Mariah Carey Reveals Her ‘Best Album,’ Despite the ‘Zero Accolades’ It Received

Mariah Carey is looking back at some of the most defining moments of her career.

The chanteuse sat down with Matt Rogers and Bowen Yang for a new episode of the duo’s Las Culturistas podcast, where Carey revealed how much her sixth studio album, Butterfly, meant to her. “It definitely has very special significance to me. I think it’s probably my best album,” she revealed.

When Rogers replied that he doesn’t understand why Butterfly “doesn’t have all the accolades,” Carey agreed. “It has zero accolades, I think,” she joked, before adding, “I love that album. It has a certain feeling when you listen to it. It’s just got a lot of diversity. You go from ‘Breakdown’ to ‘Butterfly’ to ‘My All.’”

The collection was released in September 1997 and featured the singles “Honey,” “Breakdown,” “The Roof” and the title tracks. The project debuted at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 album’s chart and was certified five-times platinum but the Recording Industry Association of America. While the project did not receive a Grammy, in 1998, “Honey” was nominated for best female R&B vocal performance and “Butterfly” was nominated for best female pop vocal performance.

Butterfly also represented a musical freedom for Carey, as she took control of her creative vision and began playing with hip-hop-influenced R&B to balance the pop and adult contemporary musical style fans were used to up until then.

To celebrate its 25th anniversary in 2022, the superstar reflected on the project via social media, writing, “I will never forget the day I released this album to the world. I had never felt more exposed and vulnerable yet free and euphoric at the same time. It was a true EMANCIPATION (no pun intended!) of my spirit, soul and innermost feelings which I poured into every lyric and every note on every song. 25 years later, it’s still one of the proudest moments of my life & career.”

Watch Carey’s full Las Culturistas interview below.