Mariah Carey has responded to allegations following the release of a Spotify Wrapped video message, with fans accusing the singer of using an AI-generated likeness of herself in the clip.
Earlier this week (December 4), Carey released a video message addressing Spotify users who were listed as her top fans on Spotify Wrapped, which reflects their listening habits from the past 12 months in its ‘Celebration Of Your Year’ experience.
“Your support through the years is the greatest gift I could ask for,” Carey – decked out in a Christmas outfit with red lipstick – told fans in the clip.
However, response to the clip included fans wondering aloud via X/Twitter whether the Carey they saw in the clip was real or AI-generated based on her appearance.
Carey noticed the comments and responded to them in a tweet: “Bad lighting and a red lip have you all thinking this is AI??” she wrote. “There’s a reason I’m not a fan of either of those things!”
In a 2015 interview with Elle, Carey admitted her dislike for red lipstick and that she “personally” wouldn’t wear it. “Every time somebody puts red lipstick on me it’s a disaster”, she said.
.@MariahCarey with an exclusive message for her top fans on Spotify Wrapped.
— Mariah Carey Charts (Fan Page) (@chartmariah) December 4, 2024
Fans previously attempted to dispell the AI accusations, pointing out that her outfit, makeup and all, was due to her dressing up for a recreation of the album cover for her 1994 album ‘Merry Christmas’ in a photoshoot.
The album celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, with a deluxe edition release on digital platforms, along with a physical reissue of its hit single ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’ on vinyl, cassette and CD.
this is not fking AI. she literally shot this after doing a whole photo shoot and probably filmed other promo slots while in costume pic.twitter.com/mLBfDNKIHM
— 🎅🏾✨jamal’s cloud #merrychristmas30🎄 (@cloudzrollby) December 6, 2024
Upon its release on October 29 1994, ‘All I Want For Christmas’ was an instant hit, landing the Number Six spot on the Billboard Hot Adult Contemporary chart in the United States and Number Two in the United Kingdom and Japan.
The track annually re-enters charts worldwide in the weeks leading up to Christmas. It has also reached Number One in over 30 countries. The single has also made history for the gap between release and reaching number one in both the United States and the United Kingdom, 25 and 26 years respectively.
‘All I Want For Christmas’ has officially been certified 16× Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA), claiming its status as the highest-certified single ever by a female artist.
On what the success of the holiday single and album means to her, Carey told NME in 2021: “It means that someone smarter than myself suggested I do a Christmas album as a young, young girl and I was like: ‘Hmmm – doesn’t that happen later in life?’” she said, laughing.
“And then I said, ‘But you know what? I love Christmas!’.”
In other news, a judge has recently said she is inclined to dismiss a copyright lawsuit brought against Carey over ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’.
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