Long story short, had this album since 2005, never really listened to it, bought "E=MC2", decided to but the Platinum edition of "The Emancipation of Mimi" and I LOVE IT.
Key tracks:
It's Like That - such a up beat way to reintroduce herself and let go all of the pain from the few years before.
We Belong Together - one of my favourite songs of ALL TIME, I love it. Everything about this r&b song is perfection to me. The vocals, running time, chorus, music. I love it toooo much.
Shake it Off - nice song, not the best but its pretty cool!
Say Somethin' - really mid-90's sounding, I really like this track.
Get your Number - another grower on me, its a really hot song, the video is awesome too.
One And Only - Mariahs restrained vocals sound awesome and Twistas rapping is top notch.
Fly Like A Bird - WOW. Perfect gospel up lifting song!
Dont Forget About Us - Kind of a carbon copy of We Belong Together but its a decent enough track and well deserving of her 17th #1.
We Belong Together REMIX - kind of repetitive, but nevertheless, a really good track!

SO BUY THIS NOW! Along with E=MC2, Mariah has made 2 REALLY good albums over the past 3 years! Too good! Try it out now! Go on!

Mariah Carey is one of my Fav. Singers. I really love all her albums. She stays true to herself and her type of music.. No matter how she dresses or does her hair :). Oh, and by the way.. who ever added the tag suggestions of fat, flop, and terrible.. Quit hating. You have to really be jealous to take the time out to insult people online. either jealous or really inerested. Mariah Carey makes money for her singing. People do like her.. regardless of what she does with her life or looks like.

I'm sure there's something her record label's not revealing!

Mariah has become a parody of herself with that big hair, airbrushed tummy, and pillow slip frock!

Where are the stylists when you need them?

I purchased this one a few years ago when it was first released and fell in love with it! It has a great mix of songs from club bangers to some Classic Mariah ballads. Of course WE BELONG TOGETHER was great & a timeless song no one could ever forget! Other standout tracks are ONE AND ONLY, I WISH YOU KNEW, MINE AGAIN, STAY THE NIGHT, JOY RIDE...and of course DONT FORGET ABOUT US was great. I highly recommend this one to anyone who does not already have it, it's hott!

The Emancipation of Mimi - Platinum Edition This CD was in a word pathetic, I could'nt stand a single song and this is another one of those albums filled full of "Rap Duets" that basically stink. Mariah Carey started as a solo artist and it's music like this that probably sent her into rehab. Mariah, go back to your roots and remember what creativity was about. Forget about this rap garbage and next time put out a good album. I don't buy the hype on these albums anymore like "8 Grammy Nominations?"

Despite the title, don't believe it. Its very surprising that this great album STILL has not been released in its' definitive form.

Yes, though this version of the CD contains all the regular tracks from the album as well as some new ones (such as "So Lonely" and the No. 1 single "Don't Forget About Us"), it completely misses the mark by neglecting to include two tracks that were recorded for the Mimi sessions. These songs are available on the pricey Japanese Import version of the CD, and also on certain International versions of this album.

The two songs are "Sprung" and "Secret Love". I would say that they are perhaps the best songs on the album other than "We Belong Together". "Sprung" is a futuristic R&B Anthem that has a great chorus, and "Secret Love" is one of those repetitive Mariah songs that get lodged in your head and just won't let go! Both are essential songs, and it's a pity that most audiences in the US don't even know these songs exist (and yes, they are very much available on foreign editions of this album).

Try getting your hands on them, and only then can you claim to have an "Ultra Platinum Edition" of this CD. In its' current form, this album is still incomplete.

Mariah did it right with this album. I love almost every song. Highly recommended!

So, `The Emancipation of Mimi' has been lauded as the return of the voice. In fact, that is as true as it can possibly be for this album is certainly Carey's finest since `Butterfly'. I can't say it's an exact return of the voice since her voice is a lot more breathy than her previous works, but she has definitely returned to form in that she has delivered a track listing worthy of her fame and fortune. In fact there is not one track here that is not outstanding. I still feel that `Butterfly' is overall her greatest album to date, but `The Emancipation of Mimi' definitely resides close behind it. She has a great mix of hearty ballads and club worthy dance tracks and she gives her all too each and every track. Mariah Carey had received her fair share of flak in the years proceeding `Glitter' and preceding `The Emancipation of Mimi' but here is her answer back to the legions of people claiming she had lost it all and would never get it back.

