Mariah Carey: Nobody tried to pressure me not to come here

Carey, 45 told reporters that she is excited to be back in Israel, adding that the tour was planned during her visit in June this year.

By TAMARA UNGAR
Mariah Carey at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas (photo credit: REUTERS)
Mariah Carey at the 2015 Billboard Music Awards in Las Vegas
(photo credit: REUTERS)
At a press conference held at the Ritz Carlton hotel in Herzliya on Monday night, pop superstar Mariah Carey discussed her upcoming sell-out concert and her love of Israel.
Carey, 45 told reporters that she is excited to be back in Israel, adding that the tour was planned during her visit in June this year.
“I haven’t toured a lot in my life and I came here with my boyfriend James Packer a month ago and it was so exciting to be here that I decided I wanted to come back here and do a show,” she said.
The singer, who is traveling with her two children Moroccan and Monroe, spoke briefly about how motherhood has changed her life. “I would say it’s the best thing that’s every happened to me and music. It effected everything, it changes how I live my life entirely, and it’s the focus of who I am entirely. It changes the way I sleep, the way I live.”
Asked about her plans for this trip to Israel, the singer responded that she does not have much time and is traveling with her two children, but that she hopes to be back again to enjoy the tourist sites.
“Everybody wants to see all the sites and I want to go as many places as possible, it’s just that I have my babies with me and they have to be happy and excited for where we go because they have their own personalities that are very strong already – They like what they like, and they come first for me.”
Carey, a strong supporter of Israel, claims that she did not feel any pressure from critics of Israel or the BDS movement before coming to do the show. “Nobody tried to pressure me, I did hear about it but I do what I want to do. I’ve always wanted to come here. I don’t care what other people’s political agendas are. I’m just an entertainer and I’m here. I’m happy to be here and I’m honored to be here.”
The concert is going to be a simple yet artistic show with just a band and singers accompanying Carey. She describes the production as bare-boned and very different to her current show in Las Vegas.
“This is just me and the band and the singers so you’re going to get a musical show. It’s not going to be a whole lot of pyro. It’s bare-boned, so hopefully people will know the songs well enough that they’ll be excited to hear the songs and happy with the show.”
Carey’s Australian billionaire boyfriend James Packer accompanied her.