Music is a big part of the holiday season and for the last several years, that’s only meant one song. Mariah Carey’s "All I Want For Christmas Is You" has become the number one song in the nation every year since 2019, and there was no reason to believe that 2023 would be any different. And yet, Carey has been dethroned. It would be one thing if there was a brand new music hit that people have fallen for, but the number one song right now is another classic, Branda Lee’s “Rockin' Around the Christmas Tree.”
So how exactly did a song from 1958 become the biggest song in the country for the very first time after more than six decades, and just what does the patron saint of Christmas music, Mariah Carey, think of it all?
The Story Behind “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree”
When Brenda Lee was 13 years old she recorded “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree" and initially it wasn’t a major hit. By 1960 Lee was an established star, leading to the song being re-released and hitting number 14 on the Billboard Hot 100, the best position it would hold for decades.
Today the song is one of those classics that you can expect to hear in every department store while Christmas shopping or in the background playlist of every holiday party you attend. Decades later it’s probably a lot of people’s favorite Christmas song.
The Story Behind “All I Want For Christmas Is You”
In an interesting coincidence, Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” had a similar path to number one status as Brenda Lee. The song was released in 1994, written by Carey and Walter Afanasieff, who claimed Carey had minimized his contributions to the song. and while it was always fairly popular, it didn’t become the modern Christmas song for decades. It didn’t enter the top 10 of Billboard’s Hot 100 until 2017.
Since 2019, however, it has been the country's number-one song every year. The song's popularity has made Carey the target of lawsuits over who is responsible for it. Other artists have covered it numerous times, just like every other Christmas classic you know. One of them was featured in the movie Love Actually, which includes a plot about a battle over the Christmas number one song. Mariah Carey has become a symbol of the season alongside musical icons like Bing Crosby. They even turned "All I Want For Christmas Is You" into a movie, just like Crosby's White Christmas. But this year something changed.
How “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree" Hit Number One, And How Mariah Carey Responded
It turns out that there’s been something of a holiday battle going on between Mariah Carey and Brenda Lee that you may not have noticed. Since 2019, every year that “All I Want For Christmas Is You” has hit number one, “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” has peaked at number two. This year, according to NPR, Brenda Lee’s record label made a concerted effort to make the song number one, even producing a brand new music video with the now 79-year-old Lee, who also started social media accounts on Twitter and TikTok.
It worked, Brenda Lee’s song, which was already a classic, officially topped the charts for the first time. And it turns out nobody is happier than Mariah Carey herself. Lee’s new Twitter account posted a picture of the flowers that the old champ sent the new champ, with a lovely note.
Thank you for your sweet note, @MariahCarey! Wishing you the merriest Christmas, too! 💕 -Brenda pic.twitter.com/Md0w7vQYpcDecember 7, 2023
Whichever your favorite Christmas song is, it’s heartwarming to see such love between these two stars. If the holiday season is about celebrating togetherness, these two are both number one.
