Marc Shaiman & Mariah Carey Team Up on Studio Album

According to Showbiz411.com, Mariah Carey has enlisted the assistance of Broadway composer Marc Shaiman (Hairspray and the upcoming Catch Me If You Can) on her new studio album, which is being produced by Randy Jackson. A five-time Oscar nominee, Shaiman has a history of collaborating with some of the best recording artists, including Bette Midler, recently, on the single "The Greatest Ears in Town," inspired by the late producer Arif Mardin on the album All My Friends Are Here.

Writes Showbiz411.com: "Mariah told me in an email last week that Shaiman was her favorite collaborator since her days with Walter Afanasieff. 'He's so talented and can hear the chords in my head.'"

This is not the first the theater world is hearing about ties with Carey.  An autobiographical Broadway musical, which could potentially star Leona Lewis as Carey, is reportedly in the works.

Mariah Carey became the first recording artist to have her first five singles top the U.S. Billboard Hot 100 chart. Following her marriage to Mottola in 1993, a series of hit records established her position as Columbia's highest-selling act in the 1990s. Carey has sold more than 175 million albums, singles and videos worldwide. She was named the best-selling female pop artist of the millennium at the 2000 World Music Awards. Carey is also the recipient of the Chopard Diamond Award at the 2003 World Music Awards, recognizing sales of over 100 million albums worldwide. According to the Recording Industry Association of America, she is the third best-selling female artist and sixteenth overall recording artist with shipments of over 63 million albums in the US. She is also ranked as the best-selling female artist of the U.S. Nielsen SoundScan era (third best-selling artist overall). She has the most number-one singles for a solo artist in the United States (eighteen; second artist overall behind The Beatles). In addition to her commercial accomplishments, Carey has earned five Grammy Awards, and most recently received critical praise for her role in Lee Daniel's Oscar-nominated film, Precious.