"The Little Drummer Boy" is a popular Christmas song written by the American classical music composer and teacher Katherine Kennicott Davis in 1941. First recorded in 1951 by the Trapp Family Singers, the song was further popularized by a 1958 recording by the Harry Simeone Chorale; the Simeone version was re-released successfully for several years and the song has been recorded many times since. In the lyrics, the singer relates how, as a poor young boy, he was summoned by the Magi to the Nativity of Jesus. Without a gift for the Infant, the little drummer boy played his drum with approval from Jesus's mother, Mary, recalling, "I played my best for him" and "He smiled at me".
Casting Crowns is a contemporary Christian and Christian rock band started in 1999 by youth pastor Mark Hall, who serves as the band's lead vocalist, as part of a youth group at First Baptist Church in Downtown Daytona Beach, Florida. They later moved to Stockbridge, Georgia, and more members joined. Some members of the band currently work as ministers for Eagle's Landing First Baptist Church in McDonough, Georgia. The band has won a Grammy and a Dove Award.
"All I Want for Christmas Is You" is a Christmas song by American singer Mariah Carey. She co-wrote and co-produced it with Walter Afanasieff for her fourth studio album and first holiday album, Merry Christmas (1994). Columbia Records released it as the lead single from the album on October 29, 1994. The track is an uptempo love song that includes bell chimes, backing vocals and synthesizers. The song has become a Christmas standard and continues to surge in popularity each holiday season.
Rodney Scott Carrington is an American stand-up comedian, actor, and country music artist. He has released six major-label studio albums and a greatest hits package, on Mercury Records and Capitol Records. His comedy act typically combines stand-up comedy and original songs. Most of his songs are recorded in a neotraditional country style. Carrington has also starred in the ABC sitcom Rodney and in the 2008 film Beer for My Horses.
"Santa Baby" is a song performed by American singer Eartha Kitt with Henri René and His Orchestra and originally released in 1953. The song was written by Joan Javits and Philip Springer, who also used the pseudonym Tony Springer in an attempt to speed up the song's publishing process. Lyrically, the song is a tongue-in-cheek look at a Christmas list addressed to Santa Claus by a woman who wants extravagant gifts such as sables, yachts, and decorations from Tiffany's.
"Thank God It's Christmas" is a Christmas single by the British rock band Queen. It was written by lead guitarist Brian May and drummer Roger Taylor. Released on 26 November 1984, the single spent six weeks in the UK charts over Christmas 1984 and new year of 1985, and peaked at number 21.
"Forever Young" is a song from German synth-pop band Alphaville's 1984 debut album of the same name. The single was a hit in Scandinavia and in the European German-speaking countries in the same year.
"Stay Another Day" is a pop song recorded by British boy band East 17. Released on 21 November 1994, it is their only number-one song on the UK Singles Chart, becoming the Christmas number one of 1994. "Stay Another Day" also topped the charts of Denmark, Ireland, and Sweden and peaked within the top 10 of the charts in several other countries, including Australia, France, and the Netherlands.
"I Wish It Could Be Christmas Everyday" is a Christmas song recorded by British glam rock band Wizzard. It was first released in December 1973 and, as with most Wizzard songs, was written and produced by the band's frontman Roy Wood—formerly of The Move and a founding member of Electric Light Orchestra. Despite the song's strong, long-lasting popularity, it has reached no higher than number four on the UK Singles Chart, a position it occupied for four consecutive weeks from December 1973 to January 1974. The song was beaten to the 1973 Christmas Number 1 spot by Slade's "Merry Xmas Everybody", which remained at the top of the charts for five weeks, from December 1973 to January 1974.
Brandon Heath Knell is an American contemporary Christian musician, singer, and songwriter from Nashville, Tennessee. He has released six studio albums: Don't Get Comfortable (2006), What If We (2008), Leaving Eden (2011), Blue Mountain (2012), No Turning Back (2015), and Faith Hope Love Repeat (2017). He is best known for the No. 1 singles: "I'm Not Who I Was" and "Give Me Your Eyes". He was nominated four times at the Dove Awards of 2008 and won in the "New Artist of the Year" category. His second album was nominated for "Gospel Album of the Year" at the 51st Grammy Awards of 2009.
Over the Rainbow is the debut album of the child singer Connie Talbot, and was released 26 November 2007 by Rainbow Recording Company. Talbot, who had entered the public eye after her appearance on the first series of Britain's Got Talent at age six, signed with Rainbow, an independent label, after briefly recording with Sony BMG. Over the Rainbow consists entirely of covers of pop and Christmas songs, and was recorded primarily in a spare room in the house of Talbot's aunt, in an attempt not to interrupt Talbot's childhood by disrupting her regular activities. Although public appearances were initially kept to a minimum, Talbot did make appearances to promote the album, and performed in public several times after the British release.
