It’s officially been one month since Mariah Carey released her 16th studio album, “Here For It All.” While I am in the midst of revealing my ranking of Carey’s albums, I decided I might as well celebrate the occasion by ranking the songs on “Here For It All.” One month is about enough time for me, personally, to live with an album and be able to confidently rank my its songs. So, without further delay… check out my ranking below.
“Here For It All,” Ranked.
11. “Sugar Sweet”
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Carey continues to prove that she can still pull off progressive R&B on the album’s accharine second single “Sugar Sweet” with Kehlani and Shenseea. Proving that while she’s “in another class from those ladies,” she can easily hang at their level. It’s just bit beneath her, to be frank.
10. “Jesus I Do”
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For the album’s gospel moment, she enlists the Clark Sisters on “Jesus I Do,” a jubilant uptempo praise song that is surprisingly catchy and fun. Often, Carey closes her albums with its gospel number, but not this time…
9. “Nothing is Impossible”
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With the gut-wrenching “Nothing is Impossible,” she recalls the best elements of her inspirational ’90s ballads to offer an anthem of self-encouragement without all the excess schmaltz.
8. “Mi”
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Carey’s sixteenth set opens where most probably expected her to land, on a slinky, contemporary R&B midtempo banger, “Mi,” that is a perfect sonic progression from “Caution.” Fresh and cool, like most of the cuts on that album, “Mi” still manages to tread new sonic territory for Mimi, and flaunts her most confident, braggadocious lyrics since 2008’s “I’m That Chick.”
7. “My Love”
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On her ethereal take of the Paul McCartney & Wings song “My Love,” she sounds just divine; it’s perhaps the most tonally gorgeous song on the album, and the best cover she’s done since 2002’s “Bringin’ on the Heartbreak.”
6. “Play This Song”
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“Play This Song,” a duet with Paak, didn’t click for me on the first spin, but after the third, I was hooked. The track has several earworms that keep me playing it back. It has a cool, classic vibe, somehow sounding simultaneously familiar yet fresh. Carey delivers lush vocals, utilizing her sexy lower register to match the equally lush live instrumentation and harmonize with Paak.
5. “Type Dangerous”
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With the album’s lead single “Type Dangerous,” she offers an update of her go-to lead single formula: a hip-hop/pop amalgamation built upon a sampled loop. In this case, it’s fresher than ever. The production of “Type Dangerous” is next-level, hitting harder, from a hip-hop perspective, than any of her lead singles (except for maybe “Obsessed,” because she ate that man up), though it lacks the strong pop melody on the chorus it needed to truly soar.
4. “In Your Feelings”
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Doing what she does best, Carey will put you right “In Your Feelings” with the album’s soulful, throwback ballad. Prodding on those heartstrings, Carey has crafted yet another relatable breakup ballad that recalls “We Belong Together” lyrically and “Circles” (a Mimi album cut) musically. “I-think-you-might-be-getting-a-little-bit-toooooo… in your feelings,” she sings, serving up all of the drama we yearn for.
3. “Confetti & Champagne”
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On the bitingly cool “Confetti & Champagne” she delivers one of her slickest tracks to date, utilizing her gorgeously rich and inimitable tone to deliver the superior sibling to 2009’s “Standing O.”
2. “I Won’t Allow It”
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The album’s most undeniable bop is “I Won’t Allow It.” Mimi glides through this skate-inducing disco groove, delivering scathing lyrics atop equally punching production. You might’ve seen the quotable zinger, “Can’t obtain any Accutane, Should’ve been more Proactiv,” making the rounds on social media. Instantly catchy, it’d be right at home on the dancefloor, the roller rink, or in an Instagram post shading an ex.
1. “Here For It All”
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It’s like “Here For It All” is the answer to “Portrait.” I won’t pretend to know who she’s singing to on either song, but I almost wonder if she’s singing to herself and her own inner strength. With “Portrait,” she left us on an ambiguous note, but here there is a joyous resolution: a peace —for her, for us, for my concern.
By the time we arrive at “Here For It All,” the album closer, Carey has taken us through every emotion of her life, and every sound of her career. Musically, the song is stripped down; the production is sparse to let us focus on the lyrics, melodies, and arrangements.
