SHE OWNS THE NIGHT With her otherworldly pipes, a lusty younger husband, and a record-shattering album, Mariah Carey is on the verge of all-encompassing world domination. But as Dan Crane quickly finds out, that doesn’t mean she keeps regular office hours. Photographed by Alexei Hay Styled by Joe Zee “Do you hate me?” asks Mariah Carey, absorbing me into her well-toned figure with a firm hug. “I’m so sorry I’m late,” she says, gazing into my eyes as she pulls away and flutters both hands in the air to illustrate what I can only assume is her rationale. “The nails are still drying!” It’s 12:37 a.m. I’m in the living room of a sprawling suite on a high floor of the Beverly Wilshire Four Seasons in Los Angeles, and “Mimi” is, in fact, over two and a half hours late for our Friday night interview. It’s classic diva: Make journalist cool heels downstairs in hotel bar while Mimi—what…? Has her nails done? Yes. Why don’t I mind? Unlike today’s breed of talentless manufactured star churning out pop drivel, Mariah has been paying her dues for nearly 20 years—and the dividends continue to roll in. With the April release of her latest album, E=MC², and its tongue-in-cheek sing-along “Touch My Body,” the seven-octave vocal acrobat topped Elvis’ record for most No. 1 Billboard chart singles. Now, with 18 No. 1’s, it’s likely she’ll soon bump the record-holding Beatles (who have 20) from their top spot, all—with the exception of just one track—with songs she’s either written or co-written. Her eponymous debut was released in 1990 and went platinum nine times; she’s put out 10 more studio albums since and is the third-highest-selling female artist, behind Barbra Streisand and Madonna. She escaped a disastrous marriage to former Sony record exec Tommy Mottola and survived an “emotional breakdown” in 2001. With 2005’s The Emancipation of Mimi, the biggest-selling record of that year, she led a comeback coup, nearly erasing our memories of the critically and publicly eviscerated 2001 film and accompanying soundtrack train wreck known as Glitter. (From ELLE)