Mariah Carey’s Daydream became one of her most-critically acclaimed albums and the second best-selling album in her career. The iconic album allowed Mariah to openly enter into R&B territories for the first time. The album’s sound, in fact, does not sound as Carey’s previous albums where soul beats are put aside in an effort to make her music more appealing to mainstream audiences. Ironically, the album generated some of her most successful singles ever.

Daydream is one of the most-critically acclaimed albums of that decade. Time Magazine published an article where Carey’s vocals, lyrics, and revolutionary sound are highly praised. The same article named Daydream one of the best albums released in 95. The Rock and Roll Hall of Fame’s Definitive 200 albums listing, which lists some of history’s most influential and popular albums, included Daydream. The album received other praising reviews, including one of Entertainment Weekly’s Ken Tucker who called the album “the best collection Carey has put out since her self-titled 1990 debut.

Mariah’s voice had never sounded this intense and capable of transmitting emotions. The music left orchestral music behind, now incorporating new urban sounds. “Fantasy,” the lead single, sounded more urban than some of her early hits. “Fantasy” used the sample of Tom Tom Club’s “Genius Of Love,” which perfectly fit the song’s melody. The main remix for “Fantasy” made music history as Carey’s pop/R&B mixed with Hip-Hop, creating a sound that was appealing to different audiences. Mariah enlisted urban producers, Sean “Puff” Daddy and Jermaine Dupri. The latter collaborated with Mariah on “Long Ago” and “Always Be My Baby,” a song that mixes acoustic and R&B sounds, creating a fresh love tune.

Mariah once again teamed up with Walter Afanasieff with whom she had pure chemistry. The music created by the team had evolved to a point where mature lyrics and sounds emerged from the collaboration. “Looking In” is a reflective theme that alludes to Carey’s insecurities. In “I Am Free,” a gospel-influenced song, Mariah lyrically portrays the misery she had overcome at that point. Mariah felt especially proud of “Underneath the Stars,” a song with a song reminiscent of soul ballads highly popular in the early 70s.

“One Sweet Day” is a hopeful message with a gospel taste, claiming that despite the loss of a loved one, “one sweet day” there will be a reunion. The phrase, “Although the sun will never shine the same / I’ll always look for a brighter day,” expresses hope and resignation. “One Sweet Day” was nominated for the 1996 Grammy Awards for Record of the Year and Best Pop Collaboration with Vocals, losing both categories. Mariah was not afraid of “growing up” with her lyrics. In “Melt Away,” a song produced by Carey, this maturity is exposed.

With the critics praising Daydream, the commercial success of the album and the singles had to follow. “Fantasy” impacted the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 at #1, where it stayed for eight consecutive weeks. The commercial single was certified platinum for selling over a million copies. “One Sweet Day” repeated the feat accomplished by “Fantasy” by going up straight to the #1 position. Mariah became the first recording act to have two consecutive singles debuting at #1. “One Sweet Day,” having spent 16 weeks at #1, still holds the record as the longest-running #1 single in history. Mariah’s third single from Daydream, “Always By My Baby,” debuted at #2 and, a week later, became her eleventh #1 single, which had tied her with Whitney Houston and Madonna for the most #1 singles by a female performer. In Europe, “Open Arms” also became a hit, peaking at #4 in U.K. charts, and in Latin America, “El Amor Que Sońe, also became a hit.

Daydream debuted at the U.S. Billboard 200 albums chart at #1, selling over 224,000 copies in its first week, staying at that privileged position for six non-consecutive weeks. Daydream managed to stay in the top twenty for astonishing forty-one non-consecutive weeks, and on the chart for more than eighty weeks. During the album’s twelfth week on chart since its release, Daydream’s sales peaked with 760,000 copies sold. At that time, Carey had broken the record for the highest one-week sales for an album by a female act. Daydream became the second best-selling album in 1996 in America.

Daydream was equally successful abroad, reaching #1 in the United Kingdom, Australia, Germany, Switzerland, and Japan, among others. In Japan, Daydream became the most successful album by an international artist, beating albums released by Michael Jackson and the Rolling Stones. By 2005, Daydream became Carey’s second album that has been certified diamond by the Recording Industry Association of America, for more than ten million copies shipped to retailers in America. According to Sony Music Entertainment and Universal Music, Daydream has sold approximately 25 million copies worldwide, which makes it Mariah’s second best-selling album after Music Box.

With Daydream (album and singles), Mariah received six nominations for the annual Grammy Awards, including the main categories Album of the Year, Record of the Year (for “One Sweet Day”), and Best Pop Vocal Album. Unfortunately, Carey won none. This disappointment did not overshadow the incredible success of Daydream, an album that had already become one of the most influential and best-selling albums in music history.