our first guest is a uh is a gramy award-winning singer she has sold more than 150 million albums
and she a star on a new CBS special you can see it right here December 21st entitled a home for
the holidays with Mariah Carey here she is Mariah carry everybody man nice to see you
nice to see you you look you look fantastic thank you you as well oh really do you think so I think
so well you're just saying that aren't you no sweet of you to say see proud ofre what about
now let me tell you when were these pictures taken and where were they taken this is fairly
interesting if I can just get them here they were taken last week I think a week last week
yes that that recently and what were you doing where were you doing I was in Kosovo uh in a
helicopter good for you actually it's called a shnook aook a shnook yeah a shnook a shnook a
shnook I hadn't heard the word either what what it's called the shnook the helicopter
the helicopter really a schnook a schnook that's what I call my agent well I was in
the shnook is is it a shinook or a shnook you know what I believe it is a shinook yeah okay
I don't I don't know I don't know either all I know is I was a tad afraid sitting in the
shinook when they said it was going to take us perhaps 45 minutes to get clearance from
uh where we were taking off and how how were things over there how's morale how are people
doing the morale was great um the only thing that was we didn't get clearance to leave for
like 45 minutes and here's why the morale is great look at this it was fun and they
were you don't seem to be wearing camouflage GE well I did do the camouflage thing but I
don't think you could see it in either one of the pictures but mine was a little different
yeah that's very nice oh good good for you that's a very nice thing to have done yeah
it was it was good it was a nice feeling and uh I told them everybody at home loves
them and so it was nice we were kind of trekking through the the uh ditches and
things of that nature and they would ask me for a hug and they had these huge Guns
by their sides and I wanted to be patriotic and do the right thing but I was a you know
kind of ask them to point the gun the opposite way yeah you don't you don't want a gun going
off accidentally under those circumstances no that's that's not good for anybody's morale not
really now um did now tell me about your summer was that just weird what what exactly was you
know what so many things were so overly sensationalized over and over again but
basically I've been a workaholic my whole life my schedule this past summer was like Beyond
ridiculous you know one day in one country the next day back here promoting all over
the place I was totally sleep deprived and I was exhausted and it was like at
a certain point I just got a wakeup call and it was like this has to stop and you
know I had to take a moment and and just draw a line and you know get a wakeup call
and say hey take care of yourself like a human being not like a machine now now had you done
something and it's like something I never I never really thought of because I always
put my career first and I always put everything before myself and all my friends and everybody
that you know knows me were always like you know this is cool but when are you just you
and when do you just take the time for yourself and and is this was this like
a is it nervous breakdown is it a physical breakdown is it an emotional breakdown is it
not a breakdown it was so bizarre cuz they were like a breakdown a nervous breakdown
a mental melt and all these things and you know that I shouldn't even be repeating because it's
like tabloid fodder and all that kind of the story kind of builds itself does right like
you were saying before I was watching what did you say you were Oprah's first husband that's
right and you know people might believe that they might tune in at that precise moment and basically
the truth is exhaustion is a serious thing people look at you on TV and go oh come on what are you
exhausted from sitting there but honestly you know it's just reality a lot of work it's a lot of work
a lot of work and a lot a lot of pressure too and a lot of time a lot of years that I have just not
stopped and ever taken a break for myself and you know some of the things you know that were just
said were just so outrageous like they made this whole big deal about total request live
and blah blah blah and what did they say happened there you you showed up and took your clothes off
right right now first of all I had on okay that's realistic but first of all I I I had on I had on
J I had on shorts and a tank top right it was the summertime right and then a huge t-shirt that was
like down to here that was we was we went and it was an impromptu visit we had been all over the
world we went up there and I took the T-shirt off with the clothes underneath it I kept the clothes
on obviously right so when they were writing about it I don't think half of the writers even knew
what total request live Ian it's not like we were on Nightline with Ted Coppel I mean like you know
we're talking MTV and it was a joke it's supposed to yeah MTV that's that's the kind of thing they
do it's fun and it was a joke and it got like written about and everything like and then she did
this and I'm like what are they talking about this is you know this is TRL they know how many times
I've gone up there talking about Guam and like you know lambs and D stupid things they try to make
