Like Faye, SWV, Shirley Murdock, Kelly Price and damn near 3/4 of the R&B population of the 90s, The Clarke Sisters had the influence on lock & key, Mariah was a loyal student of the Clarke Sisters school, but unlike the aforementioned disciples, she was smart enough to conceal the CS influence and mix it with a lil' Niecy, Syreeta and Minnie.

Speaking of which, I still roll my eyes @ the Mariah/Whitney comparison, and I can't believe people are feeding into it to this day.