Tommy Mottola, "Mariah Carey Succeeded Because of My Obsession"
In the early 90’s, Mariah Carey’s powerhouse voice brought her success almost overnight, but it was because of stern guidance given by her ex-husband Tommy Mottola that solidified her as a superstar, he claims.
Mottola, 63, met Carey when she was still green in the music industry. The two quickly floated into both a working and romantic relationship. The big-shot manager who was 20 years her senior, left his wife and fell head first in love with the singer. The marriage lasted five years, with Carey eventually leaving Mottola, calling him “controlling” and “a Svengali.”
Now, Mottola is on the promotional trail for his new book, “Hitmaker: The Man and His Music.” While promoting the biographical account, Mottola has made many controversial statements. He claimed if it wasn’t for him taking the reins on Carey’s career early on, the singer wouldn’t be as successful as she is now.
In many instances, Carey recounted her relationship with the music exec as her own “private hell” and often called him a tyrant.
Using the book as an opportunity to defend himself, Mottola wrote: “If it seemed like I was controlling, I apologize. Was I obsessive? Yes. But that was also part of the reason for her success.”
He stopped by the TODAY show and spoke about his influence on the new American Idol judge.
“I think anybody that’s successful becomes obsessive about what they’re trying to succeed at”, he said. “I have nothing but the greatest respect for her in the world… I feel great about all the things she’s achieved as a result of all the work that we did.”
Mottola admitted getting romantically involved with Carey was not one of his best decisions.
“You can never control sometimes what happens in your personal life, as well all know”, he said. “The good thing that came out of all of this is that she became one of the most successful superstars in the world."
Following Beyonce’s controversial inauguration performance, Lauer asked Mottola to chime in on the hotly debated topic. Mottola sided with the singer saying, "Beyonce is one of the greatest singers in the world, and my feeling is, any time that she wants to get up and sing, she can sing as well if not better than anyone, and everyone should just leave Beyonce alone.”
Carey has taken a seat at the American Idol judges table along with Keith Urban, Nicki Minaj and Randy Jackson. Carey’s feud with Minaj has been a contentious aspect of the show.
