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August 30, 2002 - The logo for Mariah Carey's new label MonarC has been posted on the label's official website, MonarC. Content for the site is coming soon.

August 29, 2002 - Extra TV profiled Kelly Clarkson of 'American Idol' and spoke with her hometown pals and Simon Cowell. Asked to describe the singer, Cowell said, "Kelly reminds me of Mariah Carey with a Patsy Cline charm. If that makes any sense." Watch the clip here.

August 28, 2002 - Jim Farber of the New York Daily News spoke with Def Jam artist Daniel Bedingfield (never mind the fact he refers to him in the article/photo as 'David') who says he's drawing from many genres in his 'Gotta Get Through This' album debut. "I wouldn't have had the confidence to try so many things if they didn't believe in me," he says of Def Jam. The label also matched him with its new signee Mariah Carey, for whom he wrote a song that may appear on her upcoming album. "If not, I'll give it to Whitney Houston," he says. Read more.

August 25, 2002 - Ben Rayner of the Toronto Star profiled the heavy burden that pop stars have to put up with, which has led to Mariah Carey's much-publicized meltdown, the ongoing collapse of the Backstreet Boys and Britney Spears's recent decision to take a six-month break. Terry McBride, whose Vancouver-based Nettwerk Management is currently grooming Avril Lavigne for stardom said, "I think they worked Britney Spears too hard. It's been four years, and not only is she tired, people are tired of her. There's the saying: 'Burn the song, not the artist.' You can't be greedy. You have to know when to say enough." Read more.

August 25, 2002 - Jim Farber of the New York Daily News looked at major artists who are releasing new music in the next four months, and the challenges they will be facing. Included in his commentary are Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Christina Aguilera, and TLC. Read more.

August 24, 2002 - The Sun has three brand new photos of a fantastic looking Mariah Carey from her stint on the Mediterranean island of Capri where she's recording her new album. Check out the much more toned Mariah here.

August 22, 2002 - Once again Mariah Carey tops a poll on popdirt.com, with the diva topping Christina Aguilera in a poll asking which female pop star do you think would be the toughest fighter. The wimpiest singer appears to be Vanessa Carlton, who only got .4% of the vote. For a complete list of the poll's results, click here.

August 20, 2002 - WENN reports Mariah Carey angrily rejected an offer to appear on the hit medical drama ER after being offered a role of a singer suffering a break-down is too similar to her own real life mental problems. "Mariah needs to redeem herself because Glitter flopped," said a source. "She is a huge fan of ER, which is still the top rated show in the US, so she was obviously delighted when they asked her to take part in an episode or two. But she couldn't believe how insensitive they were when they asked her to play a loony-tune pop star. Someone was being very mischievous, or they have very short memories."

August 18, 2002 - izetg writes "Singer Anastacia told Dope Music Magazine in Sydney that one of the most intimidating performances of her career was at the United We Stand concert last year, with Michael Jackson and Mariah. "Before it, I was so nervous," she admits. "I was sweating like a pig, seriously. The thought of singing with Michael Jackson and Mariah Carey at the same time was indescribable. I never imagined singing with my life time idols." Read more.

August 17, 2002 - IMDB.com (WENN) reports Oscar-winning actress Mira Sorvino is insisting Mariah Carey can indeed act. Sorvino, who worked with Carey on 'Wisegirls' said, "She's very talented actually. I don't think people have yet given her credit as an actress, but they will when they see this." As for their rumored battles on the set, Mira said, "Mariah was out of town a lot promoting her album. When she was around, we were friendly but there wasn't much time - I was in every scene of the movie."

August 17, 2002 - Roger Friedman of FoxNews.com reports Mariah Carey and friends including Island Def Jam Records President Lyor Cohen, all celebrating after hearing tracks from Carey's new album on the Isle of Capri. While insiders and pals may have gotten a listen, don't expect many others to. "We don't want what happened last time," a source said, referring to the theft of a Carey song by Jennifer Lopez. Read more.

August 16, 2002 - Mariah Carey fan site MariahMania.com recently spoke with Mariah's good friend Jasmine, who has been on a few of Carey's voice messages. Asked about the new album, Jasmine revealed, "[Mariah's] new music is very classic Mariah, the ballads are emotional - especially the first single - there are uptempo and slow tracks, it's like her life story... with a bit of a guest line up of her musical mates but not too many. Her vocals are as strong as ever and the song writing is as ever classic. There are a couple of great surprises on there this time too... cant tell though, or what kind of friend would i be!" Read more.

August 13, 2002 - Apparently Shayne at MariahBuzz.com has heard the new Mariah Carey song 'Through The Rain', which allaccess.com has slated for a October 8th radio release. Shayne said of the track, "It's a beautiful ballad with Mariah singing only as she can and in a style that you haven't heard for quite some time. The voice is back and bigger than ever. Big time! If you think Mariah's days were numbered, well she's just gone and reset the counter all the way back to the start. She's coming. Will you be ready?"

August 13, 2002 - MSNBC's Jeannette Walls reports execs at Mariah Carey's new Island Def Jam are urging the singer to drop her slutty outfits. "In the last few years, she’s started looking and acting too provocatively," says a source. "She wasn’t doing herself any favors. She shouldn’t try to look like Britney Spears. She has her voice going for her. They’ve told Mariah to re-think her image." The source says the advice seems to have been effective. "Mariah’s not going to start wearing a potato sack, but [Lyor Cohen’s] advice really hit home." Read more.

