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\n\tThis latest week at No. 1 is a historic one for Carey, as it makes it 19 total for \u201cAll I Want\u201d \u2014 tying the holiday classic with Lil Nas X\u2019s Billy Ray Cyrus-featuring \u201cOld Town Road\u201d and Shaboozey\u2019s \u201cA Bar Song (Tipsy)\u201d for the longest-reigning No. 1 in Hot 100 history. And just below it, another holiday classic hits a new benchmark, as Wham!\u2019s \u201cLast Christmas\u201d reaches the runner-up spot for the firs ttime. <\/p>\n
\n\tWill \u201cLast Christmas\u201d eventually pass \u201cAll I Want\u201d on the seasonal rankings? And what else are we finding notable among the Hot 100\u2019s holiday titles this week? Billboard staffers answer these questions and more below. <\/p>\n
\n\t1. Mariah Carey\u2019s \u201cAll I Want for Christmas Is You\u201d notches a record-tying 19th frame at No. 1 on the Hot 100 this week. On a scale from 1-10, how big an achievement is this for Carey?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tKatie Atkinson:<\/strong>\u00a010! The fact that she held this very record for more than two decades with her Boyz II Men collab \u201cOne Sweet Day,\u201d lost it, and now is within one week of reclaiming it is an exceptional feat. She first set the record in 1996 alongside Boyz II Men, and almost 30 years later she\u2019s getting it back? Seriously, who does that?! It\u2019s an unprecedented chart achievement that I doubt could ever be re-created. Not to mention, Mariah could break the record next week, but then the weeks at No. 1 she could have in the holiday seasons to come are endless. The Hot 100\u2019s No. 1 is officially Mariah\u2019s personal chart penthouse, which she lets everyone else rent out the other 48 weeks of the year.<\/p>\n \n\tKyle Denis<\/strong>: 8.5. It might be just as big as \u201cChristmas\u201d reaching No. 1 on the Hot 100 the first time around! Snatching back the all-time record from two absolute behemoths is no easy feat, but of course if anyone could pull it off, it\u2019d be Mariah Carey. \u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tJason Lipshutz<\/strong>: A 9. That will bump up to a 10 next week, if \u201cAll I Want for Christmas is You\u201d ends the three-way tie with \u201cOld Town Road\u201d and \u201cA Bar Song (Tipsy),\u201d but for now, Carey notching a 19th week at No. 1 demonstrates just how enduring her holiday classic has become. Even when other holiday fare floods the top 10, or a song like Brenda Lee\u2019s \u201cRockin\u2019 Around the Christmas Tree\u201d sneaks in for a week atop the Hot 100 in a different year, \u201cAll I Want for Christmas is You\u201d remains the 800-pound gorilla of the season. The fact that it now shares a piece of Hot 100 history speaks to that dominance, which has no end in sight.<\/p>\n \n\tAndrew Unterberger<\/strong>: A 10. Next week might be an 11. <\/p>\n \n\tDenise Warner<\/strong>: 10, for sure. Mariah has 19 No. 1 hits on the Hot 100 \u2013 and multiple chart toppers that reigned for more than 10 weeks. But creating a song so iconic that its ascendency to the top becomes an inevitable holiday tradition? That\u2019s incredible.<\/p>\n \n\t2. Wham!\u2019s \u201cLast Christmas\u201d reaches a new peak of No. 2 on the Hot 100 this week \u2014 marking the fifth holiday season this decade in which the song has bettered its previous chart peak. What about the song has made it such a still-growing perennial over 40 years later?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tKatie Atkinson:<\/strong>\u00a0The thing that separates \u201cLast Christmas\u201d from pretty much every other holiday song is that it\u2019s a perfect pop song that just happens to be Christmas-themed. I wouldn\u2019t mind hearing this song on the radio in January or even July, really. George Michael crafted a great Wham! breakup song set at Christmastime that gets its much-deserved\u00a0flowers\u00a0poinsettias every December.