E=MC²

E=MC² was released on April 15, 2008, three years after the enormous success of its predecessor, The Emancipation Of Mimi. The album debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 album chart after selling 463,000 copies — the biggest opening week sales of Mariah's career — and was certified Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on July 8, 2008. “This album is so much about fun and freedom and just the continuation of me feeling emancipated. It's sort of like emancipation equals Mariah Carey times two. This is me, 100 percent. Having fun, just being real,“ Mariah explained. “People ask me all the time, ‘How do you stay relevant, how do you stay current, how do you make music that people continue to respond to?’ You just keep being real, keep being you. Stay true to who you are from the beginning.“

“Touch My Body,” produced by Mariah, Tricky and The-Dream, was released as the album's lead single on March 24, 2008. The song became Mariah's eighteenth number-one single on the Billboard Hot 100 chart, making her the solo artist with the most number-one songs in US history — surpassing the record previously held by Elvis Presley. “I really can never put myself in the category of people who have not only revolutionized music but also changed the world,” Mariah told The Associated Press. “That's a completely different era and time. I'm just feeling really happy and grateful.” “Touch My Body” spent two weeks atop the Hot 100 chart and was certified 3x Platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America on September 26, 2022.

Mariah premiered two of the album tracks prior to its release: she performed the song “Migrate” (produced with Nate “Danja” Hills and featuring T-Pain) on March 15 on Saturday Night Live, and “I'm That Chick” (produced with Stargate) on March 24 on MTV's The Hills premiere. The album also saw her collaborating with Swizz Beatz, Scott Storch, James Poyser and Toomp, among others.

On April 21, 2008, “Bye Bye” impacted radio as the album's second single. “A lot of people get emotional when they listen to ‘Bye Bye’ and I know they are the ones who have really experienced loss in their lives. It's interesting because they listen to it, they get emotional, they almost can't handle it and then they ask me for a copy of it, because it's therapeutic for them,” Mariah explained. “I really wanted it to be universal. Yes, there are very personal things in terms of my experience that are in there, but every line is left open so that people can interpret it and have it for their own healing process.” “Bye Bye” peaked at number nineteen on the Billboard Hot 100, marking Mariah's thirtieth Top 20 on the chart.

“I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time” was released as the third single on July 1, 2008, peaking at number fifty-eight on the Billboard Hot 100 chart. “This is one of the last songs I wrote for this album,” Mariah explained in 2008. “I thought, ‘Let me just make this a carefree record.’ It's kind of a party record to me. It's just like not caring too much about anything else that's going on except you living in the moment.”

The album's fourth and final single was “I Stay In Love,” released on October 28, 2008. “I wrote it with Bryan-Michael Cox, and it's one of those sad love songs that everybody likes to sing when they are still holding on to someone that they miss,” Mariah told BET. “It's just about someone who keeps coming back to that one person that they can't let go of.”

Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Cover Art
Cover Art
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Publicity Photos
Publicity Photos
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Publicity Material
Publicity Material
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Booklet
Booklet
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Promotional Video - In Her Own Words
In Her Own Words
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Promotional Video - Behind The Scenes - Part 1
E=MC² Behind The Scenes: Part 1
Mariah Carey - E=MC² - Promotional Video - Behind The Scenes - Part 2
E=MC² Behind The Scenes: Part 2

