Mariah Carey’s tragic promise to her mom despite their ‘complicated’ relationship

Mariah Carey shared the touching promise she made to her late mother despite their strained relationship.

Over the weekend, the 55-year-old Grammy-winning singer was shocked by the life-changing news that both her mother Patricia, 87, and her sister Alison, 63, had passed away on the same day.

In Mariah’s 2020 memoir, The Meaning Of Mariah Carey, she spoke candidly about her strained relationship with her mother, a vocal coach at Julliard and a mezzo-soprano with the New York City Opera.

Mariah candidly shared, “Like many aspects of my life, my journey with my mother has been full of contradictions and competing realities.

“It’s never just been black and white – it’s been a whole rainbow of emotions.”

Mariah continued: “[Our relationship was a] prickly rope of pride, pain, shame, gratitude, jealousy, admiration and disappointment.’

She candidly added that the personal tensions have left the artist experiencing “so much pain and confusion.”

Mariah admitted that despite their struggles, there is still a ‘complicated love connection’ [her] heart to [her] ‘from my mother.’

The singer also wrote: ‘I loved her very much and like most children I wanted her to be a safe place for me.

‘But ours is a story of betrayal and beauty. Of love and abandonment. Of sacrifice and survival.

‘I have freed myself from slavery several times, but I suspect there will always be a cloud of sadness hanging over me. Not just because of my mother, but because of the complicated journey we have taken together.’

The singer claimed that her mother’s “jealousy” of her singing career was the cause of most of the problems.

Mariah confessed: ‘[That jealousy] ‘That’s part of success, but when that person is your mother and the jealousy manifests itself at such a young age, it’s extra painful.’

The singer admitted that she had the same “intense” temperament as Patricia.

In her memoir, she added: “I have set aside some space in my heart and life to hold her, but with limits.

“It’s not easy to set boundaries with the woman who gave birth to me. It’s a work in progress.”

Despite their soured relationship, Mariah made a moving promise to her mother in the opening speech of her memoir, writing that she would love her “always.”

Mariah wrote lovingly and thoughtfully, “And to Pat, my mother, who, despite everything, I believe, actually did the best she could. I will always love you the best I can.”

In 2017, Mariah openly shared her “complicated” relationship with her mother with Paper and said, ‘I’ve actually had diva moments, and people can’t handle it. I think it’s a little bit intense, because I come from a real diva.

“My mother is an opera singer. And she’s a real diva, you know — Juilliard diva. And other people say, ‘I’m a diva.’ It’s like, ‘Honey, you don’t know what a diva is — you didn’t grow up with my mother.’

‘And I mean that as a compliment, otherwise I wouldn’t be the person I am if I hadn’t experienced that.

‘And so when people hear me say, “Dahling da da da da,” and talk like that – it’s like I’m imitating my mother.

‘Not that she says “dahling” all the time, but the way that voice is – it’s like I do it by accident, and I don’t do it to be disrespectful.

I just do it and it just happens, and it’s like [in diva voice]”I don’t even know why.”

On Monday, Mariah shared with People: ‘I am heartbroken that I lost my mother this past weekend. Sadly, in a tragic turn of events, my sister lost her life on the same day.

‘I feel blessed that I was able to spend the last week with my mother before she passed away.

“I appreciate everyone’s love, support and respect for my privacy during this impossible time.”

Mariah also had a strained relationship with her late sister Alison, writing in her memoir that it was “emotionally and physically safer for [her not to have any contact [with her].

The cause of death of Patricia and Alison has not yet been determined.