Mariah Carey Admits She Doesn’t ‘Allow’ Herself to Age: ‘It Just Doesn’t Happen’

Age isn’t even a number for superstar Mariah Carey. “I don’t allow it — it just doesn’t happen,” the 56-year-old insists in the September issue of Harper’s Bazaar U.K. “I don’t know time. I don’t know numbers. I do not acknowledge time.”

In fact, the singer has a song on her upcoming album, Type Dangerous — her first new music since 2018 — that begins with that line. (If it sounds familiar, never forget the “Hero” singer’s famous 2003 quip in response to a question about fellow diva Jennifer Lopez: “I don’t know her.”)

The mom of two, with ex-husband Nick Cannon, fully embraces her divadom. “It’s part of my job,” she tells the magazine. “What’s the point of a disguise? Just get up, get dressed, go out. If I don’t want to be seen, I’ll stay home.”

Early in her career, when she was first married to controlling record exec Tommy Mottola, she was forced to do just that as he hid her away in their Bedford, N.Y., mansion — and shielded her from the magnitude of her success.

It was only on a trip to Schenectady, New York, to record a Thanksgiving special, she reveals, that she realized that the crowds were there for her. “And that was just shocking,” she says. “Because nobody had ever told me, ‘Hey, these people are outside the store, and they all want to buy your record.’”

Now, she’s all about her “Lambs,” saying it’s “very special” to meet her fans. “They’re part of my life.”