The album kicks off with the single `It's Like That' featuring the likes of Fat Man Scoop and Jermaine Dupri. It's not the most involving single; it's pretty much a catchy beat and Mariah setting the record straight, that no matter what anyone says she's here to stay. It's not the best track here but it sets the stage nicely. She keeps the same club beat mentality on finer tracks like `Get Your Number' with Jermaine Dupri, a track that shines through and through. On `Stay The Night' Mariah's killer vocals are accompanied by a nice throwback beat that recalls the golden years of R&B while still remaining fresh and new. In fact, `Stay The Night' may just very well be my favorite track here, but there are so many that resonate high with me it's hard to really nail down a favorite. `To The Floor' features the talents of Nelly and they work so well together. The beat is enticing and makes it almost impossible to remain still. `Shake It Off' has a very bouncy vibe that makes it instantly contagious. I will admit that radio really overdid this one, but it's still a great track.

There are two tracks that are perfect examples of collaborations done right. `Say Somethin' with Snoop Dogg and Pharell of N.E.R.D. is one great vibin' song. It just has the right atmosphere, the right beat, the right lyrics and the right chemistry between the artists, but if we're going to talk about killer chemistry we have to mention Mariah and Twista's collaborations. `One And Only is superbly done with Mariah keeping the pace with the fire spitter himself. The do this again on the bonus track `So Lonely', a track that originally appeared on Twista's album and is revisited and reworked for Mariah's deluxe album. It works beautifully. Mariah's voice soars here.

`We Belong Together' is a great ballad of lost love. Mariah's voice is top notch here, as it is in the bonus track (and international single) `Don't Forget About Us'. In fact, it's on these ballads where Mariah has always been able to prove her weight and she does that to phenomenal heights on this album. `Mine Again' is touching and there are moments within the chorus where her voice can give the listener chills. `Circles' is another fantastic opportunity for Mariah to soar, and she takes that opportunity. `I Wish You Knew' is a beautiful throwback and carries and older vibe that I adore. `Your Girl' is one of the best songs here. Resting nicely between ballad and pop track it allows Mariah's voice to excel while allowing Mariah to have some real fun. It's got such a catchy vibe to it you'll be bobbing your head and singing along on no time. `Joy Ride' is a decent track but `Fly Like A Bird' is truly outstanding. Following the `Hero' or even `Butterfly' formula, `Fly Like A Bird' has that inspirational feel to it, and it works beautifully. This is where the album ends, that is unless you have the deluxe copy and if that's the case then you're blessed with four additional tracks.

I've mentioned both `Don't Forget About Us' and `So Lonely' but there is also that catchy and impressive `Makin It Last All Night' and the remix to `We Belong Together' featuring the likes of Jadakiss and Styles P. Now I'm not a fan of remixing songs like `We Belong Together' but this one works well. It's not my favorite track by any means, and she could have seriously done without it. I mean, why not remix a track like `To The Floor' or `It's Like That', club happy tracks that are screaming for revised beats and additional artists? In the end though this is not nearly enough to complain about. Mariah has succeeded in reinventing herself and proving to the world that she still has it, never lost it and will always continue to shine.

I'm a pretty big Mariah Carey fan. Always have been and her voice is beyond amazing. I love Daydream, Butterfly, Rainbow, Charmbracelet etc. I do like a few songs from this album, but to be honest..I was kinda disappointed. I love "We Belong Together" and i like "It's Like That" but other than that, there aren't many songs I like a whole lot. I've liked several songs that were hip-hop influenced from previous albums but it just seems like she is missing left and right on this one. None of the songs really GRAB you except the 2 I mentioned. She's trying a little too hard to fit in I think and it's making her look kinda bad. Anyway, some people like it, some hate it...so if you're thinking about buying a Mariah cd, I wouldn't really recommend this one first..I would recommend Butterfly, Charmbracelet or Rainbow. :) Still looking forward to her next album though, not everyone can be perfect ALL the time!

I love this album and it is really sad that people are sleeping on it (lol it is six times platinum). This is a complete album that you can listen to from beginning to end. Mariah really did a great job of showing how talented she really is. It is a mixture of everything, this cd is up beat yet laid back, and it's a classic. This is her best album in my opinion and I can't wait for the next one.

MY TOP FIVE (This was a tough selection process b/c the entire album is great)

1. Joy Ride
2. Mine Again
3. Circles
4. Say Something
5. Fly Like a Bird

But I guess most of her CDs have a fair bit of screaming. But I digress.

