holidays
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For Hannah Waddingham, Christmas is truly the most wonderful time of the year.
“I am like a child at Christmas. I love it,” the Ted Lasso superstar tells Billboard. “I don’t like acknowledging the fact that I’m nearly 50. I like to pretend that I’m still a little girl because I just find this time of the year totally magical.”
That’s why it was a no-brainer for the Emmy Award-winning actress to put on her own holiday special. In her upcoming AppleTV+ musical event, Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas, the star will welcome a slew of special guests for a “musical extravaganza” at the London Coliseum, which was recorded live in front of an audience.
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In an exclusive clip above shared with Billboard on Friday (Nov. 17), Waddingham and her longtime friend and fellow actor Luke Evans perform a stunning duet of the festive classic, “Winter Wonderland.”
“How long have we known each other, darling? 20 years?” Evans asks Waddingham in the clip, before she says, “20 years! God, did you ever think we’d be on a stage like this?”
“Yup,” Evans hilariously replies, and Waddingham agrees, “Yeah, I did too.” The duo then break into a sweet slow dance before the final chorus.
“I wanted the special to be something for everyone,” Waddingham explains to Billboard. “I wanted a little boy or a little girl to go look at the background and go, ‘Wow.’ I want people to fall in love with the band. I want people to fall in love when they do a wide shot of the theater. I want people to shut their front doors, sit in front of the TV and feel hugged and loved and feel like they can smile and share something with a family, at any age, from four to 94.”
In her own home, Waddingham says Christmas is just as exciting, especially with her eight-year-old daughter Kitty. “I’ve had a resurgence when it comes to Christmas, thanks to my daughter,” she shares. “I mean, I go in with all of it, like the whole Elf on the Shelf and the snowy footprints, the half eaten carrot and all of that. So, until she proves to me otherwise that Father Christmas doesn’t exist, I will be doing the most and then some.”
She adds with a laugh, “My daughter knows that Christmas throws up in my house come December.”
Hannah Waddingham: Home for Christmas debuts globally on AppleTV+ on November 22.
‘Tis the season of Kelce! Jason Kelce recruited his brother, Travis Kelce, to take part in the Philadelphia Eagles‘ upcoming holiday album, A Philly Special Christmas Special, on Wednesday (Nov. 15) with a fitting tribute to the City of Brotherly Love, “Fairytale of Philadelphia.” Explore Explore See latest videos, charts and news See latest videos, charts and news “Fairytale of Philadelphia” […]
11/15/2023
From classic tree ornaments to bold styles, you won’t want to stop looking at your tree even after the holidays are over.
11/15/2023
All Mariah Carey wants for Christmas is a certain yuletide tune. In her Wednesday (Nov. 15) appearance on The Jennifer Hudson Show, the 54-year-old singer revealed what her personal favorite holiday song is — and no, it’s not her own bestselling 1994 hit. “I have to say,” began the Queen of Christmas, “my favorite all-time […]
It’s a very Kelce Christmas! Jason Kelce has recruited his brother, Travis Kelce, to take part in the Philadelphia Eagles‘ upcoming holiday album, A Philly Special Christmas Special, and the brotherly duet is set to arrive on Wednesday (Nov. 15). The album’s official Instagram page posted a teaser clip of the song, “Fairytale of Philadelphia,” to Instagram on Tuesday […]
‘Tis the season to buy a gift for your favorite Swiftie, and Taylor Swift has you covered. The superstar unveiled her new holiday merch via the official Taylor Nation account on X on Monday (Nov. 13). “We close our eyes and we’re somewhere else… at Christmas time, cozying up with our brand new Holiday merch,” […]
iHeartMedia is getting in the festive mood with the return of the iHeartRadio Holiday Special, which will take over AC and Classic Hits stations nationwide and the iHeartRadio app on Nov. 22.
Hosted by Mario Lopez, the two-hour special event will feature interviews with Cher, Elton John, Train, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Meghan Trainor, Rob Thomas, and Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic discussing their favorite holiday songs and traditions.
The announcement comes Friday (Nov. 10), which marks iHeartRadio’s annual flip to holiday music on more than 85 stations across the country.
“Listeners look forward to that special day when we convert so many of our stations to Christmas music because it means that the holiday season has really started,” said Tom Poleman, chief programming officer for iHeartMedia, in a press statement. “To celebrate we are bringing back the iHeartRadio Holiday Special with Cher, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Elton John, Meghan Trainor, Rob Thomas, Ryan Tedder and Train who will be sharing their personal holiday memories.”
