What was Mariah Carey's debut single released in 1990?

Mariah Carey's debut single released in 1990 was “Vision of Love.” Issued by Columbia Records on May 15, 1990, the song served as the introduction to Carey’s debut album, Mariah Carey.

Carey co-wrote “Vision of Love” with Ben Margulies, while Rhett Lawrence and Narada Michael Walden produced it. The song combined pop, soul, and R&B elements, and immediately drew attention to Carey’s unusually wide vocal range, including her prominent whistle-register notes.

“Vision of Love” became a major breakthrough, reaching number one on the Billboard Hot 100 and helping establish Carey as one of the defining new voices of the early 1990s. It also won the Grammy Award for Best Pop Vocal Performance, Female, at the 33rd Grammy Awards in 1991.

A common mix-up is “Love Takes Time,” which was Carey’s second single and also became a number-one hit later in 1990. “Vision of Love,” however, was the debut single.