something the evidence won't support the story they're writing well it's just it's just not even
worth discussing it's like when you make jokes and you're sitting here and it's part of entertainment
you know whatever now did did did you have to do something did did you have to rest did you have
to take Med medicine or you know what basically change your diet or you just slow down or what I
did and the thing that I've always learned to do that's the most important thing for me is just go
and depend on myself I had some very good people that are my friends and family that helped me
just you know say hey you're an important person because you tend to when you're in the media it's
like you can believe it when people take shots at you or whatever and the most important thing for
me is like I sing this song Hero which is about getting your you know know believing in yourself
and all that and it was just like taking a moment to kind of believe those words right well good for
you I'm I'm happy to hear that this is that single that I wanted to talk about that's coming out
today here is this one yeah it's uh the proceeds go for the for the New York Police Department's
families the victims of 911 and and it's a it's a new version of of Never Too Far which is one of
my songs and hero it's a medal that I did and there's a brand new track on there as well so
that's in stores today oh good yeah very nice of you I tell you something I wish I had a nickel for
every time I've been naked on MTV well honey I've never been naked on MTV so I wouldn't know about
it tell me about the uh tell me about the uh it's a special it's a holiday special for CBS here um
yes it's called home for the holidays and they've done it for three years in a row and what it does
is it brings Foster families together brings foster children to people who want to adopt
and it's a really really good cause and a lot of people who are kind of on the fence about adoption
after they see this special they decide to adopt and it's yeah it's really an amazing good for
great have you you talked about how how now you've learned to kind of rely on yourself
and what does that mean as it applies to your daily life and your career I've always relied
on myself I mean maybe that's the issue like since I was a little kid I pretty much took
care of myself and but it was more being focused on like I got to do this I got to keep running
and keep having this career and keep going and doing all this stuff rather than like what would
be good for me how that different what are you doing now that's different than it was
like a year ago like trying to just make time to sleep and the amount of hours that you know
people need to sleep the basics nobody gets any sleep that's right nobody gets enough sleep in
this country honestly everybody is sleep deprived and it's it's a horrible thing really yeah when
you go on for a long time and then you really it becomes a habit or whatever I haven't slept
in 68 really was that before or after the Oprah thing that's about the same time I found that if
I don't get enough sleep I start snapping it in turns and I I hate that really I hate that
really you know what I think it's going to be okay though something tells me it's all right
what do you what do you do when you like to want to have fun and stuff because you you look like a
girl who likes to have fun I like to go swimming I like swimming yeah I do like to have fun babe
I like where do you go swimming is it like in a pool or lakes ocean if there happens to be a pool
there hey I might decide to go swim in the pool so you get in a pool and how long can you go in
a pool how long can I go in a pool what no like how I'm sorry what yeah that's what I want to
know how long can you go in a pool no I didn't know what you me I got three minutes one time
3 minutes was my best three minutes did I know come on I like the ocean I like the Caribbean
what what I'm trying to establish here is like I get in a pool I immediately want to get out really
yeah and the same thing with the ocean you get in the ocean oh this is great let's get out no
not me so all right so now when stay in the ocean all night and you swim and like laps and what do
you do not really laps I sort of Wade In The Water yeah well hell I can I can stay in forever if I'm
just waiting well I'm not trying to win an Olympic contest I just want to go in the water it makes
me happy and and have you got you time off for the holidays you going to be working well that's
important right there I time off I'm very excited about that I'm going to go skiing I think and then
I'm going to go somewhere warm yeah are you a good skier no have have you I like I like the
outfits oh yeah I do they have some good outfits we got to buy them in like July and then you know
yeah well you know I like the outfit you got here now you don't ski in that because something close
Nelly uh well this is great I'm I'm glad things are much much better for you and you look you
can tell from looking at you that you feel great and that's that's the key right there
especially when I'm here with you oh God Bless you that's a very sweet thing to say let's see
your show is on uh December 21st December 2st I carry home for the holidays a lot ofus Charlotte
Church and Destiny's Child that's a nice night Fortin Hoffman showed up and cause yeah a lot
of great people so really happy about that well good and I'm I'm happy for you nice to
see you again Mariah Carey everybody we'll be back with Elijah [Applause] [Music] Wood