What is Christmas without All I Want for Christmas is You by the one and only Mariah Carey. This song could be played in the middle of the summer on a beach and it would feel like Santa was on the roof just waiting to hop on down the chimney, probably getting a heatstroke in his big red suit, but otherwise making everyone feel the too-festive-to-be-true vibe nonetheless. Let alone hearing it blast through your headphones when you’re walking in the freezing cold, you can always count on Mariah Carey to make you feel warm and fuzzy on the inside.
Another amazing song that I randomly stumbled upon is Hoping for Snow by The Vamps, it’s not about Santa Claus or presents or reindeer or snowmen, it’s more about reunions during the holidays. The lyrics “Everyone’s hoping for snow / But I’m just hoping that you come home” will always be able to put a smile on your face, just thinking about the people that are waiting for you to go home, whether it be parents, siblings, boyfriends, girlfriends, dogs, cats… It somehow always makes everything seem cozier in this city that you are in the process of, if not already, conquering, when you know that there are people waiting for you back home.
A lot of people surely listen to Ariana Grande’s Christmas songs, the classics like Santa Baby and Last Christmas, but she dropped an EP in 2015 called Christmas and Chill, in which include amazing songs like Winter Things. She writes these songs based in the setting of California, making most of us imagine the unfathomable Californian Christmases on the beach. When Ariana asks for snow in the song, it really gives a new perspective for us in Montreal to appreciate the random snow falls – especially the snowy surprises – we get some mornings on our way to a crazy early morning class. But the song is absolutely amazing nonetheless, listening to it and walking down a road lit by Christmas decorations will turn any bad day around, guaranteed.
I’ll be Home by Meghan Trainor is also a song worth playing on repeat. It’s about, if you couldn’t guess, going home for Christmas! It mentions all the things that you could do at home, light the trees, put up stockings, wait for Santa… This would be amazing for the trip home, it would make sure that you’re sitting on pins and needles waiting for the name of your hometown to be announced over the PA system.
A song that will bring you happiness just on a random winter, cold day, is definitely the duet Baby It’s Cold Outside by Michael Bublé and Idina Menzel. In the form of a cute little bicker between a couple, this song makes the coldness outside sound not as scary, Idina uses it as an excuse to go home, but Michael uses it as a reason for her to stay. The bickering comes to an end as she gives up and stays with Michael winning the argument with “Baby it’s cold outside”.
Another song that’s somewhat different from all of the above is My Grown-Up Christmas List by any artist, there are honestly too many good ones to pick from. It talks about how instead of toys and different things that children normally ask Santa Claus for, this song asks that “every man can have a friend” and for “wars to always end”. This is a song for you if you’re tired of all the festive, jolly, reindeer and snowman fun, then there’s always this song that’s realistic but at the same time Christmas-related.
With all these songs and an amazing Christmas playlist, yule experience Christmas like never before!
Images obtained from:
https://www.timeanddate.com/holidays/canada/christmas
https://open.spotify.com/track/0bYg9bo50gSsH3LtXe2SQn
https://open.spotify.com/track/2H6Sxx4pYnT1VD7EU2Qv0b
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Christmas_%26_Chill