Words by: Elizabeth Sabelino
Art by:  Angel Leung

Growing up in a Filipino household, karaoke is considered a national sporting event. Hey, the food might not be ready yet, or guests might be running on Filipino time, but you can always count on hearing a Mariah Carey or Whitney Houston tune.  

Singing is deeply ingrained in Filipino culture, spanning all ages, geographical locations and social strata. It is so widespread that ordinances had to be issued to regulate the time of day people can publicly sing. But not even the law or the neighbour’s rooster can silence the sounds of ‘Perfect Score!’ once the scoring system has accurately (supposedly) evaluated your performance. 

In a culture where feelings are taught to be suppressed, karaoke is a tool that allows you to express yourself with no repercussions. Songs by Mariah and Whitney allow us to feel deeply and express ourselves loudly. ‘I Will Always Love You’ or ‘Hero’ encapsulates the triumph, heartbreak and longing all in one single karaoke performance. 

Karaoke also brings out our competitive spirit, where the hierarchical relations with our elders are broken. It becomes a free-for-all, first come, first served basis when queueing up songs. But, it wasn’t until I reached my teenage years that I truly appreciated Mariah.

Her music was always playing in the background. Her voice filled the malls, the movies and, of course, karaoke. As I grew older and developed my own interpretations of her songs, her voice began to mean something even deeper. Her voice goes beyond her singing capabilities but belts her prowess in asserting herself as one of the most celebrated singer-songwriters and the best-selling female artist of all time. If you were one of her lambs, you would know that she has written or co-written 18 of her 19 number-one songs on the Billboard Hot 100. Isn’t she just THAT girl?

Much to my whole family’s dismay, it has become my challenge to learn how to sing ‘My All’ to the best of my abilities. There is something so captivating about the song, given its Latin influences that shape the ecstasy of desire and agony of separation sung about in the song. And the lore? Ugh, don’t even get me started. My queen was SO down bad she took a secret trip to Puerto Rico to flame her secret romance. I just know it’ll be my most-played song of the year for my Spotify-wrapped. 

However, my family now groans whenever they hear the beginning of this song and all beg me to skip it. And while they have temporarily banned me from singing it, ‘I’ll be there’ one day ready to belt.

Despite releasing her debut album 35 years ago, I think Mariah’s impact is still being felt across generations. Her influence lives on through those who dare to reach whistle notes and in the confidence of every shower singer, karaoke queen or pop sensation in training.

There have been rumours of her touring Australia in October, so you better believe I’ll be there. I have a feeling it would be like one big karaoke session, and instead of a backup track, it’ll be Mariah singing. It’ll be a full-circle moment when I get to see her live in person (a sweet, sweet fantasy that I do get tickets). Once I hear her melodic voice, the same voice that echoes through the house, it will permit me to feel what I couldn’t always say and she will be there singing it with me.

Because that’s what Mariah and Whitney taught us: to defy beyond expectation, to sing it out when we’re told to stay quiet and to never apologise for being too much.