Wax Poetics Auction for Rare Mariah Carey Demo Tape Now Open
WAX POETICS EXCLUSIVE MARIAH CAREY DEMO TAPE AUCTION NOW LIVE
Opportunity to Own Ultra-Rare 1988 Mariah Carey Demo from Mariah Carey’s Discovery Night – In Partnership With Arthur Baker and Brenda K. Starr
Wax Poetics, the New York–born editorial music collectibles platform; legendary producer and DJ, Arthur Baker; Grammy-nominated vocalist and early Mariah Carey collaborator, Brenda K. Starr.
Wax Poetics has officially opened bidding on its exclusive archival auction spotlighting an ultra-rare early Mariah Carey demo tape from Arthur Baker’s personal archive. Handed to Baker through Brenda K. Starr in 1988, it’s one of the only known tapes in existence.
Featuring early and unreleased recordings that ultimately shaped her 1990 debut album — which produced four No. 1 singles — the tape has long carried near-mythical status among fans and collectors. This is the first time it has ever been publicly offered.
A short film was released alongside the auction news that captures Baker’s first encounter with the tape after being introduced to it through Brenda K. Starr, whose mentorship and advocacy played a pivotal role in Carey’s earliest industry breakthrough, including famously handing Mariah’s demo tape to Tommy Mottola. As a key figure in the origin story, Brenda is now involved in the auction.
Baker shares: “Brenda and I first met through the 'Beat Street' producers Harry Belafonte and David Picker, who met Brenda when she attended the breakdance tryouts for the film. I was hired as the music producer, and she ended up appearing in the film and wrote a few songs for it. I later signed her, got her a record deal, and produced her first album for Jerry Greenberg’s Mirage Records. She was the person who first introduced me to Mariah and the demo tape. I’m super happy to have her involved in the auction.”
The auction includes the original cassette, a certificate of authenticity, and archival footage from the Wax Poetics archive team.
WHERE: waxpoetics.com
WHEN: Auction Now Live
Bidding Window: December 2 – December 11, 2025 at 3 PM ET
ABOUT WAX POETICS
Since 2001 Wax Poetics has been delivering deep-dive journals covering everything related to record collecting culture. Wax Poetics has now evolved into a premier music collectibles marketplace, connecting artists, collectors, and fans through rare and exclusive items, bridging music storytelling with unique memorabilia and items. The Arthur Baker Collection follows auctions with funk icon Bootsy Collins, and house legend Louie Vega, DâM-FunK, and Tony Wilson / Factory Records. For more information visit waxpoetics.com.
ABOUT ARTHUR BAKER
Arthur Baker started DJing in the early-70s in his native Boston and released his first production in 1977. Moving to New York in the early 80s at the peak of disco, Arthur first heard Kraftwerk’s ‘Trans-Europe Express’ and was inspired to transpose that evocative melody with an electronic drum track, which eventually became Afrika Bambaataa and Planet Patrol’s iconic ‘Planet Rock’, the first electronic hip-hop tune, which had a monumental impact as electro-funk was born in NYC. As well as pioneering the ‘cut ‘n’ paste’ sampling technique, Baker also foresaw the coming dance music trend by hiring DJs to help mix his own releases to give maximum impact on the dancefloor. In the intervening years, as a producer and record label head, Arthur has released countless records and remixes and continues to DJ internationally. Alongside rapper Nas, Arthur is currently working on a Broadway musical adaptation of classic hip-hip film Beat Street. He also curates the Dancemasters compilation series and presents the ‘Baker’s Revenge’ radio show on SiriusXM.
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