“All I Want for Christmas” has become established as a Christmas standard around the world and continues to surge in popularity each holiday season and since 2020 has been such a tough year, we’re starting to play the song early this year… with even more repeats!
Global (15 November 2020) – All we want for Christmas is Mariah Carey!!! And every year the American singer-songwriter delivers with her globally recognised, record-breaking song!
“All I Want for Christmas Is You” is a Christmas song by the American singer-songwriter. Carey co-wrote and co-produced it with Walter Afanasieff for her fourth studio album and first holiday album, Merry Christmas (1994). Columbia Records released it as the lead single from the album on October 28, 1994. The track is an uptempo love song that includes bell chimes, heavy back-up vocals, and synthesizers.
Upon release, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” has been critically acclaimed, with The New Yorker calling it “one of the few worthy modern additions to the holiday canon.” The song remains Carey’s biggest international success, reaching number one in numerous countries, including Australia, Canada, France, Germany, and the United States.
In 2019, the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, 25 years after its original release, thus breaking several records, including the longest trip to number one. With an estimated sales of over 16 million copies, it remains the best selling Christmas single by a female artist and one of the best-selling singles of all time and as of 2017, the song was reported to have earned $60 million in royalties!
Two music videos were originally commissioned for the song. The primary video features grainy home-movie-style footage of Carey, her dogs and family during the holiday season, as well as Carey dressed in a Santa suit frolicking on a snowy mountainside. Carey’s then-husband Tommy Mottola makes a cameo appearance as Santa Claus, bringing Carey a gift and leaving on a red sleigh. The second video was filmed in black and white, and features Carey dressed in 1960s style in homage to The Ronettes, alongside back up singers and female dancers.
And a third music video directed by Joseph Kahn was released in 2019 to commemorate the 25th anniversary of the song. But many somehow missed this!
Not to worry, you can watch it below:
Carey has performed “All I Want for Christmas Is You” during numerous live television appearances and tours throughout her career. In 2010, Carey re-recorded the song for her second-holiday album, Merry Christmas II You (2010), titled “All I Want for Christmas Is You (Extra Festive)”. Carey also re-recorded the song as a duet with Canadian singer Justin Bieber for his 2011 album Under the Mistletoe, titled “All I Want for Christmas Is You (SuperFestive!)”.
“All I Want for Christmas” has become established as a Christmas standard around the world and continues to surge in popularity each holiday season and since 2020 has been such a tough year, we’re starting to play the song early this year… with even more repeats!
Happy Holidays South Africa. Wishing you only good things.
by 