<\/p>\n \n\tKyle Denis<\/strong>: I think \u201cLast Christmas\u201d really benefits from the downcast gloom that hovers over most of Gen Z. If we\u2019re not latching onto sexy Christmastime songs like Ariana Grande\u2019s \u201cSanta Tell Me\u201d or Destiny\u2019s Child\u2019s \u201c8 Days of Christmas,\u201d we\u2019re leaning into the songs that capture melancholy winter blues. Think Phoebe Bridgers\u2019 intimate \u201cIf We Make It Through December\u201d or Sabrina Carpenter\u2019s \u201cSanta Doesn\u2019t Know You Like I Do.\u201d\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tOutside of the song itself, Wham! also remains one of pop\u2019s coolest duos, thanks, in large part, to George Michael\u2019s legacy. Last year, the late pop icon\u2019s \u201cFather Figure\u201d saw a streaming revival thanks to a key Babygirl sync, and Taylor Swift interpolated the song on her Life of a Showgirl track of the same name the following year. All roads lead back to Wham!\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tJason Lipshutz<\/strong>: I suspect that part of the reason why \u201cLast Christmas\u201d has grown in stature recently has to do with its singularity amidst the holiday perennials \u2014 there are no other Christmas smashes that function quite like it, its whimsical melancholy standing apart from the wholesome energy of \u201cRockin\u2019 Around the Christmas Tree\u201d and \u201cJingle Bell Rock,\u201d as well as the new-school cheeriness of hits by Mariah Carey, Ariana Grande and Kelly Clarkson. Within a culture that now consumes lots of holiday music in playlist form, \u201cLast Christmas\u201d bounces nicely off of any other Christmas song around it, and as a result, Wham! keep climbing higher and higher each year.<\/p>\n \n\tAndrew Unterberger<\/strong>: We love an exquisitely sad holiday song, don\u2019t we? Especially one with synths that twinkle like a perfect snowflake. The better question might be: Why isn\u2019t The Pretenders\u2019 similarly incandescent \u201c2000 Miles\u201d right behind it in the yearly rankings?<\/p>\n \n\tDenise Warner<\/strong>: Of the festive tracks in the top 25, it\u2019s the only one that\u2019s sad. A situationship gone wrong? Who couldn\u2019t relate during cuffing season? The universal lovesick message paired with \u201880s synths and George Michaels\u2019 dreamy vocals make for an eternal classic.<\/p>\n \n\t3. Do you think \u201cLast Christmas\u201d will ultimately pass \u201cAll I Want\u201d for the No. 1 spot one of these holiday seasons? If so, how long do you think it\u2019ll likely take?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tKatie Atkinson:<\/strong>\u00a0It took until 2021 for \u201cLast Christmas\u201d to hit No. 1 in Wham!\u2019s native U.K. (and then it\u2019s bounced back to the top the last two years as well, \u00e0 la Mariah), so I wouldn\u2019t rule it out. But I think it would take something special \u2013 like a buzzy new music video or placement in a big TV show or film \u2013 to move the needle. Maybe there will be a big push for the song\u2019s 50th anniversary in 2034, like when Brenda Lee\u2019s \u201cRockin\u2019 Around the Christmas Tree\u201d ducked past Mariah during its 65th anniversary in 2023.<\/p>\n \n\tKyle Denis<\/strong>: It definitely has the potential to! Realistically, a lot of stops have already been pulled for \u201cAll I Want.\u201d Depending on how serious Andrew Ridgeley and Michael\u2019s estate are about securing that No. 1 spot, they could probably reach the pole position by next holiday season with the right combination of promo moves. From remixes and music videos (performance, claymation, etc.) to live specials and performances, there are countless ways to lift \u201cLast Christmas\u201d to the top of the Hot 100.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tJason Lipshutz<\/strong>: Maybe there\u2019s a concerted effort to finally get \u201cLast Christmas\u201d to No. 1 for a week this year or next, in the same way that Brenda Lee successfully went all-out to push \u201cRockin\u2019 Around the Christmas Tree\u201d into the top spot in 2023. Otherwise, \u201cAll I Want for Christmas is You\u201d remains the de facto holiday chart-topper. Wagering on another holiday song to supplant it as the go-to No. 1 during the holidays remains a foolish bet.