Mariah Carey’s “I don’t know her” comment in reference to Jennifer Lopez has become a popular meme on social media. Many have come to believe that Carey said it because there is “beef” between both entertainers. But in an interview with Pitchfork , Carey insists that she has no ill will towards the “Get Right” singer.
“I really was trying to say something nice or say nothing at all. I really was,” she said.
As Entertainment Tonight notes the meme was born when Mariah gave an interview in the early 2000s when she was asked about her impressions of a variety of female stars. While she praised Beyonce, when she was asked about Jennifer Lopez, she gave the comment that has become closely associated with her.
In the Pitchfork interview, Carey was asked about how she feels about that comment being interpreted as “diva” behavior.
“I try to stay away from it because you can’t drown in that,” she said. “I don’t know how people read comments all the time and then survive.”
This isn’t the first time that Carey has had to clarify what she meant with the “I don’t know her” comment. She was asked about during an appearance on Watch What Happens Live with Andy Cohen.
Her response at the time was similar to the one that she gave to Pitchfork i.e. she insisted that she did not say it to be “shady.”
“If I have never had a conversation with you and someone asked me about you, I’d be like, ‘I don’t know him, but he seems cool,’” she said to Cohen.
When he asked her if she thinks that Jennifer Lopez is cool, Carey said, “I don’t know her, what am I supposed to say?”
On the flip side, Carey has also previously objected to comparisons between herself and Lopez, VH1 News notes. In an interview with Larry King, she insisted that she and Lopez were very different artists and therefore they shouldn’t be compared.
“I don’t think she has anything to do with me. My whole thing is singing. Writing songs…I’ve been doing this my whole life,” she said. “Singing is first and foremost. It’s a God-given talent that I’m grateful for. Her thing is something different.”
Many interpreted that as a “diss” to Jennifer Lopez’s singing ability.
Mariah Carey’s “Caution” debuts at No. 5 on the Billboard 200 ?? https://t.co/lGktBInDSU pic.twitter.com/2c2XvowB2w
— Rap-Up (@RapUp) November 27, 2018
Alleged celebrity beefs aside, Mariah Carey’s career is still going strong after more than 20 years in the business. This year, she released her fifteenth studio album, Caution . The project has shown that she still has the ability to generate hits. Billboard reports that Caution has landed on the n0 5. spot on their album ranking. This means that in her lengthy career only three albums have failed to land in the top 10 and those projects were all compilations.