I'm gonna start off by also saying that we all shouldn't deny that Mariah's voice isn't what it was back when her first couple of albums were released, and she sounded like a sensitive angel that just needed to be heard. These days, however, it sounds a bit strained. It's not too bad, but you can definitely tell that it has waned a bit in power. When she gets to the shrieking, I don't like it.

But really, I'm writing this review for a couple of reasons. But the main two are this:

1. Overall, this CD is pretty damn good.

2. Mariah is, and has been my favorite artist of all time thus far. I loved her in her "Vision Of Love", "All I Want For Christmas", "Dreamlover" and "Fantasy" days. The music she makes now doesn't quite measure up as much, but is still pretty enjoyable to say the least. ^_^b

Back to the songs on this particular CD though. There are a couple of songs I skip sometimes, but I wouldn't categorize them as bad. It's just sometimes Mariah gets the yelling and I have to skip 'em. Or she kinda bores me (I Wish You Knew or Joy Ride) Otherwise, this is a pleasant ride.

If you don't have ANY of Mariah's albums though (who wouldn't have at least one if they are reading this?) I would start with either Emotions (1991) or Daydream (1995). But if you like your R&B music, then get this one. If you do get this one, make sure it's the Platinum Edition because the extra songs are worth it.

The only reason I could see someone getting the original Emancipation is for the beautiful cover which is superior to this one. But don't both look great?!

The highlights for me are:

3. Shake It Off, 5. Say Something, 6. Get Your Number 8. One And Only, 9. Circles, 10. Your Girl, 14. Fly Like A Bird, 15. Don't Forget About Us and 16. Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do).

This CD has its highlights but it isn't her best. Go for Emotions (1991), Daydream (1995) and even Butterfly (1997).

Mariah's writing has always been decent enough, and she doesn't stop writing for this one. She collaborates with other songwriters such as Jermaine Dupri, Pharrell Williams, Snoop Dogg, Kanye "Omari" West, Twista and notably, Babyface again.

I hope you enjoyed my review. Have a look at my others if you would like.

4.3 stars. ^_~

End note: If you don't hear a ballad here, then it's a club-ready mid-tempo. Fantastic album from a true entertainer. I must see her in concert before I die. Hopefully, it'll be at one of the E=Mc2 ones. :^)

Mariah stepped her game up from her last 2 albums and the buzz was definitely worth it. The first half of the album is good and the end was good, but the middle is a bunch of fillers. "Fly Like A Bird" is definitely the best track you kinda get a feel of the old Mariah back it the 90's. Great job and can't wait for the next album.

THIS CD HAS TO BE ONE OF THE BEST CD'S THAT MARIAH HAS MADE IN A LONG WHILE. GREAT QUALITY, PRICE, AND IT ARRIVED QUICK...THANKS!

All songs are wonderful. Especially like when she sings those unbelievable high notes. She has the energy even those singers in their 20s don't have. Fly like a bird is timeless. Shake is off is fun and girl-power. Don't miss this album! (and great price too)

I'm not really a Mariah Carey fan. But, for me, "Fly like a bird" is the song, however, it if were only 5 minutes long - yes, it's too short! On the whole, however, a good CD. The price was right also ($4.00). Four stars!

This is great cd. All the songs are great you can either get upi and dance or chill with your boo or just have a great time with your girls.

It's Like that- 10/10 (dancing)
We Belong Together- 10/10 (romatic)
Shake It Off- 9/10 (dancing)
Mine Again- 20/10 (romatic)
Say Somethin'-8/10 (dancing)
Stay The Night-9/10
Get Your Number- 7.5/10
One and Only-8/10
Circles-9/10
Your Girl-10/10 (fun song)
I Wish You Knew- 8/10
To The Floor- 5/10 ( I skip this song)
Joy Ride-20/10 (so soft and sweet it could be a wedding song)
Fly Like A Bird -15/10
Don't Forget About Us- 9/10
Makin' It Last All Night (What it do)-15/10 (fun)
So Lonely (One and Only pt II)-10/10
We Belong Together-6/10 (I like the unremix version)

Firstly the reason why more tracks werent included on the rerelease is that if more then 4 tracks were included the album sales would have been treated as thou they were two seperate albums so instead of having one MEGA selling album she would have had two WELL selling albums.

The bonus tracks are definatly worth buying the re release for. So Lonely is great and Dont forget about us is one of mariahs best songs ever.