<\/p>\n \n\tAndrew Unterberger<\/strong>: Next year will be the year! With the 10 year anniversary of George Michael\u2019s death (which happened on Christmas Day, 2016) approaching, sentimentality over \u201cLast Christmas\u201d should be at an all-time high, while Mariah should already have the Hot 100 record well in hand. From there it might only take a small move or two to get Wham! over the top on the chart. <\/p>\n \n\tDenise Warner<\/strong>: It depends if Andrew Ridgeley and Michael\u2019s estate want to put in the work. Release a special vinyl! Maybe even a remix! License it to\u00a0Stranger Things! With the year-end closing in, though, it would need to happen fast if a 2025 no. 1 is the goal. Although, considering its regularly yearly gains, 2026 looks like a real possibility.<\/p>\n \n\t4. Are there any holiday songs lower on the Hot 100 you have your eye on to potentially reach new heights on the chart this holiday season?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tKatie Atkinson:<\/strong>\u00a0I love seeing my favorite holiday classic, Nat King Cole\u2019s \u201cThe Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You),\u201d already hitting its previous Hot 100 peak of No. 9. Knowing that there are still three non-Christmas songs in the top 10 means that as early as next week, this 1961 recording could climb higher than ever before.<\/p>\n \n\tKyle Denis<\/strong>: I imagine \u201cSanta Tell Me\u201d will match its No. 5 peak from last holiday season, but the combination of Christmas, awards season and Wicked: For Good might boost it even higher. Nat \u201cKing\u201d Cole\u2019s \u201cThe Christmas Song\u201d has already matched its Hot 100 peak this season (No. 9), and Michael Bubl\u00e9\u2019s \u201cIt\u2019s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas\u201d is now within three spots of surpassing its all-time peak, so I\u2019m keeping my eye on those two tracks as well.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tJason Lipshutz<\/strong>: Jonas Brothers\u2019 \u201cLike It\u2019s Christmas\u201d re-enters at No. 35 this week, and while it has to compete with a lot more time-honored holiday songs, I could see it pushing higher in the coming years. Not only do the JoBros have a ton of goodwill as their reunion continues through stadium audiences, but \u201cLike It\u2019s Christmas\u201d represents a solid distillation of their pop appeal. I\u2019d bookmark that one to become a top 20 hit in the near future.<\/p>\n \n\tAndrew Unterberger<\/strong>: It\u2019s literally called \u201cThe Christmas Song\u201d \u2014\u00a0it should\u2019ve been at least a top five Christmas-season hit by now. This may be the year. <\/p>\n \n\tDenise Warner<\/strong>: Personally, I\u2019d love to see either Ariana Grande\u2019s \u201cSanta Tell Me\u201d or Kelly Clarkson\u2019s \u201cUnderneath the Tree\u201d reach the ultimate height. And with a little push from either of those artists, we could see either of those rise. But I have to give a shout out to Darlene Love\u2019s \u201cChristmas (Baby Please Come Home),\u201d which deserves a little more\u00a0ahem\u00a0love.<\/p>\n \n\t5. Is there any chance Mariah\u00a0doesn\u2019t\u00a0break the all-time Hot 100 No. 1 record next week with \u201cAll I Want\u201d?<\/strong><\/p>\n \n\tKatie Atkinson:<\/strong>\u00a0I suppose anything is possible \u2014\u00a0there are still three days left in the chart tracking week \u2014 but I\u2019m expecting Mariah to take back her rightful crown by Monday.<\/p>\n \n\tKyle Denis<\/strong>: I think we\u2019d need a surprise launch of the official lead single for a new Adele or Rihanna album to keep Mariah from breaking the all-time Hot 100 No. 1 record next week.\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tJason Lipshutz<\/strong>: Nope. Lil Nas X and Shaboozey should enjoy the next few days \u2014 they will very likely be their last as the co-owners of the all-time Hot 100 longevity record.<\/p>\n \n\tAndrew Unterberger<\/strong>: Not really, no. <\/p>\n \n\tDenise Warner<\/strong>: This late in the tracking period? Barring an unexpected Wham! surge, I don\u2019t see Mariah failing in this matter. (Although all\u00a0I\u00a0want for Christmas is an \u201cOpalite\u201d music video, which could potentially spoil future weeks for Carey. But not this one.)<\/p>\n
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