Mariah Carey talks American Music Awards performance, 30 years of 'All I Want for Christmas'

Mariah Carey is all about anniversaries.

The Grammy-winning artist, 55, doesn't recognize her birthday and infamously insisted in 2014 that she instead celebrates anniversaries. These anniversaries, which just so happen to fall on the day she was born, often have a wink and nudge − but it can also mean she's celebrating multiple anniversaries annually.

Next April marks the 20th anniversary of her 2005 album "The Emancipation of Mimi," though Carey began the celebrations a year early with a Las Vegas residency, "The Celebration of Mimi." She'll continue the party on Sunday, performing a medley of songs from the album on the American Music Awards 50th Anniversary special (8 EDT/ 5 PDT, CBS/Paramount+).

"It's really just an incredible thing that it's lasted this long," Carey tells USA TODAY of the LP, which spawned the chart-topping single "We Belong Together" and the hit "It's Like That,"  featuring Jermaine Dupri and the late Fatman Scoop.

Carey, who has earned 10 American Music Awards over her three-decade-plus career, teases that she'll rearrange some of the songs for her AMA performance.

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After Sunday's special, what's next for Carey?

"I'm getting ready for Christmas," she says, stopping well short of declaring that "it's time," which fans will presumably hear on Nov. 1 with her annual seasonal kickoff video on social media.

And this holiday season brings about − you guessed it − another anniversary. October marks 30 years since Carey released her holiday album "Merry Christmas." Buoyed by the success of the modern classic "All I Want For Christmas Is You," the album launched the singer/songwriter, already the bestselling female artist of all time, into a new stratosphere as the "Queen of Christmas."

Carey recalls recording "All I Want For Christmas," which she co-wrote and co-produced with Walter Afanasieff, in August 1994 at The Hit Factory, an iconic recording studio in New York City’s Hell’s Kitchen neighborhood.

"It was an amazing recording session, like no other," the singer says. "I loved it. It was obviously my first Christmas album and we had decorated the studio, so it was like all Christmas decorations and a Christmas tree."

Now three decades later, the song annually breaks the Spotify record for most streams in a single day and perennially tops the Billboard Hot 100.

Carey also tours behind her holiday album: The 2024 version of her Christmas trek includes 20 dates. It kicks off Nov. 6 in Highland, California, and wraps with a trio of shows in December throughout the New York City area, including her hometown, Long Island.

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Carey sprinkles in some of her big non-holiday hits throughout the show along with a few surprises. At last year’s New York concert, the artist brought out her twins, Monroe and Moroccan, 13, whom she shares with ex-husband Nick Cannon. Carey is hopeful that her kids, nicknamed "Dem Babies," will grace the stage again this year.

"I don't think everybody understands how … it just makes me so happy and it makes a lot of people happy," Carey says of her Christmas shows. "It's different than just a regular tour."

For Carey this holiday season, her first Christmas since the deaths of her mother and sister, spreading joy is not lost on her.

"I think we all go through difficult times, and there's a lot of people that, especially during the holidays, they really kind of have a rough time with it," Carey says. "And that is the reason why I try to make people happy and to have a festive moment, you know, just to get through it. I try to be there as a friend to anyone who needs one."