Mariah Carey opens up about mother and sister’s deaths: ‘It’s been a couple of rough weeks’

The singer announced last month that two of her family members passed away on the same day. Photo / Getty Images

Mariah Carey has had a “rough couple of weeks” since the deaths of her mother and sister.

The 55-year-old singer announced last month her mom Patricia and sibling Alison had passed away on the same day and the Fantasy hitmaker has now spoken out for the first time since the double loss to thank fans for their supportive messages.

Carey shared a video on Instagram of her rehearsing 2005 song It’s Like That ahead of her upcoming concerts in China and Brazil.

She said in the video: “We’ll see you soon, China.”

And in the caption, she wrote: “Back at work. It’s been a couple of rough weeks, but I appreciate everyone’s love and support so much and I can’t wait to see my fans in China + Brazil. Love you! [three heart emojis].”

The Hero singer previously said she was “heartbroken” following the death of her 87-year-old mother and admitted Alison’s passing had made the situation even more “tragic”.

She told People magazine: “My heart is broken that I’ve lost my mother this past weekend. Sadly, in a tragic turn of events, my sister lost her life on the same day. I feel blessed that I was able to spend the last week with my mom before she passed.

“I appreciate everyone’s love and support and respect for my privacy during this impossible time.”

Patricia - who divorced the late Alfred Roy Carey in 1973 - was an opera singer and vocal coach before giving birth to her first child, whilst Alison endured some personal struggles including homelessness throughout her life and has been estranged from her superstar sibling for a number of years.

Alison had been in hospice care prior to her death and had been hoping to reconcile with her sister before the end came.

Her friend David Baker told DailyMail.com: “I know it was her dying wish if she could’ve at least had a conversation with Mariah... "

Meanwhile, Carey has previously opened up about the complicated relationship she had with her mother and described it all as a “rainbow of emotions” in her memoir.

Writing in her 2020 tome The Meaning of Mariah Carey, she said: “Like many aspects of my life, my journey with my mother has been full of contradictions and competing realities. It’s never been only black and white - it’s been a whole rainbow of emotions. Our relationship is a prickly rope of pride, pain, shame, gratitude, jealousy, admiration and disappointment.

“A complicated love tethers my heart to my mother’s.”