Mariah Carey went all in when she performed at the 2026 Winter Olympics opening ceremony.
The singer came out in a sparkling white dress and matching feather boa to sing Italian classic “Volare.” As she delivered her rendition and hit a whistle note, Carey proved you don’t have to be Italian to master the song. Afterwards, the singer broke into “Nothing Is Impossible,” a ballad off her latest album, Here for It All.
Before the performance, some fans speculated that the singer would take the stage with Andrea Bocelli to sing “Volare.” The famed Italian singer is also set to perform at the ceremony, which is taking place in San Siro stadium in Milan. Along with Bocelli, Pierfrancesco Favino, Sabrina Impacciatore, Laura Pausini, Lang Lang, Cecilia Bartoli, and Ghali were also tapped to perform.
Friday marks the beginning of the cold-weather competitions, which are being hosted in Milan and Cortina, Italy. The Winter Olympics occur every four years, but 2026 will be the first time in eight years since the games have in-person spectators following Covid-19 and the safety measure and restrictions put in place afterwards. The world will be tuning in, even more so than before, to see just what happens as the world’s best athletes compete in a range of sports.
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Before the ceremony began, Taylor Swift even shared an inspiring message to the participating athletes. “I just wanted to say thank you. Getting to learn your stories and see everything that you’ve sacrificed and all your determination and hard work and passion and everything that’s gotten you to this point where you’re so excellent at something, it’s just really inspiring,” she said. In the background, an instrumental version of her latest single “Opalite,” played. The video for the track dropped today.
In her message, the American singer added, “I am very grateful for everything you’ve done to get to this point in your life, and grateful that you’ve brought us all along with you on this journey, so we get to watch you do this. I just hope that you have a wonderful Olympic Games, wishing you all the best of luck and a safe journey. And I hope that this is an experience that you would cherish for the rest of your life.”
