Dreamlover (song) - Background

Background

In 1989, Carey was discovered by Tommy Mottola, CEO of Columbia Records, and was promptly signed to the label. Her self-titled debut studio album, released the following year, focused on re-recording and mastering several songs she had written in high school with classmate Ben Margulies. Seven songs were taken from her demo tape and she wrote four others. The songs were produced by Carey and an array of record producers. The album was well received by critics, who called it a mature debut and hailed its incorporation of various musical genres ranging from pop to R&B and soul. The album became a commercial success, selling over fifteen million units globally.

While the album made a strong impact on pop music, Carey became interested in altering her sound and branching out into other genres for her second studio effort, Emotions (1991). Columbia allowed her to take more control over her musical direction, enabling her to change the musical genre, melodies, and production style. Carey worked with many new musicians and producers on the album; Walter Afanasieff being the only holdover from her debut. Emotions contained influences from 1950s, 60s, and 70s balladry, gospel, R&B and soul music. The album, while praised by some as being more mature and raw, failed to reach the critical or commercial heights of her debut effort; selling fewer units and failing to introduce Carey into new markets. Columbia decided to return Carey to the same genre as her debut album and have her produce a more commercial and radio-friendly record. Their plans were to tone down Carey's vocals and soften the album's production to create a contemporary pop record. Carey and Afanasieff agreed to the change and began writing and recording material for her third studio effort, Music Box (1993).