Connie Victoria Elizabeth Talbot is an English singer. In 2007, she was the runner-up of the first series of Britain's Got Talent. She then signed with Rainbow Recording Company and released her debut album Over the Rainbow on 26 November 2007, which has sold over 250,000 copies worldwide and reached number one in three countries.
Same Difference were an English bubblegum pop duo from Portsmouth, England, made up of siblings Sean Smith and Sarah Smith. They came to prominence in 2007 when they finished third in the fourth series of the ITV talent show, The X Factor.
Owl City is an American electronic music project created in 2007 in Owatonna, Minnesota; it is one of several projects by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Adam Young. Young created the project while experimenting with music in his parents' basement. Owl City developed a following on the social networking site MySpace, like many musicians who achieved success in the late 2000s, before signing with Universal Republic Records, now Republic Records, in 2008.
Joseph "Joe" McElderry is an English singer and songwriter. He won the sixth series of the ITV show The X Factor in 2009. His first single "The Climb" reached number one on both the UK Singles Chart and the Irish Singles Charts. He was also the winner of the second series of Popstar to Operastar in 2011 and the first series of The Jump in 2014. In 2015, McElderry played the lead role of Joseph in the touring production of the Andrew Lloyd Webber and Tim Rice musical Joseph and the Amazing Technicolour Dreamcoat.
Jake Patrick Robert Hook is an English, million-seller songwriter, producer and arranger. Hook signed with EMI, in December 2009, on the strength of the single "Coming Home" by The Soldiers.
Alex Richard George Day is an English musician, vlogger and writer. Day has released seven studio albums, two EPs, and had three UK Top 40 hits. Day has amassed more than 1,000,000 subscribers and over 130 million views on his YouTube channel.
Pentatonix is an American a cappella group from Arlington, Texas, consisting of vocalists Scott Hoying (baritone), Mitch Grassi (tenor), Kirstin Maldonado (alto), Kevin Olusola, and Matt Sallee (bass). Characterized by their pop-style arrangements with vocal harmonies, basslines, riffing, percussion, and beatboxing, they produce cover versions of modern pop works or Christmas songs, sometimes in the form of medleys, along with original material. Pentatonix formed in 2011 and subsequently won the third season of NBC's The Sing-Off, receiving $200,000 and a recording contract with Sony Music. When Sony's Epic Records dropped the group after The Sing-Off, the group formed its YouTube channel, distributing its music through Madison Gate Records, a label owned by Sony Pictures. Their YouTube channel currently has over 19 million subscribers and 5 billion views. The group's video tribute to Daft Punk had received more than 355 million views as of November 20, 2021.
The discography of Måns Zelmerlöw, a Swedish pop singer and television presenter. His debut studio album, Stand by For..., was released in March 2007. It peaked at number 1 on the Swedish Albums Chart. In November 2006, it was announced that Zelmerlöw would compete in Melodifestivalen 2007, Sweden's national final for the Eurovision Song Contest 2007, to be held in Helsinki, Finland. He competed with the song "Cara Mia" in the 3rd semi-final on 17 February 2007 in Örnsköldsvik, and progressed to the final, which was held on 10 March at Globen in Stockholm. There his performance of "Cara Mia" finished in third place behind winners The Ark and runner-up Andreas Johnson. Four singles were released from the album; "Cara Mia", "Work of Art ", "Brother Oh Brother" and "Miss America", all of which reached the Top 50 in on the Swedish Singles Chart.
A Holly Dolly Christmas is the forty-seventh solo studio album by American singer-songwriter Dolly Parton. It was released on October 2, 2020, by Parton's Butterfly Records in partnership with 12-Tone Music Group. The album was produced by Kent Wells, with Parton serving as executive producer. It is Parton's third Christmas album, following 1984's Once Upon a Christmas with Kenny Rogers and 1990's Home for Christmas. The album features guest appearances by Michael Bublé, Billy Ray Cyrus, Miley Cyrus, Jimmy Fallon, Willie Nelson, and Parton's brother Randy. It peaked at number one on the Billboard Top Country Albums chart, becoming Parton's eighth album to top the chart. The album also peaked at number one on the Billboard Top Holiday Albums chart and number 16 on the Billboard 200. The album is nominated for Best Traditional Pop Vocal Album at the 64th Annual Grammy Awards.