It’s no surprise that Cher will make an iconic appearance during the special, as she’s fresh off the release of her first holiday album, Christmas, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Holiday Albums chart last month. Produced by her longtime producer Mark Taylor, the set includes the legend’s interpretations of “Santa Baby,” “Run Rudolph Run” and “Please Come Home For Christmas.”
Cher recently told Billboard that she “had no intention of doing a Christmas album. But [Warner Records] said, ‘Why don’t you do a Christmas album, Cher?’ and I said if I can do my version I’ll do it, and they were very pleasant.”
Elton John is celebrating 50 years of his jingly single “Step Into Christmas,” which so far peaked at No. 84 on Billboard‘s Holiday 100 chart in 2017.
Listeners can hear holiday music across the iHeartRadio app on stations including iHeartChristmas, playing all the holiday favorites; North Pole Radio, hosted by Santa Claus and featuring a message line where kids can leave Christmas wishes for the big man himself; iHeartChristmas Classics, the place to hear all the timeless holiday classics; or holiday channels playing all kinds of music, including iHeartCountry Christmas, iHeartChristmas Jazz, iHeartChristmas R&B, iHeartChristmas Rock, Holiday Season Radio and more. Search “iHeart Holiday” in the app to find all the Christmas music options.
It may only be March, but Jimmy Fallon is already in the holiday spirit.
The late night host sat down with E! News this week, where he revealed that he has a festive-themed album on the way this year. “I’ve been working on one for a couple of years. It’s silly, there’s comedy songs, there’s traditional songs on there, there’s a couple of duets. It should be a good mix,” he explained.
Watch the video here.
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Fallon is no stranger to getting in the Christmas spirit, and has often performed holiday songs on The Tonight Show with his famous friends. Back in 2021, he released a pandemic-era holiday song “It Was A… (Masked Christmas)” alongside pop powerhouses Ariana Grande and Megan Thee Stallion.
“I didn’t want to do a Mariah Carey, ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ type of song, which is what everybody tries to do,” Fallon told Billboard‘s Pop Shop Podcast of the track. “I’m like, ‘Guys, she’s done it. She’s done it well. She nailed it. You can move away. No one’s going to top that song. She’s the queen. Let her have it. Think of a new idea.’”
Last year, Fallon teamed up with Dolly Parton for “Almost Too Early for Christmas,” a duet that ponders when is truly the right time to get into the holiday spirit.
Twelve days after Christmas comes Dia de los Reyes — or Three Kings Day (also known as Epiphany) — during which many Latino communities around the world gather with family to celebrate the arrival of the three kings, or magi (Wise Men).
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Los Tres Reyes is believed to have brought gifts of gold, frankincense and myrrh to Bethlehem to honor the baby Jesus. Some families in Mexico and South America eat Rosca — candied bread fit for a king. Other families in Puerto Rico and other Caribbean nations build on the parranda, an Afro-Indigenous tradition that calls for the house-to-house “caroling” of friends and families.
In honor of Three Kings Day 2023, Billboard has compiled a playlist of some traditional classics you and yours can use to set the festive mood.
The playlist includes the timeless holiday track “Cantares de Navidad” by the Puerto Rican group Trio Vegabajeño, which was originally composed in the early 1950s and forms part of Bad Bunny’s album El Último Tour del Mundo. There’s also the heartfelt bolero “Regalo de Reyes” by the late Mexican singer and actor Javier Solís; Luis Miguel’s rendition of “Noche de Paz,” part of his Navidades Luis Miguel album; “Caspar, Melchor, y Baltasar” by Mexican trio Pandora; and Thalía’s gitty “Los Reyes Magos,” part of her children’s album Viva Kids – Volumen 2, to name a few.
Many Villancicos (similar to a Christmas carol) are also on the playlist, such as “Vamos, Vamos Pastorcito” and the all-time favorite “Mi Burrito Sabanero.” The latter has both a merengue version by Elvis Crespo and a catchy banda tune by Banda El Recodo.
Listen to the full playlist below, and enjoy!
The presents have been opened and wallets closed, as the 2022 holidays have concluded. But which holiday songs made the biggest gains over the latest holiday season?
Here’s a look at the seasonal songs that logged the 10 top increases in on-demand audio and video streaming over the 2022 holidays as compared to 2021, according to Luminate, among the 50 most-streamed songs, on-demand, this holiday season.
Overall, streaming of holiday songs surged 12.1% over the latest holidays (Nov. 18-Dec. 29, 2022, correlating to the tracking period of Billboard‘s Holiday 100 songs chart dated from Dec. 3 through Jan. 7), as compared to the corresponding period the year before (Nov. 19-Dec. 30, 2021), per the top 500 holiday titles in each of the last two holiday seasons. (For this research, UGC [user-generated content] was included, although it does not contribute to Billboard‘s charts.)
