Mariah Carey Raves Over 'Brilliant' Anderson .Paak Amid Dating Rumors, Calls Their Christmas Vacation Together 'Special'

Mariah Carey is staying mum on the rumors she and Anderson .Paak are more than friends.

The star was asked about their relationship when she appeared on the Wednesday, September 24, episode of CBS Mornings with Gayle King to chat about her upcoming album, which he's a producer on.

"I reached out to him," the Grammy winner, 56, said of how their collaboration came together. "He's brilliant. He's really a great artist."

King noted "there are pictures" out of them holding hands, to which the mom-of-two quipped, "He just likes to hold my hand. He just grabs my hand — I don’t know what he’s doing."

"Are you saying you're strictly just friends?" asked the CBS star. "How do you see it?"

"He's a hand holding club," she replied.

King pointed out that the rumors peaked after the two were seen together in Aspen around Christmas — the holiday Carey is the unofficial mascot of.

"So when they saw him with Mariah at Christmas, it was like, 'Oh this must be something serious,'" the journalist explained of the dating speculation.

"Well, they better know it's something special, it's Christmas. He enjoyed it," the "We Belong Together" singer shared of the 39-year-old musician.

"Did you enjoy it?" asked King, to which Carey replied with a laugh, "I did. There was a hot tub there, it was nice."

When the PDA photos went viral, an insider spilled to a news outlet at the time, "They say they’re just friends, but there’s clearly a budding romance in the making."

"He’s good-looking, funny, a great dad and he loves her music. What’s not to like?" the source continued. "Plus they have a ton in common besides music. They each have two kids, have fun together and have many friends in common. Being friends first helps, but there’s chemistry, too. They look good together."

The music producer is the first man Carey has sparked dating rumors with since she and Bryan Tanaka ended their romance in late 2023.

"With mixed emotions, I share this personal update regarding my amicable separation from Mariah Carey after seven extraordinary years together. Our decision to embark on different paths is mutual, and as we navigate these separate journeys, we do so with profound respect and an overwhelming sense of gratitude for the invaluable time we’ve shared," the dancer wrote on social media at the time. "The memories we’ve created and the artistic collaborations are etched in my heart forever."

Carey was previously married to Nick Cannon, the father of her two children.