Mariah Carey wins 3 Grammys in early pre-telecast
2/8/2006LOS ANGELES Mariah Carey was making up for lost Grammys today night, winning three trophies in the early going.
In the 16 years since Mariah Carey won the best new artist Grammy in 1990, she has more than lived up to the award s promise as one of the most successful recording artists in history. Yet despite a slew of blockbuster albums and megahit singles, her Grammy total never increased.
That finally changed today. She won three in the pre-telecast ceremony and had the opportunity to win four more, which means she could make history as the first female artist to win six or more in a single evening. (Norah Jones, Beyonce, Alicia Keys and Lauryn Hill each won five.)
Carey won best contemporary R&B album for The Emancipation of Mimi, best R&B song for We Belong Together and best female R&B vocal performance for the same tune.
John Legend was also an early winner, beating out Stevie Wonder, Keys, Fantasia and Earth, Wind & Fire to snag best R&B album for his platinum debut, Get Lifted. Neither Carey or Legend were on hand to receive their awards during the ceremony, which few celebrities attend.
Other winners included Damian Marley, the son of reggae legend Bob, who won best reggae album and best urban/alternative performance for Welcome to Jamrock, his breakout album and hit of the same name.
This is new ground for reggae, Marley said as he accepted his award.
Carey was clearly the leading favorite heading into the music industry s most celebrated evening, nominated in the most prestigious categories, including record and song of the year for her torch ballad We Belong Together, the year s most popular song, and for album of the year for The Emancipation of Mimi, 2005 s best-selling album.
But Carey faced tough competition: For record of the year, her fellow nominees included West s Gold Digger, the Ray Charles-inspired hit about money-hungry gals; the poignant Boulevard of Broken Dreams from Green Day; Gwen Stefani s undeniably catchy Hollaback Girl ; and the funky Feel Good Inc. from the cartoon-fronted band, the Gorillaz.
The album of the year category also had strong contenders. West, nominated last year for his groundbreaking rap debut The College Dropout, was nominated for a second time for Late Registration ; U2 for How to Dismantle an Atomic Bomb ; Stefani for her kitschy solo debut, Love. Angel. Music. Baby. ; and Paul McCartney for Chaos and Creation in the Backyard.
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