Tracklist

Track # Song Run time
1
Migrate (feat. T-Pain)
Written by Mariah Carey, Nathaniel Hills, Balewa Muhammad, T-Pain.
Produced by Nate “Danja” Hills and Mariah Carey.
4:17
2
Touch My Body
Written by Mariah Carey, Christopher Stewart, Terius Nash, Crystal Johnson.
Produced by C. “Tricky” Stewart, Terius “The-Dream” Nash and Mariah Carey.
3:24
3
Cruise Control (feat. Damian Marley)
Written by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal, Crystal Johnson, Damian Marley.
Produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. Co-produced by Manuel Seal.
3:32
4
I Stay In Love
Written by Mariah Carey, Bryan-Michael Cox, Adonis Shropshire, Kendrick Dean.
Produced by Bryan-Michael Cox and Mariah Carey.
3:32
5
Side Effects (feat. Young Jeezy)
Written by Mariah Carey, Scott Storch, Crystal Johnson, Jay Jenkins.
Produced by Scott Storch and Mariah Carey.
4:22
6
I'm That Chick
Written by Mariah Carey, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansem, Johnta Austin, Rod Temperton.
Produced by Stargate and Mariah Carey.
3:31
7
Love Story
Written by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal, Johnta Austin.
Produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. Co-produced by Manuel Seal.
3:56
8
I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
Written by Mariah Carey, Aldrin Davis, Crystal Johnson, Mark DeBarge, Etterlene Jordan.
Produced by Toomp and Mariah Carey.
3:01
9
Last Kiss
Written by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal, Johnta Austin.
Produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. Co-produced by Manuel Seal.
3:36
10
Thanx 4 Nothin'
Written by Mariah Carey, Jermaine Dupri, Manuel Seal.
Produced by Jermaine Dupri and Mariah Carey. Co-produced by Manuel Seal.
3:05
11
O.O.C.
Written by Mariah Carey, Kendrick Dean, Shawntae Harris.
Produced by Swizz Beatz and Mariah Carey.
3:26
12
For The Record
Written by Mariah Carey, Bryan-Michael Cox, Adonis Shropshire.
Produced by Bryan-Michael Cox and Mariah Carey.
3:26
13
Bye Bye
Written by Mariah Carey, Mikkel Storleer Eriksen, Tor Erik Hermansem, Johnta Austin.
Produced by Stargate and Mariah Carey.
4:26
14
I Wish You Well
Written by Mariah Carey, James Poyser, Mary Ann Tatum.
Produced by James Poyser and Mariah Carey.
4:39

Bonus Tracks

Track # Song Run time
Bonus
Heat
Written by Mariah Carey, William Adams, Keith Harris, Crystal Johnson, John Fletcher, Jalil Hutchins, Lawrence Smith, Randy Muller.
Produced by Will.I.Am and Mariah Carey.
3:36
Bonus
4Real4Real (feat. Da Brat)
Written by Mariah Carey, Bryan-Michael Cox, Adonis Shropshire, Shawntae Harris.
Produced by Bryan-Michael Cox and Mariah Carey.
4:13

Releases

Original Release

E=MC² was available on CD and 12" vinyl. The UK edition of the album contains fifteen songs, including the bonus track “Heat;” while Japan got an exclusive sixteenth track: “4Real4Real.”

Standard Edition CD
USA Edition
Standard Edition CD
UK Edition
Standard Edition CD
Japan Edition

Deluxe Edition

The deluxe edition of E=MC², available internationally, comes housed in a three-panel digipack with a bonus fold-out poster and an iPod skin.

Deluxe Edition CD
USA Edition
Deluxe Edition CD
UK Edition
Deluxe Edition CD
Japan Edition

Special Editions

E=MC² got two exclusive editions in the United States, the Circuit City edition of the album included five free downloads from Napster; and Wal-Mart got an exclusive “green” edition, printed on biodegradable paper and packaged with plantable seeds.

The E=MC² Adventure Box, released in November 2008, is a limited-edition 4-disc set which includes the E=MC² album, The Adventures Of Mimi 2-DVD set and an extra interactive disc, as well as a bonus keychain and poster. The 3 CD Collector's Set was released in 2009, including Mariah's first three albums with Universal Music (Charmbracelet, The Emancipation Of Mimi and E=MC²) and a fold-out poster. In 2012, Universal Music Japan reissued the deluxe edition of E=MC² in SHM-CD (Super High Material CD).

CD
Circuit City Exclusive
CD
Wal-Mart Exclusive
Adventure Box
3CD Collector's Set
SHMCD
Japan Exclusive

Vinyl Editions

E=MC² was re-released on vinyl on January 22, 2021, in two variants: standard black vinyl and a limited edition lavender vinyl. Amazon Music issued a new variant in 2024, this time in fluorescent pink vinyl.

Black Vinyl
2008
Black Vinyl
2021
Lavender Vinyl
2021
Fluorescent Pink Vinyl
2024

Singles

Touch My Body
Touch My Body
Bye Bye
Bye Bye
I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time
I Stay In Love
I Stay In Love
I'm That Chick
I'm That Chick

Lyrics

Migrate

Touch My Body

Cruise Control

I Stay In Love

Side Effects

I'm That Chick

Love Story

I'll Be Lovin' U Long Time

Last Kiss

Thanx 4 Nothin'

O.O.C.

For The Record

Bye Bye

I Wish You Well

Heat

4Real4Real