Below is a recap of the 10 top-gaining seasonal songs year-over-year during the latest holidays — and their newest chart highlights.
The Top-Gaining Songs of the 2022 Holiday Season
“Here Comes Santa Claus,” Gene Autry
70.5 million on-demand audio and video U.S. streams Nov. 18-Dec. 29, 2022, up 53.5% from Nov. 19-Dec. 30, 2021
The song galloped to a No. 25 high on the Billboard Hot 100 dated Dec. 31, besting its prior No. 28 peak reached three years earlier. Originally released in 1947, it hit the top 10 on Billboard pop and country charts annually through the end of the ’40s.
“Blue Christmas,” Elvis Presley
77.2 million, up 48.8%
The King’s festive favorite logs a new No. 24 best on the Jan. 7 Hot 100. Up from No. 27, it marks his first appearance in the top 25 in exactly 44 years, since “My Way” held at its No. 22 peak on the Jan. 7, 1978, survey.
“Deck the Halls,” Nat King Cole
86.4 million, up 41.1%
The track made a jolly jaunt to a new No. 16 high on the Dec. 31 Hot 100. As previously reported, Cole achieves his first top 10 since 1963 with “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You),” which gained by 5% to 95.4 million on-demand streams this holiday season vs. the same period the year before.
“This Christmas,” Donny Hathaway
53.4 million, up 39.1%
The song rises to a new No. 37 highpoint on the Jan. 7 Hot 100. It’s his top-ranking entry since “The Closer I Get to You” – one of his six charted duets with Roberta Flack – a No. 2 hit in 1978.
“Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24,” Trans-Siberian Orchestra
36 million, up 37.8%
The instrumental rock reimagination of “God Rest Ye, Merry Gentlemen” and “Carol of the Bells” reached No. 35 on the Holiday 100 in December, its best rank on the chart in over two years.
“Merry Christmas,” Ed Sheeran & Elton John
41.4 million, up 37.4%
The cheery song by the British superstars fared far better in its second year. On the Hot 100, it climbed to No. 42, after it hit No. 55 in its first year of release. If its momentum continues, it could swell John’s total of top 40 hits beyond his current sum of 59, while Sheeran boasts 23 top 40 entries.
“Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” Dean Martin
60.5 million, up 31.7%
After first making notable inroads in streaming in the mid-2010s, the classic has hit the top 20 on the Streaming Songs chart each holiday season since 2018, reaching a No. 5 best in December 2020.
“Jingle Bells,” Frank Sinatra
81.3 million, up 31.3%
The recording ascends to No. 20 on the Jan. 7-dated Hot 100, marking a milestone for the late legend: he ranks in the top 20 for the first time since June 3, 1967, when “Somethin’ Stupid,” with daughter Nancy, placed at No. 16 following four weeks at No. 1.
“Do They Know It’s Christmas,” Band Aid
40.1 million, up 29.7%
The all-star anthem hit No. 34 on the Dec. 3 Holiday 100, its best rank since 2018. Helping its profile, LadBaby’s update, “Food Aid” (also a charity single) topped the Dec. 31 Official UK Singles chart. With the coronation, the husband-and-wife duo of Mark and Roxanne Hoyle became the first act with five Christmas UK No. 1s, surpassing The Beatles’ four in 1963-65 and 1967.
“All I Want for Christmas Is You,” Mariah Carey
262.3 million, up 29.6%
Rounding out the top 10-gaining holiday hits over the most recent Yuletide season, Carey’s 1994 modern classic made more Hot 100 history, upping its total to 12 weeks at No. 1, including four in a row, its most time on top in any holiday period. Its 262.3 million on-demand streams over the 2022 holidays led all songs, followed by runner-up Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (202.8 million).
In highlights just outside the seasonal songs with the 10 biggest increases over the latest holidays, Wham!’s “Last Christmas” gained by 29.1% to 150.7 million on-demand streams, as it hits a new No. 4 best on the Jan. 7 Hot 100; Sia’s “Snowman,” from 2017, surged by 26% to 39.7 million streams; and Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me,” from 2014, jumped by 18.9% to 115.3 million streams.
Meanwhile, three songs released this holiday season made the top 50 in 2022 holiday on-demand streams, with all three Amazon Original exclusives and covers of classics: Lizzo’s “Someday at Christmas” (44.4 million), Lauren Spencer-Smith’s “Last Christmas” (37.6 million) and Kane Brown’s “Blue Christmas” (36.8 million).