Mariah Carey emerged in an era when the music video was just as important as the recording itself.
Her 35-year catalogue, to be showcased during her Abu Dhabi return as part of the Saadiyat Nights concert series on Saturday, is filled with seminal visuals that highlight the artistry of the medium, while also becoming cultural milestones over the years.
Here are 15 of Carey’s most notable videos tracing that evolution.
1. Vision of Love (1990)
An austere debut. Carey's first video is stark: tight shots, no choreography – the complete opposite of Madonna vogueing or Jackson commanding armies of dancers. That restraint became her calling card and influenced many ballad videos for years. Toni Braxton copied it for Another Sad Love Song, and so did Deborah Cox. American Idol contestants still use this when they want to look serious
2. Emotions (1991)
Carey moved outdoors for this one. She’s driving through New York and the countryside, gathering with friends, dancers and gospel singers along the way. There’s laughter, movement and a looseness that felt like a release after the serious staging of her debut. The music video showed a more joyful side of Carey and proved she could visually carry an up-tempo pop track.
3. All I Want for Christmas Is You (1994)
Shot on Super-8 to feel like a 1960s home movie, Carey hangs ornaments, plays in the snow and curls up with her dog for this popular music video. In 1994, when MTV was all polish and big budgets, this looked almost home-made. The choice has aged well and every December it comes back as part of the holiday ritual.
4. Fantasy (1995)
Self-directed, Fantasy was filmed at Rye Playland in New York. It shows Carey rollerblading on the boardwalk, riding the Dragon Coaster and singing among crowds. She presents herself as both a superstar and an ordinary woman at play. That self-direction set a precedent later taken up by artists such as Britney Spears and Taylor Swift.
5. Always Be My Baby (1995)
This remains one of Carey’s most recognisable videos, not for cutting-edge visuals but for its warmth and sun-washed nostalgia. Set in a summer-camp fantasy, the video is full of postcard-like moments: Carey playing on a tyre swing, wandering wooden paths, her eyes glowing in the warmth of a bonfire. The video leans heavily into innocence and longing, and does a great job of making the already resonant track feel even more emotive. The song and video remain cornerstones of 1990s pop culture.
6. One Sweet Day (1995)
While this behind-the-scenes concept was not a novel one, it worked perfectly in capturing the intimacy, chemistry and love of her collaboration with Boyz II Men, who, at the time, were her chart rivals. Despite the ebullient melodies, the song is about processing grief and it became a staple at memorials and funerals.
7. Honey (1997)
Carey released the kind of blockbuster video befitting her pop queen status. You can almost smell the millions thrown into it: Carey as a spy in Puerto Rico, with chase scenes, explosions and unapologetic sensuality. The production looked like a James Bond film. It belonged to the era of blockbuster clips such as Michael Jackson’s Remember the Time and Janet Jackson’s If.
8. The Roof (1997)
Set across Manhattan rooftops and crowded streets, the video is one of Carey’s most cinematic and moody, matching the more refined R&B direction she began exploring at the turn of the century.
9. Breakdown (1998)
In line with the track’s lacerating lyricism, one of Carey’s most underrated videos features her as a glamorous Las Vegas showgirl and cabaret performer. Instead of stripping away the glamour, the clip uses elaborate costumes, wigs and stage spectacle to represent the “mask” pop stars use to hide the nerves and tension beneath. There is no sense of finality to the experience, suggesting that show business is a cycle that rarely stops.
10. My All (1998)
A stark black-and-white video set against a Greco-Roman-inspired backdrop, it places Carey on a windswept beach, draped over an overturned wooden vessel, and later against sculptures and what resembles a giant conch shell. A final sequence set in a lighthouse gives the video an abstract arthouse quality, while still linking loosely to the song’s lyrical themes of physical vulnerability and the loneliness of spurned romance.
11. Heartbreaker (1999)
Carey plays dual roles – herself and a brunette troublemaker causing chaos in a movie theatre. The split-screen effects were expensive, but the real breakthrough was the humour. She poked fun at her own image and the diva mythology that surrounded her. Years later, Katy Perry would lean on the same kind of self-parody – most clearly in Last Friday Night (T.G.I.F.). The video proved a superstar could be in on the joke without losing credibility.
12. It’s Like That (2005)
The video that laid the groundwork for Carey’s mid-career resurgence was set at an opulent masked party. It presents her as a playful diva in full control of her image. Featuring cameos from RnB stars Jermaine Dupri and Da Brat, along with slick choreography, the video neatly mirrors the song’s themes of confidence and self-assurance.
13. We Belong Together (2005)
After a string of commercial disappointments, Carey needed her comeback video for The Emancipation of Mimi to work. That urgency came through here – she directed a soap opera about a bride fleeing her wedding for true love. The melodrama was deliberate and effective. The song became one of the decade’s biggest hits, but the video gave it emotional weight. Sometimes the most direct approach works best.
14. Touch My Body (2008)
Carey embraced absurdist comedy here, co-starring with Jack McBrayer from 30 Rock. He plays a nerdy IT worker fantasising about encounters with her – laser battles, cat costumes, the works. The timing mattered because by this time, YouTube was changing how videos circulated. This was built for replay and sharing, and just weird enough to generate discussion. It was early proof that the viral era required different strategies.
15. Obsessed (2009)
Was it a dig at Eminem? That was the question behind this confrontational video where Carey plays a male stalker chasing a woman who looked like her. Released at the height of their celebrity feud, the gender-swapping and use of alter egos turned the clip into a pop culture talking point.
