Happy Olympics to all who celebrate! The 2026 Winter Olympics kicked off on February 6 in Milan, and the opening ceremony included a performance from the legendary Mariah Carey. In a truly stunning silver-and-white gown, the songstress sang a version of Domenico Modugno’s “Nel Blu, dipinto di Blu” (also known as “Volare”) before segueing into her own song, “Nothing Is Impossible,” from her 2025 album, Here for It All.
The problem? Domenico Modugno’s 1950s classic is in Italian...and Mariah, who was born in Huntington, New York, does not speak Italian (as far as fans know, anyway). So while not all the viewers were on board with the performance, I’ll let you judge for yourself—and for the record: I think she nailed it.
I mean, that high note??? C’mon!
And she didn’t just sound great; Mimi looked incredible, too. According to Page Six, the singer accessorized with over 300 carats of diamonds courtesy of Levuma (valued at a collective $15 million), with a necklace that included a “whopping 185 carats” alone.
It was first announced back in December that Mariah would be making an appearance at the Milano Cortina 2026 opening ceremony, with the Olympics committee saying in a statement, “Mariah Carey fully represents the emotional atmosphere that accompanies the run-up to the Games. Music is a universal language that attracts different stories and sensibilities, and intertwines with the opening ceremony’s theme of harmony.”
For the record, the theme of “harmony” was chosen to represent the two Italian cities that serve as 2026 hosts: Milan and the mountain town of Cortina d’Ampezzo.
In addition to Mariah, other iconic performers included in the opening ceremony were Laura Pausini, who sang the Italian National Anthem, and Andrea Bocelli, who (fun fact!) also performed at the closing ceremony of the 2006 Winter Games in Turin.
