Mariah Carey tells Meghan Markle that her album Butterfly was a ‘pivotal moment’ during divorce

Mariah Carey is the latest guest on Meghan Markle’s new Spotify podcast, Archetypes.

In the episode, the singer told the Duchess of Sussex how her 1997 album Butterfly “was a pivotal moment in my life”.

“Writing and producing and living in the studio and leaving the past life that I had with my first ex-husband behind was extremely difficult,” the singer said, explaining the circumstances in which the album was created.

The singer officially divorced from her ex-husband, Tommy Mottola – also the CEO of her label, Sony Music – back in 1998. She has previously revealed that she felt “stifled” in the relationship.

Describing the title song coming to her like a “gift” Carey said: “In my first marriage, I was very much what’s the word? I was kind of locked away and I was sort of given the rules and had to stick with them.”

The singer went on to say that the song reinstated her confidence as a writer while she was leaving the couple’s mansion, which she “paid for half of”.

The Carey episode follows the first episode of the Duchess of Sussex’s long-awaited podcast with Serena Williams, who recently announced that she was retiring from tennis.

The podcast has been made by Spotify and the Sussexes’ production company, Archewell Audio.

In the premiere episode, titled “The Misconception of Ambition”, Markle was joined by soon-to-be retired tennis champion, Serena Williams.

Throughout the episode, the longtime friends discussed motherhood, pregnancies and the stereotypes that try to hold women back. The pair also spoke about the double standards women face when they are labelled as “ambitious” and how this has affected each of their lives.

You can listen to Archetypes on all major podcast platforms.