what anybody else is doing. He's just living his life and being happy.
Is it true that Lindsay Lohan has tried to seduce you?
No, but I have hung out with her at a club. She was with Sean Lennon, and they came over. I remember he was playing my Hello Kitty guitar, and we were all just singing, laughing, and making up songs. It really couldn't have been more innocent.