I dont think this is her best album, i think the very under rated CHARMBRACELET CD is by far her best release, followed by RAINBOW.

Highlights on this CD are We Belong Together, Stay The Night, Mine Again, Its Like That, Dont Forget About Us and So Lonely.

After hearing MC's Pepsi Ringtones which she recorded, some of those tunes are some of the best I have heard from her, and alot better then some of the songs on this CD, such as Time of your life and Once in a life time! she should turn those tracks into Full songs and release them.

Mariah seems to be following the latest trend on the music industry:when your album is selling like hotcakes,capitalise on the success by rereleasing the album with additional material.After all it did wonders for Usher's "Confessions" record sales.The new songs on the album are good,especially "Don't Forget about Us",which basically has the same message as "We Belong Together".The remix of "We Belong Together" falls flat though,not even Jadakiss can revive it."So Lonely" is another great song.The DVD which contains her music videos is another treat.I guess this album did it's task,judging by the fact that it pushed the album's sales from five million to six million.

This is an excellent album! I have never bought a Mariah album before, but this was well worth the money. This album is one of the rare ones that can be listened to straight thru from beginning to end. It presents a good variety of songs from "party-mood" (Like That), to "reflective" (We belong Together), to "spiritually-conscious" (Fly Like a Bird).

Each and every song on the CD was strong. Both "We belong together" and "Shake it Off" are smooth tracks that that showcase Mariah's talent. I'd recommend it.

mimi was r&b CD of the year and confessions on a dancefloor was best dance music CD of the year.

i can't even install this damn software:DVDacess, to access mariah's interview!! can't they made this DVD easier? like gorillaz DVD is so easy to access!! no software needed to be installed. wasted 1.5 hr of my life to figure out a way! damn it!! bloody stupid software engineers created this crap!

I hate to see Madonna fans exploding this page with hating reviews on Mariah. Why bother, people? The people who visit this page are not stupid. They realize you are here to hate and not give an honest, open opinion about the album. A 1 star review on Amazon would not change the fact that "The Emancipation Of Mimi" is the no. 1 selling album of 2005. So do us all a favor and go review Madonna albums instead. Now about the album... "The Emancipation Of Mimi" is a pure fun record. It's full of hip-hop beats, Urban records and R&B-influenced ballads. The hugely-popular enormously-big record-breaking hit-single, aka "We Belong Together", is undeniably the album's crown jewel. The song became the hit that it is for a good reason. It has great beats, great lyrics, great vocals. The album spawned several more hit-singles including the bouncy "It's Like That" and "Get Your Number". I am crossing my fingers for Mariah to win a handful of Grammy's next month, she truly deserves it.

Mariah Carey regained her crown with this album. She truly does deserve the 8 Grammy Nominations. People need to stop comparing people. I read a review for Mary J. Blige's "The Breakthrough", which is also an amazing album. The reviewer said "use The Emancipation Of Mimi as a coaster and get The Breakthrough". Is it not possible to have more than one amazing album released in one year. Both of these two women are amazing and both of them released amazing albums. Also, I read something about Mariah Carey fans trying to make Madonna's album flop, which is ridiculous. People always have to compare people. But anyways, back to this album. With this album, you can tell Mariah is in a new place and she's finally free. The title fits very well for the album, because it just sounds like she just let go of everything. The music doesn't like it's being controlled, there's just this strong feel of freedom.

