Time To Cut The Lawn

Mariah Carey “A No No”

Mariah Carey’s new record is stronger and more focused than anything she’s done in a while, largely because she seems like she’s lost interest in chasing trends and just wants to do Mariah Carey Things. “A No No” is the most fun she’s been in ages – energetic, sassy, and utterly ruthless in the way she drags her former manager for the crime of being dumb enough to cross Mariah fucking Carey. She sounds absolutely delighted to spend an entire song being extremely petty, and really chews on catty lines like “Ed Scissorhands, AKA, I cut you off” and “Parlez-vous Francais? I said non / let me translate it, I said NO.” The winding curve of the melody and syncopated beat flatters Carey’s vocal phrasing without having to show off her fading but still highly impressive voice. Even the seemingly random insertion of an old Biggie hook from a Lil Kim song works here – it’s a bit like something she might have had on a “Favorite Disses” vision board and just decided to throw into the song.

Buy it from Amazon.