Every winter, pop stars, actors and even comedians take on the same monumental task: creating a bestselling Christmas album. Some recreate the melodies of classic Christmas tunes, while others add their own contemporary twists. These albums are skillful and catchy, while still maintaining a festive holiday aesthetic. For those with a bias toward whimsical, wistful holiday music, these are some of the holiday’s best beyond Mariah Carey’s well-loved tunes.
Ariana Grande, “Christmas Kisses” and “Christmas & Chill”
Ariana Grande has made it clear there is no musical feat she can’t reimagine: pop, holiday tunes, musical theater and more recently, a comedic episode of SNL. While both albums skew toward modern pop, a number of standouts on both anchor them as classically Christmas — “Santa Baby” featuring Liz Gillies trumps Eartha Kitt’s original and “Winter Things” recounts everyone’s favorite Christmas memories in a heartwarming poem. “Wit it This Christmas” and the intro to “Christmas & Chill” would categorize these EPs as more pop and R&B than Christmas whimsy, but Grande’s “Love Is Everything” from “Christmas Kisses” is a community-driven, soulful rejoice of being together during the holidays.
Kacey Musgraves, “A Very Kacey Christmas” and “The Kacey Musgraves Christmas Show”
“A Very Kacey Christmas” makes this list for its innocently spirited verve. Musgraves’ velvety vocals and delicate runs emulate a similar satisfaction to Michael Bublè’s voice. Her album takes on a more playful, lighthearted tone, setting the sound apart from the performative vibratos of Carey or Kelly Clarkson. “A Very Kacey Christmas” is a meditative breath of fresh air in an industry full of theatrical holiday chaos or heartbreak. Her collaboration with Troye Sivan on the original song “Glittery” is a highlight. An unlikely duo, Sivan’s baritone voice compliments Musgraves’ southern twang in a pairing that resembles the flirtatiousness of “Baby, It’s Cold Outside.”
Kelly Clarkson, “When Christmas Comes Around…” and “Wrapped in Red”
No one does Christmas like Kelly Clarkson. Her vocals are comforting and traditional, yet her touch of raspy flare appeals to modern audiences across her holiday albums. Her tone is both nimble and jazzy on “Run Run Rudolph” and her covers of “Please Come Home For Christmas (Bells Will Be Ringing)” are equally effervescent, but her original songs on “When Christmas Comes Around” are much more sincere and heartfelt.
Michael Bublé, “Christmas”
Bublé’s “Christmas” is a simple yet elegant take on holiday classics. Though it doesn’t hold as much boy-band flare as Justin Bieber’s “Under The Mistletoe,” “Christmas” is nonetheless upbeat and instills a buoyant cheer in listeners. Bublé is the modern-day Bing Crosby: a crooner who delicately swings from key to key and note to note. Everyone understandably swoons over “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas,” “Holly Jolly Christmas” and “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town,” but Bublé’s delicate, lullaby-like take on “All I Want for Christmas Is You” deserves equal appreciation.
Justin Bieber, “Under The Mistletoe”
Bieber navigates between heartwarming ballads and upbeat pop tunes in an unexpectedly vulnerable and mature fashion. While presenting contemporary collaborations with Usher and Busta Rhymes in “The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on An Open Fire)” and “Drummer Boy,” he embraces the sentimentality of traditional holiday music in tracks like “Silent Night” and his original song “Pray.” Released in 2011, listening to the album now ignites nostalgia for a maximalist Christmas tree with rainbow string lights, ornaments from the Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade and Disney Channel holiday commercials on a grainy TV screen. The most versatile album on the list, it’s perfect for listening while driving, walking, wrapping presents or even working out.
Contact Bella Simonte at [email protected].