The album jumps off with the first single, "It's Like That". This free-spirited party-starter is produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. I love the song, but the first verse is definately very shocking to all the long-term Mariah fans, as she makes drug and alcohol references ("I came to have a party, open up the Bacardi....Purple taking me higher, I'm lifted and I" like it). But regardless, the song is still amazing. The second track on the album is the second single, "We Belong Together", which is also produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. The song is her first number one hit in over five years, and it's an absolutely amazing song. Mariah Carey describes the song as "Anytime You Need A Friend" meets "Breakdown", and Jermaine Dupri describes it as the biggest song of his career. Although I may have heard this song over a million times, since April of 2005, surpringsly, I have never gotten sick of yet. The next track on the album is the third single "Shake It Off", also produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey definately make the perfect team. Dupri has been each single released from this album so far. This is one of my favorites on the album, the lyrics are awesome. It's just about move on and putting someone behind you and just "shaking them off". Great lyrics! The fourth song on the album is a beautiful ballad called "Mine Again", produced by James Poyser and Mariah Carey. It's an absolutely amazing song that shows you MARIAH STILL HAS THAT AMAZING VOICE. ALthough this song has not been released as a single, I have heard on the radio in Chicago a few times. The next song on the album is a Neptunes-produced track featuring Snoop Dogg, called "Say Somethin'." Mariah Carey and Snoop Dogg colloborated back in 1999 on the song "Crybaby." This song definately isn't as great as "Crybaby" but it's still a pretty good song. The next song is a track produced by Kanye West and Mariah which is another one of my favorites. I have so many favorites on this album that it's ridiculous, I can't even pic a number one favorite. But this is definately one of my favorites. A great colloboration between Mariah and Kanye. Mariah's voice is amazing on this album and again, it's one of those song that just gives you that FREE feeling. Guess what's next, another favorite. "Get Your Number" is another colloboration with Jermaine Dupri, which was a top ten hit in the U.K. For some odd reason, people keep refering to this as one of the worst tracks on the album, but I think it's one of the best on the album. It has a very early '90's feel to it. It's kind of like, what Mariah Carey would do in the early 1990's if she teamed up with Jermaine Dupri earlier. The next track is a song called "One & Only" which features Twista. I think the song might be better without Twista singing along with the melody several times in the middle of his rap, and just had a short rap, instead of the long verse he has. The next song is a ballad called "Circles" in which she produces with James "Big Jim" Wright. It's just a great song with great lyrics. The next song is a more upbeat song called "Your Girl". I can't think of anything to say about it, but it's just a really good song. The next song is a slower track called "I Wish You Knew", the song has a fake live audience at the beginning of it. The song has an old school R&B ballad feel to it. It's a really nice song. Things change up a bit with the next track. Another track produced by The Neptunes called "To The Floor", featuring Nelly. The song is definately a club joint, but definately has an 80's feel to it. This is another one of my favorites. We already knew Nelly and The Neptunes made a good team due to the success of "Hot In Herre". But I also think Mariah and Nelly sound good together. The next song, "Joy Ride", I think might be my least favorite on the album. I just don't think there's anything all that special about it. The final track on the original pressing of the album is "Fly Like A Bird", which is a wonderful song. I love this song because it's like she's going back to the basics. Towards the end of the song a choir comes in singing the chorus. It reminds you of something she would have done in the early or mid 90's.

The new re-released edition of the album features four new bonus tracks, "Don't Forget About Us", "Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do)", "So Lonely (One & Only Part II)" and "We Belong Together Remix". All four tracks are amazing, making the album ten times better. "Don't Forget About Us" is Mariah's latest single, produced by Jermaine Dupri and herself, like her other singles released the album. I love this song, it's reminiscent of "Always Be My Baby", which was also produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah, and was the first collobroation between the two. "Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do)" is another Jermaine Dupri/Mariah colloboration and is absolutely amazing. It's basically just a very sexy upbeat Hip-Hop flavored track. "So Lonely (One & Only Part II)" is 90 billion times better than the original version. I don't even like the original version all that much (compared to the other tracks on the album), but I think this song might have to be my favorite track on the album. The album closes with the "We Belong Together" remix featuring Jadakiss and Styles P. This remix has been getting airplay ever since the summer of 2005, so it's good to finally get it on an album. I don't think I love it as much as the original version but I still love it, and I'm so glad they put it on here. If you don't have this re-released version, stop complaining and GO GET IT! You can sell the original pressing to a used CD store! The four new tracks alone are definately worth the money.

"The Emancipation Of Mimi" is Mariah Carey's best album since... I don't know, since all of her album's are amazing. But this album is definately way better than "Charmbracelet". Mariah Carey definately deserves these 8 Grammy Nominations. She HAS regained her crown!

This re-release does not offer enogh bonus material to make fans buy it again.
This is an amazing album, but the new edition is not worth the money.
If you already have the album, avoid this re-release.

The album is very good; it is well over an hour long (which is what I always like). But it could be real complete with "Sprung" and "Secret Love", the two Japanese bonus tracks and the Mariah/Jadakiss duet, "U Make Me Wanna" (they'll fit!). This album does deserve the title of 2005's best selling album, ALONGSIDE Madonna's "Confessions on a Dance Floor", not just the latter. For all those negative reviews of this wonderful album, you're merely jealous.

