Last night, the queen, the myth, the legend that is Mariah Carey took to the Billboard Music Awards stage to receive the Icon gong - and boy did she deserve it, after enriching our lives with fabulous music for over 30 years now!
While her performance of a melody of her greatest hits sent shivers down our spines, the songstress' speech on Wednesday evening was just as memorable.
While accepting her award on stage, the 49-year-old moved the audience and brought many a tear to an eye by thanking fans for "saving her life".
Be blown away by Mariah's wonderful words:The We Belong Together star began by modestly claiming she didn't think of herself as an icon, stating: "Thank you Billboard for letting me grow up on the charts with you, and for this incredible honor. Icon? I really don’t think of myself in that way."
She then took viewers on an emotional journey back to her humble beginnings, saying she always felt like a "lost interracial child".
"I started making music out of a necessity to survive and to express myself and I just wanted to create something so I could feel worthy of existing," she said.
"And if I’ve learned anything, anything at all in this life, it’s that truly all things are possible with God. Without getting into all the drama, all the ups and downs of my career—we’ve all seen them, we all make mistakes, there’s been a few memes—I guess I’ve always felt like an outsider, as someone who doesn’t quite belong anywhere."
Scream, cheer and sob as you watch Mariah perform a melody of her hits:She continued: "And I still feel like that lost interracial child who had a lot of nerve to believe that I could succeed at anything at all in this world. But, and this is the truth, but I did believe because I had to. The truth is that I’ve dedicated my life to my music, my saving grace.
"And to my fans, who are unlike any other entity that I’ve ever known. They’ve lifted me from the depths of hell and brought me back with their devotion and love. I want to thank all the people who’ve been with me on this journey, through the highs and lows, through the struggles—through your struggles and mine."
To finish up her moving speech, Mariah celebrated those who had been through adversity, saying: "To anybody who doesn’t allow themselves to be broken, and keeps getting up and keep holding on and keeps standing tall and keeps on believing and keeps rising, I celebrate you tonight.
"And to anyone who’s ever told me that a song I wrote helped save their life, I thank you. Because you saved mine, and I’ll be eternally grateful for that. I love you. Thank you so much."
Put your hands up if you're Taylor Swift during Mariah's speech - we certainly are!
Breathtaking, as always. All hail the queen!
