Mariah Carey was “blindsided” by the reports that surfaced following her split from her fiancé, James Packer, a source close to the singer tells Us Weekly.
“Mariah was totally blindsided by James. She read the news in Woman’s Day Australia that said he dumped her,” the insider tells Us. “Mariah knew they were having problems, but all relationships have issues — it wasn’t the kind of thing where she thought she’d read in the paper that she got dumped. … She was devastated; she was shocked.”
Woman’s Day was the first to break the news of the engaged couple’s split on Thursday, October 27. The Australian magazine reported that Packer, 49, dumped Carey after they had a falling out over her forthcoming reality show, Mariah’s World, and her extravagant spending.
The pop diva’s rep confirmed the breakup to Entertainment Tonight in a statement that read, “Mariah and James had a fight in Greece, and have not seen each other since. The fight was not because of any cheating allegations or excessive spending by Mariah. James is one of the most successful businessmen in the world. They are trying to work it out. Right now, they’re not sure if they will stay together.”
As previously reported, a source close to the Australian businessman exclusively told Us that Carey’s life in the spotlight was too much for him to handle. “He’s more private,” the insider explained. “She always has her whole entourage and he couldn’t take that. … Being in such a public relationship was fun for James at first, but then it got to be too much and he wanted his normal life back.”
Multiple sources later told Us that the Grammy winner’s “lavish spending” and Packer’s “temper” played a role in their separation. Another insider close to Carey explained that she ended the relationship because Packer wasn’t “present” enough.
Amid the drama, rumors swirled that the couple, who got engaged in January after eight months of dating, clashed over her close relationship with backup dancer Bryan Tanaka. A source told Us, however, that the pals weren’t romantically involved, adding, “It wasn’t sexual. She didn’t cheat.”
Carey was previously married to music executive Tommy Mottola and TV personality Nick Cannon, with whom she shares 5-year-old twins Moroccan and Monroe.
