I feel like Mariah Carey is just having one of those days where you're super confused about how to feel. Like, on one hand, something good is happening, and that's great! But, on the other, something terrible is happening at the same time, and you're just left with this totally strange, conflicted feeling. Case-in-point: According to The Guardian, Mariah Carey's 1994 single "All I Want For Christmas Is You" just sold its millionth copy in the UK, which is amazing. However, this happened just as a human rights group criticized Mariah Carey for accepting "dictator cash" after she performed a concert for the president of Angola, who they refer to as "one of Africa’s chief human rights violators and most corrupt tyrants." That, on the other hand, isn't so great.
In regards to "All I Want For Christmas Is You" — The Guardian reports that the single has pretty much been in the Top 20 since 2007 for every year except 2010, and in addition to just selling its millionth copy, currently sits at number 12 on the singles chart. Furthermore, according to The Independent, it's sold 68,000 copies in the UK this year alone. Not bad for a song that just celebrated its 19th birthday.
Now, for the bad news: As for the criticisms aimed at Carey, the Human Rights Foundation publicly called out Carey after she performed a two-hour concert at an Angolan Red Cross event for Angola's President José Eduardo dos Santos. According to the foundation, Dos Santos "has ordered the deaths of many politicians, journalists and activists who have protested his rule" since he took power in 1979.
"Mariah Carey can’t seem to get enough dictator cash, reportedly more than $1 million this time," Human Rights Foundation president Thor Halvorssen commented on Carey's performance in a news release yesterday, referring to the $1 million she made when she performed for disgraced Libyan dictator Muammar Gaddafi in 2008.
Carey has released no comment on her performance in Angola, but she did release a statement about the success of "All I Want For Christmas Is You": "I'm driving home looking at the snow in my hometown of NYC, celebrating selling 1m copies of All I Want for Christmas Is You in the UK," Carey said in a statement. "Thank you, thank you to all of my British fans!"
Like I said — it's all pretty conflicting.