It's Like That - Hang-out anthem? Maybe. That's the song's theme, after all. 5/5

We Belong Together - One of my most favorite songs ever. A sequel to the first song? Maybe just the videos, but this song rocks SUPER!! 5/5

Shake It Off - Why oh why is this song's theme so opposite to "We Belong Together"? The tune is very good for dancing, though. I COULD shake someone off.... 5/5

Mine Again - A ballad in this album? That's EXACTLY what it needs! We could do with a duet, though. 5/5

Say Something - Here Mariah says "****". I don't care, you know; the song's still real nice! Why don't you rap instead, Snoop Dogg? LOL 5/5

Stay the Night - It does sound like you want your friend to stay the night. Doesn't sound as party-ish as "It's Like That" and "Shake It Off", though. 5/5

Get Your Number - I've never heard Jermaine Dupri sing before. Personally, he is better off with rapping. 5/5

One and Only - What can I say? There's a Part 2 still! Twista, you did real great in those tracks.... 5/5

Circles - Quite all right.... 4/5

Your Girl - Too short....I'd give it a five if it was longer. 4/5

I Wish You Knew - Knew what? Hahaha (LOL) 4/5

To the Floor - Another dance anthem? 4/5

Joy Ride - Very good song. 5/5

Fly Like a Bird - Normally I don't like Christian/Gospel music much, but this one I really like! 5/5

Don't Forget About Us - Yep, it's a sequel to "We Belong", as far as the theme is concerned. Sounds very 90's, and I like it! 5/5

Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do) - Cute tune ^__^ and cute JD rap! Should I dance to it...? 5/5

So Lonely - The sequel is better than the first part. If this song becomes #1 again, Mariah is the best artist ever! 4/5

We Belong Together Remix - More disco-ish than the original version (which I still love more). I love this track. It gives new meaning to "remix". 5/5

All of you haters need to get a life. So what if Mariah wants to release this CD for the third time or even for the 10th time. I mean artists rerelease albums all the time. This CD adds 4 great new tracks but leaves Sprung and Secret Love off, a bad move on Island's part. However, if you don't currently own this CD, then this is the version to own.

I really think that kid's should be banned from reviews. I mean what does her weight have to do with the quality of an album review. These reviews should be from people who actually have heard the CD. How fat she is or how much she eats has nothing to do with it. Period.

I have already reviewed the original release of "The emancipation of mimi" so i will post that review, along with a review of the extra songs.
Mariah has done it again with The emancipation of mimi (Ultra platinum edition" She has generously given fans new songs, all of which are single material!


It's Like That-A fast, up-tempo club song, good vocals on Mariah's part, and the end with fatman scoop is definetly the highlight of the song! The beat is perfect for dancing, definetly one of her best up-tempos! this was the 1st single from the album. Grade:A+

We belong Together-EVERYONE has heard this one! Beginning with a piano intro, We belong together is one of THE most succsessful singles of the year! The beat is very mid-tempo R&B, and its relaxing. Mariah's voice is suberb, especially her belting at the end! The song is about breaking up with your lover, and wanting them back. This was the 2nd single. Grade:A+

Shake it off-A mid-tempo R&B song, "Shake it off" is another breakup song, the song has a beat very similar to ushers "confessions part II" she even sings in a vein similar to usher! Vocal wise, the song is whispery until the end, but she belts it out in the end. I like the bridge, "I gotta shake shake shake it off" This was the third single. GRADE A+

Mine Again- A slow, R&B ballad. It begins with a slow 70's style keyboard, with mariah coming in soon after. During the chorus, she BELTS it out. And the song as a whole has a very 70's feel. I love the flutes in the background, so catchy. The song does lack a good ending though, it kinda just ends all too suddenly. Grade:B

Say somethin'-A fast, neptunes produced club song. Mariah sounds almost drunk during the berses, and the lyrics are crazy, (references to stars and planets, etc) but the chorus is simply infectious, and the snoop dogg rap fits in with the song perfectly. DEFINTETLY single material. Grade:A

Stay The night- This kanye west produced anthem samples an old song named "betcha by golly wow" And it has a very old school, Jackson five-ish feel. Mariah wonders whether to sleep with someone she had recently broken up with after he asks her to. The song has a LOT of belting and i like the end where she belts out "STAAAY" and background vocals start. Pure perfection! Grade:A

Get your number- A Jermaine Dupri production, the song samples "Just my imagination" by a group called illusion. The song has a differen't song structure, Jermaine dupri sings the chorus, and Mariah does the the verses, the beat almost makes one think of Mariah's earlier song "Fantasy" The highlight of the song happens to be Mimi's two 10 second raps, in which she tells of her "pimp penthouse" and her "House in capri" This was the 4th single in europe. Grade: A+

