Mariah Carey’s long-lost demo tape from the late 1980s sold for a whopping $54,050, marking a major moment for collectors and pop historians alike.
The rare cassette, unearthed from producer Arthur Baker‘s personal vault and sold in collaboration with Brenda K. Starr, was the exact tape Baker received the night Carey was discovered at a 1989 holiday party. The auction, confirmed by Wax Poetics, is the first time one of Carey’s original demo tapes has ever hit the public market. The seven-track tape, recorded in 1988, includes early versions of five songs that would later anchor Carey’s blockbuster 1990 self-titled debut album, an LP that produced four No. 1 singles. It also features two unreleased tracks that have long been whispered about by collectors and superfans.
The demo’s backstory is as iconic as the music itself. At the 1989 Christmas party, Starr, who had intended to bring her mother, brought Carey instead, hoping to help her land a record deal. That night, she handed the tape to then-Columbia Records executive Tommy Mottola, sparking one of the most pivotal launches in pop music history.