Reid thinks that getting radio play at this point in her career is a huge accomplishment, because radio doesn’t cater to veteran artists or legends. He speaks real truth when he said that radio caters to in-the-moment stars and not icons that have been in the game for 25 years.
To put his point across further, he namedrops Prince, Paul McCartney, Stevie Wonder, Bruce Springsteen and Mick Jagger as legendary acts not dominating the charts like they once did in their prime. "Would we like to have a No. 1?" he asks, "Fuck yeah, I’m greedy. But it’s not realistic."
I don't see any lies told. Mariah's days as a mega-selling artist are well and truly over, and that has nothing to do with her music. It has everything to do with the changing nature of the music industry, and of course the word I hate most - industry ageism. This is why I'm actually nervous for Janet Jackson's comeback now that it's official. I'm just excited we're getting brand new music and a world tour out of it. And as long as Mariah can tour, draw in a crowd and profit in that area, her albums should serve as promo for those tours. But back to my point about her music. Musically, Mariah has stayed true to herself to the very end. She has never sacrificed her musical integrity to fit in. *pause* Okay... so on a lyrical front 'Memoirs' just wasn't her but she stayed doing the music closest to her heart and for that she gets my utmost respect.
ETA: MC’s greatest hits compilation ‘#1 To Infinity’ is on course to sell 14,000-16,000 copies first week in the States (16k-18k with streaming).