One and only- A very downbeat, slick, R&B song, "One and only" features a rap by world famous rapper Twista, and is about a cheating man, and how mimi hopes to find her "one and only" Mariah actually sings VERY fast, like twista, the chorus is a little boring however, could have been better! Grade:B-

Circles- A slow old school mariah song, its about how she is going around in circles over her man. the production is slow, but good. I love the mariah high note at the end! pure fabulousness! The whole song is a excellent, and the ending is great, good climax! Grade:A

Your Girl-The song begins with a spanish guitar, and it has a very up-beat feel. Its short, and she really belts out the chorus! It is about wanting to be with someone. What else can i say, a true album highlight!

I wish you knew-This song has a fake "live" audience in it, but it fits in the song. The chorus is nice and easy to sing, and I love the spoken word part in the middle, very nice. The osng has a lot of nice background vocals in he beginning and end. Its one of the slower songs, and its a happy song. Grade:A

To the floor- The fastest song on the second half of the record, this is a duet with nelly, and it was produced by the neptunes. The beat is very fast, and the bass is loud, perfect for the clubs. The vocals by both are whispery, and hard to hear, but it doesnt degrade the song. Grade: A

Joy ride- Perfect for lounging around, Joy ride's beat is slow, and puts one in a hypnotic state. The vocals are nice and loud, and the verses are sung in an almost nursery rhyme like way. The chorus has more background singers than mariah's voice, but its still a treat. Grade: B+

Fly like a bird- A gospel song, it is very jazzy, and her pastor makes a cameo! At first, mariah's voice is flat, but as the song goes on, it gets louder and stronger, until the climax, with Mariah belting out the chorus many times, along with a choir chanting behind her. Its probably my favorite song on the record, it is inspiring, fun, and a perfect song in every sense of the word. Grade: A+

Don't forget about us-A wonderful, beautiful ballad. It is sort of a We belong together part II! Except it has a more R&B beat, and I think better vocals. The chorus is easy to sing along with, and the lyrics are about ending a relationship. I love her vocals at the end! She REALLY belts it out! This is her 17th number one single!!! Grade:A+

Makin' it last all night (What it do)- A great club song, the rap from JD is grand! It starts with a slow beat, but it builds up. Mariah shows good vocals on the track, and its really nice for gettign ready to go out to the club. Grade: A+

So lonely (One and only part II)-An up-tempo hip hop song. Twista does the verses, and mariah does the rap and bridge. I personally wish Mariah did more on the song, but her parts are simply infectious. She sings in a whispy voice, and sings about wanting a man and not being lonely anymore. It is a great track! Grade:A+

We belong together (hip hop remix featuring Jadakiss and styles P.)- A faster version of we belong together, but it is not fast enough to be considered up-tempo. The beat is that of the originals, but sped up, and there is more of a hip hop feel. Mariah chose to re-sing the vocals from the original! I love her rap singing. It is REALLY fast! This may not be as good as the original, but it comes close.



Overall, The emancipation of mimi (platinum edition) is the best record of 2005, and definetly deserving of all the awards it has recently recieved!

PS: Please do not listen to the negative reviews, they come from jealous madonna fans, who will stop at NOTHING to bring down Mariah, probably because their queens latest album sucks. I am a huge madonna fan, and i am disgusted by their behavior. I hated "Confessions on a dance floor" but madonna is still one of my faves! The 1 star reviews are only from jealous, hateful people with too much time on their hands. I know they will rate my review as a "no" but i hope atleast one person finds this review helpful.

I love all the songs on this platinum cd but they should have also included the two bonus songs that are included on the Japanese import cd (Sprung, Secret Love) which I previously purchased. Now right now "Don't Forget About Us" is #1 on the charts and if you bought the original cd, The Emancipation Of Mimi, it is not included on there. The Dvd with the 4 videos are wonderful but to access the video"Don't Forget About Us" and the never before seen interview , you have to have something called DVD @ccess program which I have no knowledge of and apparently don't have or it is disabled. It would be great if I could readily view them just like the 4 other videos! I can not give this cd 5 stars because of this!

Finally, Mariah is back, now this album is more like it, I don't know where she's been for the last few years, but this is the Mariah I've been waiting for, uh I hope Whitney listens to this album maybe she can find her way back as well. I'll admit I was hesitant about this album even after Shake it off came out, a song I loved, but everyone kept saying how great this album was, and so I listend to a friends copy and was elated that the whole album was strong. This is a huge comeback album and I for one am jazzed that she found her way back, she is a singular talent and it's great to see her hit her stride, but I have to ask, uh honey what is with your rack....

