梦游仙境 (1995)

Daydream is the fifth studio album by American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey. It was released on September 26, 1995, by Columbia Records. The follow-up to her internationally successful studio album Music Box (1993) and the holiday release Merry Christmas (1994), Daydream differed from her earlier works by incorporating stronger elements of urban music.

Carey composed Daydream with producers and songwriters such as Walter Afanasieff, Dave Hall, Boyz II Men, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal, and Kenneth "Babyface" Edmonds. The album helped the singer make a subtle transition into the contemporary R&B market after having previously pursued pop, adult contemporary, and traditional rhythm and blues. The album marked the beginning of her musical and vocal transition toward hip-hop—a change that would become more evident on her sixth studio album, Butterfly (1997). During its production, she endured numerous creative conflicts with her label and her then-husband, Tommy Mottola. Daydream's songs explore fantasy, isolation, and romantic vulnerability.

Carey promoted the album with the Daydream World Tour (1996) and five singles, three of which reached number one on the US Billboard Hot 100: "Fantasy", "One Sweet Day", and "Always Be My Baby". "Fantasy" became the first song by a woman to debut atop the chart, while "One Sweet Day" spent sixteen weeks at the top, holding the record for the longest-running number-one single in Billboard Hot 100 history for twenty-three years. Daydream topped the charts in ten countries, including Australia, Germany, Japan, the Netherlands, New Zealand, the United Kingdom, and the United States. In the United States, it spent six weeks atop the Billboard 200 and has been certified 11× platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America.

Upon release, Daydream received widespread critical acclaim, particularly for its production, sonic quality, and Carey's musical progression; many reviewers regarded it as her best album to date. At the 38th Annual Grammy Awards, the album and its songs received six nominations, including Album of the Year. Retrospectively, Daydream has been acclaimed as one of Carey's finest works; critics have deemed it a transitional project that represented the singer's shift toward R&B and hip-hop while also influencing subsequent pop and cross-genre collaborations. It is one of the best-selling albums of all time, with over 20 million copies sold worldwide.

Background

American singer-songwriter Mariah Carey released her third studio album, Music Box, in August 1993. It is primarily a pop and contemporary R&B album consisting mostly of ballads. Music Box was immensely successful, spending eight non-consecutive weeks atop the US Billboard 200 and becoming the second best-selling album of 1994. It spawned the chart-topping singles "Dreamlover", "Hero", and "Without You", and eventually became her best-selling album. Despite its commercial success, Music Box received mixed reviews, with critics finding it lacking in emotional depth and substance.