Mariah Carey mourns her mother and sister who died “on the same day”

CNN
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Mariah Carey is mourning the recent deaths of her mother and sister. The singer says they died “on the same day.”

“I am heartbroken to have lost my mother this past weekend. Unfortunately, in a tragic turn of events, my sister also lost her life that same day,” Mariah Carey said in a statement to CNN on Monday.

Details about the causes of death of Patricia Carey and Alison Carey have not been disclosed by the pop star. Patricia Carey was reportedly 87 years old. Alison Carey, a resident of Coxsackie, New York, was 63 years old, according to a Times Union article about her death.

The “All I Want for Christmas” singer added in her statement: “I feel blessed to have been able to spend the last week with my mother before she passed away. I am grateful for everyone's love and support and respect for my privacy during this impossible time.”

Patricia Carey was a Juilliard-trained opera singer and voice teacher. She was married to Mariah Carey's father, Alfred Roy, from whom she separated when Mariah Carey was three years old. Roy died in 2002.

In her 2020 memoir, The Meaning of Mariah Carey, Mariah Carey spoke about her “complicated” relationship with her mother, writing, “Like many aspects of my life, my journey with my mother was full of contradictions and competing realities.”

Despite their at times strained relationship, Mariah Carey mentioned her mother in the dedication at the beginning of the book.

“And to Pat, my mother, who despite everything, I believe did the best she could. I will always love you as much as I can,” she wrote.

Mariah Carey was reportedly estranged from her sister Alison Carey, who sued her in 2021 for intentionally causing emotional distress through some of the content in Mariah Carey's memoir.

In the lawsuit filed in New York, Alison Carey claimed her younger sister used her book to “humiliate and embarrass” her, according to a copy of the complaint obtained by CNN.

According to online court records, Mariah Carey never filed a legal response to the lawsuit.

Mariah Carey is one of three children. Besides Alison Carey, Patricia Carey was also mother to son Morgan Carey.