Madonna fans need to stop with all the hate, and saying how perfect Madonna is, and saying how Mariah doesn't stand up for anything and Madonna does. If you would have took the time to actually listen to the cd, instead of just gave it a 1 star and dissed mariah for your precious madonna, you would have found the last song on the cd (or track 14 on this version) is a gospel song. If you would of had the time to listen to her other cds as well then you would of understand that she has a lot of gospel songs on them, so next time your going to say bad things about Mariah, back them up. (sorry i just had to get that out it just disgusts me how fans of other artists act like this is one big contest to make your artist the best. Your opinion is your opinion, no one can change yours and you can never change anyones opinion so you need to give up)

Anyways, this is one of my favorite albums of 2005. I can listen to this song over and over without getting bored, and i don't even have to skip any songs (with the exception of "To the floor" sometimes)! My favorite new song they added is probably "So Lonely", which I think is going to be the next single after "Don't Forget About Us" is done on the charts. This present is great for teens or older i wouldn't recommend it for children younger then 8. Trust me, you won't regret buying this CD!

This album has some good tracks. I am just tired of the guest rappers. Heck, I am tired of rap period. And can we stop the Mariah vs Madonna fight! They are both powerful women and both are great at what they do.

This is an excellent cd in my opinion. I have the original version and I wanted to have this version, so I did. I bought it because I loved the original version and this has 4 extra songs. Maybe you don't think it's worth to buy the same cd with "just" 4 extra songs. But if you re-release an album it may only contain 4 new songs. If it has more new songs, it counts as an entire new album on the billboard charts. And now over to the cd.
The first track and also the first single is "It's Like That". This is a great song to dance on and it's just about having a great party. The next track and the second single is "We Belong Together". We all know how great this song is, it is the biggest single of the year (#1 for 14 weeks). The third song/single is "Shake It Off". Just love the song. "Mine Again" and "Stay The Night" are 2 very great ballads. Mariah belts out those famous notes and it made me think of "My All" (Butterfly) and "Without You" (Music Box). "Say Somethin'" and "To The Floor" are both produced by the Neptunes. That says enough I guess, you'll have a great time listening and dancing to these songs. "Get Your Number" was only released in Europe. It's also a great party song. Great chemistry between Mariah & Jermaine Dupri. "One And Only" and "Circles" are so beautiful, it's about love and the problems that you might have with it. "Your Girl" is the shortest song on the cd but it has a nice beat and great vocals. "I Wish You Knew" and "Joy Ride" are beautiful ballads. "Fly Like A Bird" is a gospel song and I love it.
And now the bonus tracks. "Don't Forget About Us" is the new single. It's already #2 on the billboard hot 100 chart. The best way to describe this song is a mix between "We Belong Together" and "Shake It Off". It's just a very great song. "Makin' It Last All Night (What It Do)" is great track. Mariah & Jermaine made another great song. "So Lonely (One And Only Part II)" is one of the best songs on the album. It's really hot, Mariah and Twista make magic. And the last track is "We Belong Together (Remix)" with Jadakiss & Styles P. An excellent remix of the original song. I love the end-note of Mariah.
My favorite songs are "We Belong Together", "Don't Forget About Us", "Stay The Night", "So Lonely" and "Fly Like A Bird". All the other tracks are very very good.

Great Music!!!
Some reviewer wrote all tis trash on Madonna, but madonna is a great singer too, and they need to stop hatin', cause Mariah aint that much prettier, and she needs to lose some weight, now, besides that, this cd is really bumpin. I love Mariah, she's an awesome singer and she's really talented and pretty and all, so no offense to her, I DO like Madonna a little more, but this cd is amazing and I'm glad it's doing well.

I'm simply rating this for the quality of the re-release, not the album itself.

Naturally, fans of Mariah are going to be willing to plop down more money for an expanded edition. But as with many recent scams of this sort by record companies, it STILL could have been more complete. Where are "Sprung" and "Secret Love", the two amazing tracks from the MEGA-expensive Japanese import of Emancipation? And why not include "U Make Me Wanna", Mariah's duet with Jadakiss from his CD, so that this would have been TOTALLY worth the price of a second purchase??? That would have been the ULTIMATE Emancipation of Mimi CD.