Will Mariah's Oscar "Dream" Come True?

Pop diva Mariah Carey has thrown her hat into the Oscar game.

The lead song from her film Tennessee, "Right To Dream" is hoping to be a contender for an Academy Award for Best Original Song. Many pop artists have been nominated, and even won, the award, including Stevie Wonder, Melissa Etheridge, Phil Collins, and Eminem. It wouldn't be Mariah's first foray into the Oscar world; her duet with Whitney Houston "When You Believe" was nominated in 1998. It would, however, be her first real nomination. It would finally solidify her as a serious music artist, an accolade many (including the aforementioned Eminem) have tried to snatch away from her.

"Right to Dream" is certainly new territory for the singer. Lately, Mariah has relied heavily on tons of production to accentuate her trademark voice. Here, its just the voice and Willie Nelson's guitar strumming. No drum machines, pianos, or T-Pain. The idea of a stripped-down Mariah (get your minds out of the gutter) is quite exciting considering how far she has deviated from the musical style that made her famous. While she's not singing on a lush ballad filled with ear-splitting whistle register note, this is the Mariah that has garnered her millions of fans around the world; the Mariah who just sang, the Mariah didn't rely on others to bolster her music. The song itself is a tender, country-tinged ballad (the movie is called Tennessee) about facing tough times to acheive dreams. The subject matter isn't anything new to Mariah, so it's expected that its emotional and filled with metaphor. The combination of sorrowful music and hopeful lyrics has a pretty strong effect, which is hightened by her surprisingly strong, but restrained vocals. Accused of oversinging for most of her career, Mariah puts aside the posturing to deliver a story of strength through struggle, a powerful one at that.

The nominees for Best Original Song will be announced on January 22nd, so we can only speculate about her chances of getting a shot at the little gold man. However, it isn't a long shot to hear Mariah's name. In fact, its a very strong possibility.

Rating: 7.5/10