Pop and R&B star Mariah Carey once took fans on a tour of her ostentatious, butterfly-covered home, and that episode of MTV Cribs will go down in history. So it's about time that the recording artist anchored her own reality series. Mariah's World premieres on E! this Sunday at 9:00 p.m. and, according to the network, will be an all-access "look inside the glamorous life of Mimi" as she prepares to take the stage for her Las Vegas residency. Though Carey is the center of the show and, for that matter, every room she enters, members of her tour cast and personal team will also appear. Perhaps the highest ranking of her entourage is her manager, Stella Bulochnikov. Bulochnikov and her client became fast friends when the former joined Carey's inner circle. So who is Mariah Carey's new manager?
Bulochnikov comes from a reality producing background. In April 2015, Billboard reported that Bulochnikov and Brian Sher were officially hired by Carey as her new management team. Sher and Bulochnikov's producing credits include T.I. & Tiny, Boss, and Master P's Family Values; Bulochnikov is also credited as an executive producer on shows like Paris's Hilton's My New BFF and Flavor Of Love Girls: Charm School.
Essentially, Bulochnikov has more experience producing celebrity reality shows than she does managing artists and her appointment to Carey's team has allegedly been met with mixed reactions. According to gossip column Page Six, Carey reportedly cleaned house in her camp when Bulochnikov came on board. Carey has never seemed much like a follower to me, though. She lives her life inside a jewel-encrusted dollhouse and bustiers are her sweatpants. So I take the rumors of the extent of Bulochnikov's influence with a grain of salt.
Meanwhile, Bulochnikov doesn't seem to be bothered at all by the rumors. When Page Six asked for comment, she reportedly told them to "F*** off." (Bustle reached out to Carey's team for comment but has not yet heard back.) Bulochnikov's Instagram feed shows the manager/producer BFFing around with Carey, vacationing with her family, and indulging in fabulousness befitting a close confidante of Mimi. She's even repurposed the insulting nickname reported by Page Six. "Woman. Mother. Producer. Flame thrower. Russian dictator," her Instagram bio reads, followed by a wink emoji.
And Carey isn't her only famous collaborator. Bulochnikov and Shaunie O'Neal (Shaquille O'Neal's ex-wife) hosted a podcast called Mogul Moms Playbook , where they discussed work/life balance with each other and the occasional celeb guest. (The podcast seems to be on permanent hiatus for now.) Bulochnikov's "Mogul Mom" experience comes from parenting daughters Mishka and Sasha. The girls are by their mother's side on Instagram more often than not, so Bulochnikov is incorporating her family into her jet-setting career. Carey even performed at Mishka Bulochnikov's bat mitzvah, which ought to have cause some serious preteen envy.
You can get to know Stella Bulochnikov and form your own opinions about Carey's manager during the singer's brand new eight-part reality event series on E! starting Sunday.
Images: E!
