“They laughed… but I kept going.” Nearly a decade later, Mariah Carey is the definition of turning a rough, heavily judged moment into a full-blown triumph. What once felt shaky and uncomfortable has quietly evolved into a glow-up story fans now celebrate — proof that resilience, patience, and knowing your own worth can flip the narrative completely. Watching Mariah today feels like seeing someone who didn’t just survive the storm, but stepped out of it sparkling, confident, and totally in control, reminding everyone that sometimes the loudest comeback is simply standing tall and letting time do the talking.

Mariah Carey is ready for 2026.

Singer Mariah Carey performs during New Year's Eve 2017 in Times Square; Mariah Carey performs "Obsessed" onstage at "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest" 2026

The Grammy winner, 56, returned to Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest on Dec. 31 to perform three songs — nine years after dealing with a technical difficulty during a set of “Auld Lang Syne,” “Emotions” and “We Belong Together” on the same show.

This time around, however, Carey successfully rang in the new year from Las Vegas with her hits “Obsessed” and “It’s Like That,” plus her recent release “In Your Feelings.”

Mariah Carey Set for NYE Performance 2026, Years After Disaster on New  Year's Eve

For the annual show’s New York City celebration in Times Square, Diana Ross was the headliner, performing a medley of some of her most iconic songs. Other artists who took the stage in the Big Apple included Maren Morris, Little Big Town, Ciara and Le Sserafim.

50 Cent and Demi Lovato joined Carey in the Las Vegas lineup of performers, while Post Malone and Chappell Roan contributed songs from Nashville and Kansas City, respectively. Daddy Yankee also helped ring in the New Year from Puerto Rico.

Mariah Carey performs "Obsessed" onstage at "Dick Clark's New Year's Rockin' Eve with Ryan Seacrest" 2026
Mariah Carey performs “Obsessed” onstage at “Dick Clark’s New Year’s Rockin’ Eve with Ryan Seacrest” 2026.Christopher Polk/Penske Media via Getty 

Back in 2016, Carey’s three-song performance was derailed by audio issues when she was unable to hear the backing track to her hit “Emotions.”

“We didn’t have a [sound] check for this song, so we’ll just say it went to No. 1, and it is what it is,” Carey said, trying to push through the performance.

Then, during her final song “We Belong Together,” the audio track failed to line up with her singing. By the end, a frustrated Carey walked off stage.

After the live snafu, Carey wrote in a post on X,“S— happens. Have a happy and healthy new year everybody! Here’s to making more headlines in 2017,” alongside a GIF of herself.

Singer Mariah Carey performs during New Year's Eve 2017 in Times Square
Singer Mariah Carey performs during New Year’s Eve in Times Square on December 31, 2016 in New York City.Noam Galai/FilmMagic 

Days later, on Jan. 3, 2017, Carey told Entertainment Weekly she was “mortified” over the technical failure.

“All I can say is Dick Clark was an incredible person, and I was lucky enough to work with him when I first started in the music business. I’m of the opinion that Dick Clark would not have let an artist go through that, and he would have been as mortified as I was in real time,” she shared.

Just 11 months later, Carey was back on the big stage to redeem herself. She joined the New Year’s Eve production once again, delivering a flawless medley of “Vision of Love” and “Hero.”

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