Mariah Carey’s ethnicity is a mix of Caucasian, African American, and Latina. She is from the city of New York and has American nationality. Carey is one of the most successful musicians in human history. In a career of three decades, she has dropped numerous hit singles and platinum albums.
She has sold over 220 million records, won many awards, and has a slew of films and TV shows to her name. Carey is undoubtedly one of the most famous mixed-race celebrities in the world and is credited with bringing down barriers to multiculturalism in the U.S.
Where is Mariah Carey From?
Mariah Carey is from New York City, specifically the town of Huntington in Suffolk County. She has American nationality. She was born in 1969 and began singing as a child. She later spent some time singing backup and demos before landing a recording deal in the late 80s. Mariah Carey released her debut eponymous album in 1990. It was a success and since then, she has grown to become one of the best-selling musicians of all time with many awards and records to her name.
What Ethnicity is Mariah Carey?
A simple glance at Mariah Carey would have you thinking that she is white but this is not so. Mariah Carey is not white. She rather has multi-racial ethnic origins. The singer has Caucasian roots from her maternal side and African-American and Afro-Venezuelan (Latina) roots from her paternal side. It, therefore, means that Mariah Carey has white, black, and Latina ethnicities.
Having multi-racial or even biracial roots is never an easy deal and this was the case with Mariah Carey who experienced all shades of racism from before she even truly understood what it was. The singer would share her experiences in her 2020 memoir – The Meaning of Mariah Carey. For instance, Carey’s maternal grandparents who were White, objected to her mom dating her dad because he was black. The love birds however went on to get married but their problems did not stop. The community they lived in treated them in a hostile manner; poisoning their dog and even firing a gunshot at their car.
This was not a wonderful way to grow up and things only got worse as Carey grew older. As a child, Mariah Carey was quite fair and had blonde hair. Whenever she took a walk with her dad, people would stare at them and wonder what he was doing with her. All this left an indelible mark on Carey and made her feel like a nonentity. It also motivated her to succeed and she took inspiration from other multi-racial singers like Irene Cara (who had Puerto Rican and Cuban roots) as she kick-started her music career.
Mariah Carey’s Parents’ Nationality
Mariah Carey’s parents have American nationality. They however have diverse ethnicities. For instance, Mariah Carey’s mother, Patricia Hickey is white and has Irish roots. She is an accomplished opera singer and vocal coach who attended the famed Julliard School. On the other hand, Mariah Carey’s father is the late Alfred Roy Carey. Alfred Carey has African American and Afro-Venezuelan roots. He was however born in the United States which makes him American. He was an aeronautical engineer in his lifetime.
Mariah Carey’s parents were married in 1960. They later parted ways when Carey was three and she majorly grew up with her mom. Her mom worked hard to support her. She also encouraged her to pursue her music dreams which she did and succeeded. Things later became strained between daughter and mother though as Carey’s mom harbored feelings of jealousy toward her.
Things were strained between them for a good period of time but they have patched things up now. On the other hand, Mariah Carey rarely saw her father after the divorce and did not have much contact with him until he passed away in 2002. She however still has fond memories of him and paid a tribute to him in October 2022 to mark his posthumous birthday.
