Anyone who celebrates Christmas knows the song “All I Want For Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey. Even those who don’t celebrate Christmas have probably heard the song. Every year on November 1st, Carey defrosts and rises again as the one and only queen of Christmas. But how did she get there?
Carey’s first christmas
In October of 1994, Carey released her fourth studio album Merry Christmas. This album stood out as the singer’s first-holiday album. The lead single off of Merry Christmas was “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” which is still one of Carey’s most popular songs to date. Although the song has hit number one in recent years, the year it was released, it only hit #12 on the Billboard Hot 100 list.
Remixes and re-releases
In 2009, Carey released three new versions of the song called “All I Want For Christmas Is You (Mariah’s New Dance Mixes 2009)” In 2010, the songstress released “Oh Santa! All I Want For Christmas Is You (Holiday Mash Up)” Again, in 2019, she released a new version of “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” this time featuring The Piano Guys.
Also, in 2019, Carey re-released Merry Christmas with more songs and remixes, such as the Merry Christmas (Deluxe Anniversary Edition). Finally, in 2020, Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas Special (Apple TV+ Original Soundtrack) was released following her Christmas special. This special, of course, included “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”
Mariah Carey, Queen of christmas
As any smart business professional would do, Carey used the song’s success to her advantage and continued to release media related to the song. In 2015, the savvy singer adapted the song into a book with the same title. Making the jump from song to the book wasn’t the end for Carey. In 2017, she starred in the animated direct-to-video movie All I Want For Christmas Is You. She voiced the character of a young girl whose only Christmas wish was for a puppy.
Carey has continued her reign as the Queen of Christmas for many years because she has always leaned into the title. Instead of trying to shake that image and ignore that part of her career, she fully embraces it. The image has likely been easy to maintain; the superstar earned around $60 million in royalties as of 2017. Long reign the queen!
What is your favorite Mariah Carey Christmas song? Do you prefer the original “All I Want For Christmas Is You” or one of the remixes?
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