Mariah Carey Declares 'It's Time' For Christmas Season—As Her ...

1 Nov 2024

Forbes

Topline

Mariah Carey wasted no time ushering in the start to the holiday season, depicting the transition from Halloween to Christmas in a video posted to her social media accounts at midnight on Nov. 1, featuring her annual chart-topper “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

Mariah Carey annually tops the charts with her Christmas music. (Photo by Terence Patrick/CBS via ... [+] Getty Images)

CBS via Getty Images Key Facts

The minute-long video depicts Carey as Morticia Addams from “The Addams Family” dancing with a man dressed as Gomez Addams in a dreary haunted house—but Carey quickly throws a dagger at his face before opening a wardrobe, which contains a red Santa suit.

The video shows the calendar transitioning from the end of October to the beginning of November, after which Carey sings, “It’s time,” in whistle tones while sitting in a sleigh as “All I Want for Christmas Is You” begins to play.

Carey had previously teased her declaration of the holiday season, including in a video she posted Monday in which she prepares to sing “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” but is interrupted by Kerry Washington, with whom she urges viewers to make a plan to vote.

The singer also previously posted updated cover art for her Christmas album, “Merry Christmas,” which celebrates its 30th anniversary this year, for which Carey is selling re-released physical albums and singles.

Carey’s announcement already prompted “All I Want for Christmas Is You” to rise on the U.S. iTunes chart: It currently ranks No. 44, an early indicator of its annual rise up the charts.

Key Background

Carey’s holiday music enjoys a resurgence in popularity every year, and she annually tops the charts with her signature Christmas hit, “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Carey has broken various chart records with her holiday music: “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is the only song to have hit No. 1 on the Hot 100 in five consecutive calendar years (between 2019 and 2023), and it is the first holiday song to have surpassed 1 billion streams on Spotify. The song is also an annual marketing opportunity and income stream for Carey, who promotes her Christmas music on social media every year and has embarked on holiday concert tours. The Associated Press, citing an unnamed expert, reported last year the song may soon surpass $100 million in total royalty earnings. Billboard estimated last year the song generated $8.5 million in global revenue and publishing royalties, of which it estimated Carey pocketed $1.86 million in royalties and another unknown sum based on her share as a songwriter.

What To Watch For

How many weeks “All I Want for Christmas Is You” may top the Billboard Hot 100 this holiday season—and whether it will further solidify itself as one of the longest-running Hot 100 No. 1 hits of all time. The song has led the chart for 14 total weeks after it hit No. 1 for the first time in 2019, and it has topped the chart every holiday season since then. Carey needs two more weeks at No. 1 to tie her own hit, “One Sweet Day,” as well as Morgan Wallen’s “Last Night” and Luis Fonsi and Daddy Yankee’s “Despacito” as the second-longest running No. 1 hit, with 16 total weeks at No. 1. The longest-running reign at No. 1 is 19 weeks, a record held by Lil Nas X’s “Old Town Road.” Carey may face a challenge, however, from Brenda Lee’s 1958 classic “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree,” which topped the Hot 100 for the first time last year for two weeks.

Surprising Fact

Carey tried to trademark the title “Queen of Christmas” in 2022 for marketing a range of products, but the Trial Trademark and Appeal Board rejected her request. Carey faced a legal challenge from Elizabeth Chan, a singer who exclusively releases Christmas music, who filed a motion opposing Carey’s trademark request.