VoiceMariah Carey possesses a five-octave vocal range, and was ranked first in a 2003 MTV and Blender magazine countdown of the 22 Greatest Voices in Music, as voted by fans and readers in an online poll. Carey said of the poll, "What it really means is voice of the MTV generation. Of course, it's an enormous compliment, but I don't feel that way about myself."[195] She also placed second in Cove magazine's list of "The 100 Outstanding Pop Vocalists".[196] Regarding her voice, Carey states,

"I have nodules on my vocal cords. My mother says I've had them since I was a kid. That's why I have the high register and the belting register and I can still be husky. The only thing that really affects my voice is sleep. Sometimes if I'm exhausted, I can't hit the really high notes."[197] "My doctors showed me my vocal cords and why I can hit those high notes. It's a certain part of the cord that not many people use—the very top. My natural voice is low. I have a raspy voice. I'm really more of an alto. But my airy voice can be high if I'm rested. [...] When I was little, I'd talk in this really high whisper, and my mom would be like, "You're being ridiculous." I thought if I can talk like that I can sing like that. So I started [she goes higher and higher and higher] just messing around with it. I'd practice and practice, and she'd be like, "You're gonna hurt yourself." I'd tell her, It doesn't hurt/ If I were to try and belt two octaves lower than that, that would be a strain."[198]

She also explains that it was Minnie Riperton who influenced her to use the whistle register.[198]

French-American baritone and singing teacher in the Conservatoire de Paris Malcolm Walker[199] as well as music critic Stephen Holden of The New York Times[200] and vocal pedagogue Jeannette Lo Vetri[201] state that her lower regiter is "tired", "distended", the medium is pure, full rounded and warm, the belting register "works very well" and has the same timbre that the medium. However, the medium is often breathy and thin and the voice is sometimes strained in belting. The head voice and the whistle register are bright, ample and pure. Malcolm Walker adds: "She passes easily in head voice. It's her true voice."[199]

Sasha Frere-Jones of The New Yorker adds her timbre possesses various colors, saying, "Carey's sound changes with nearly every line, mutating from a steely tone to a vibrating growl and then to a humid, breathy coo."[202] Her wide vocal range allows Carey to take melodies from alto bottom notes to coloratura soprano upper register,[96][202] and, according to music critic Jim Faber of New York Daily News, she can "cover all the octaves between [those voice types], and [possesses] the agility to move between ... with swiftness and aplomb."[96] Carey also possesses what she calls "whisper register". In an interview with the singer, Ron Givens of Entertainment Weekly described it this way, "In one brief swoop, she seems to squeal and roar at the same time: whisper register."[203]

Voice experts praise Carey's vocal technique, like Stephen Holden who said, "[s]he can deliver very accurate staccatos as well as tricky melismas, and she possesses a beautiful and solid trill in upper register".[200] Jeanette Lo Vetri states, "Carey is really a great technician. The staccatos are pin point, executed with amazing speed and control, the legato is a marvel of smoothness, she is the supreme mistress of melismas, she always keeps a neutral larynx position— except sometimes in her lower register— and she glides effortlessly from bottom to top and vice versa."[201] Malcolm Walker adds her vocal lines are "very well led, especially in piano register."

Hey ya everyone, welcome to my channel. I am just a simple 15YEAR old who aspires to become a famous singer like the four elements(i'll tell you who they are later). I am a church boy who loves old school music. My all time favorite singers are Mariah Carey, Whitney Houston, Christina Aguilera, and Amber Rily. I love all four these women because of their Vocal abilities, personality, and because they can SAAAANNNGG like nobody's business. But I also like them because of the poweress that they possess on stage. Mariah with her crystal clear cry that seems effortless to attempt. Whitney with her astounding power and soulful vocals that takes you back to the old gospel days. Christina with her raw powerhouse vocals that could be loud or soft. And Amber even though she is new, when she sings, she makes everybody stop what they are doing and listen in awe and shock to her sweet but powerful voice. Together these four women make up the four elements. Mariah is water because of the way her voice pours out like a gentle stream or a raging river that is able to wash over you and wrap you in dream like state. Also like water, her voice can either become hard and resonant or soft and whispery that soothes the mind and body: Whitney is earth because of her earthy tone and power. Once whitney opens her mouth you better look out cause like an earthquake she can shake you down to your core with her gospel like power. When Whitney enters the stage, she commands it with a force so great that everyone stops, looks, and listens. Her soulfull voice mixes soul and gospel into a dangerous duo that nobody wants to touch. But like earth she can get soft and heal the body with her amazing runs: Christina represents fire with the fierceness she puts out when belting out a note. Her unatural raw and uncontained power can move moutains, and shake the air. Like fire she can smolder down into little sparks that are not super amazing, but just enough to catch your attention. But also like a fire she can blaze to great heights and burn her way through the competion and keep dozena warm. Be careful though cause when you play with fire you get BURNED: Last but not least is Amber Rily. She is air because her voice is like a gust of wind that can blow past notes like they were leaves. Like a hurricane, she can trap people in her powerful gust and intangle them with her ability to silence and mesmorize the audience. When she hits them high notes they echo with power and stability that would make mariah turn around and say "WHOA". Amber Rily can start out as a simple gust that travel through notes with swiftness and aplomb and then pick up into a strong wind that howls with fierceness. Finally she goes into tornado mode and simply knocks people off their feet with her whipping power. These four women make up the four elements of MY world and you will see a lot of them in my favorites. But I hope you all enjoy my page and have fun be nice cause I don't take no crap, I will set it off if somebody lose they mind and think they can come up on my page and talk mess. But enjoy and be happy!!!