August 12, 2002 - A posting on Daniel Bedingfield's official site revealed, "Daniel is also set to work with the stunning diva Mariah Carey. These are all the details we have at the moment, so keep checking in and we'll fill you in!"

August 12, 2002 - Entertainment Weekly spoke with Jimmy Jam who is working with Mariah Carey on her Island/Def Jam debut. Jam and Terry Lewis also worked with Carey on 'Rainbow' and 'Glitter' and Jam commented, "It really hasn't been different this time than it was before, except that it's been a little more relaxed. She's relieved to be back in the studio. She's very rested. Her voice sounds wonderful." Jam also says he's confident the new album will outsell Mariah's last album 'Glitter'. "I feel good about its chances, sales-wise," he said.

August 11, 2002 - Mariah Carey's single 'Loverboy' featuring Da Brat & Ludacris was a winner at Friday's second annual Billboard R&B/Hip-Hop Awards in the category of top single sales. Read more.

August 10, 2002 - The Mirror reports Island/Def Jam are delaying the release of Mariah Carey's new album to December, hoping the delay will "allow fans to forget the disastrous time she had of it last year when she had a nervous breakdown and was dropped from Virgin Records." The tabloid's 3AM girls say, "Sadly for the singer, no one is ever likely to forget the cinematic flop that was 'Glitter'."

August 8, 2002 - Entertainment Tonight interviewed Kathy Griffin who is dishing on Hollywood headline-makers in her new standup comedy routine, 'Telling Tales Out of School.' Asked about the focus of the show, Kathy said, "It's called "Telling Tales Out Of School" because it's a lot of dish. I can't resist the Angelina's and the Billy Bob's. I'm not that big a person that I could just let that go. A lot of my divas are cracking up. Celine is going through some hard times with [husband] Rene, and Mariah is always on the edge. I'm just fascinated by all of it." Read more.

August 8, 2002 - Roger Friedman of FoxNews.com reports the new Mariah Carey record label on Island/Def Jam Records, MonarC, was not the diva's first choice for a name. Mariah chose the name because of her love for butterflies and the M and C are capitalized for Mariah's initials. A San Francisco jazz label called Monarch Records wasn't interested in relinquishing its name, even though Mariah asked. Hence, the unusual spelling. Read more.

August 7, 2002 - Sathnam Sanghera of the Financial Times spoke with Lyor Cohen, president of IslandDef Jam records, on his controversial move of signing Mariah Carey to a three-album deal worth an estimated $21m. "I said to Mariah: 'What's your competitive advantage? A great voice, of course. And what else? You write every one of your songs - you're a great writer," he explained. "So why did you stray from your competitive advantage? Why are you dressing like that, why are you using all these collaborations [with other artists and other songwriters]? Why? It's like driving a Ferrari in first - you won't see what that Ferrari will do until you get into sixth gear.'" Read more.

August 7, 2002 - Mariah Carey left a voice message for fans on her official website on Monday. Mariah said, "Hi lambs. Anyway, I'm still here working on the album and, you know, doing the best I can to enjoy the beautiful surroundings when I get a chance and, umm, just wanted to check in and let you know that I love you much and, umm, things of that sort. Now, my friend is here from England, Jasmine from MTV. Some of you may know her. And we're practicing 'Bianca-isms' again, but, I'm not ready to go back into that yes cuz I [in English accent] don't have it down quite well enough, darlings. Oh, hold on." Read more.

August 7, 2002 - MonarC Music/Island Records is set to release Mariah Carey's new studio album (title: TBD) December 10, 2002. The album features Carey writing and co-producing with such A-list producers as Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis, Jermaine Dupri among others. Mariah, who has already recorded 20 very personal songs for the album, showcases her stunning voice, prolific songwriting ability and incredible versatility on this new album. Read more.

August 5, 2002 - Popdirt.com's latest poll asks which female pop star do you think would be the toughest fighter? Vote for Mariah Carey here.

August 5, 2002 - The New York Post reports Mariah Carey is set to make her Island Def Jam debut with an album titled 'Mariah' on December 10th. A source adds, "They will release a single in the second week of September." The album is produced by Irv Gotti.

August 5, 2002 - People magazine spoke with makeup artist Billy B., who works with both Mariah Carey and Destiny's Child star Beyonce Knowles. Billy says last September, after Mariah suffered a very public emotional breakdown, Beyonce sent her a videotaped message offering encouragement. "She related to how isolated Mariah must have been feeling," Billy said. Beyonce said if "she ever needed a friend to talk to that she'd be there." Billy added, "It was a nice thing to do, and that's just Beyonce." Read more.

August 2, 2002 - Jeanette Walls of MSNBC reports Mariah Carey’s spokeswoman is denying reports in Italian newspapers that the singing diva is getting acting experience by starring in an Italian-language flick.

August 2, 2002 - Mariah Carey fan site MariahBuzz.com reports that despite previous reports Mariah's new label under Universal/Island Def Jam records would be titled, 'Monarch Records', the official name at the moment is in fact, MonarC Records - a tentative name - with the M & C in capitals and the rest in lower case. The label should be launched within the next couple of months along with the first single out in September/October with the upcoming album due in December.

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