Diva Duet...
[Article published in Sydney Morning Herald - Thanks Jason]
Multiple Award-winning producer Babyface has squashed
rumours of rivalry between supesrtar R&B divas Whitney Houston and Mariah Carey. The
two octave-spanning singers have just recorded a duet for the upcoming animated feature, The Prince Of Egypt.
Babyface described the song, called "When You
Believe", as a "gospel-tinged power- ballad" that will be the theme song to
the movie, which is based on the biblical story of Moses. Babyface denied rumours of
tantrums by either of the singers and laid to rest the long standing idea of intense
rivalry between Carey and Houston. Asked which of the two divas had the biggest ego, he
laughed and said "I don't know where this whole "rivalry" thing came from.
I admit, when I agreed to do the song, I was nervous about it, but when we all got
together, we just laughed! The two of them were... almost awe-struck in each other's
presence." When pressed to elaborate on the divas' behaviour in studio and of reports
that there was friction, Babyface said "We had a great time. They both gave it
everythng they had, and at times I was blown away by the sheer power of their voices
together. At times they were giggling together like schoolgirls, and talking about what
direction they wanted the song to go. I think, and I don't know if they want me saying
this, but I think they were surprised by how much they had in common. It was a lot of fun,
and it's a great song, so I feel really honoured to have worked with these two vocal stars
on this particular song."
The red-hot producer declined to pick his favourite of the two divas, saying instead
"I love them both, they are both incredibly talented and I could never pick between
them." Babyface also revealed that he will be doing producing duties on some songs
for Houston's new album, her first full album of new material since 1990's I'm Your Baby
Tonight. "We're very excited about it. Whitney wants the album to have a more
"street" vibe, and we're working on some ideas now. It's gonna be something
special."
The animated feature The Prince Of Egypt has
been stirring up some controversy over the commercialisation of a biblical tale. When
asked to respond to claims that the superstar teamup was yet another attempt to cash in on
a sacred tale, the singer-producer responded "You need to hear this song to
understand where it's coming from. Steven [Spielberg, executive producer of The Prince Of Egypt] and his partners have been
very careful with the telling of this important story. This song is about the importance
of a belief, and Mariah and Whitney are the two perfect voices to bring this song to life.
The song is gospel-tinged and both of them have proved their love of gospel music through
their earlier works. I don't think we could have chosen two better singers to give voice
to the beautiful meaning of the song."
The Prince Of Egypt opens in the US on
December 20, and in Australia in January. The The
Prince Of Egypt soundtrack will be in stores in November.
NEWSFILE: 21 AUGUST 1998
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