Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” breaks Spotify record with 2 billion streams
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The Queen of Christmas sets a new milestone as her timeless holiday hit becomes the first holiday song to hit 2 billion streams on Spotify.
Mariah Carey’s iconic holiday classic, “All I Want For Christmas Is You”, has hit an extraordinary milestone by becoming the first Christmas song to amass over two billion streams on Spotify. Released in 1994 as part of her Merry Christmas album, the track has become a global festive staple, blending nostalgia with the power of streaming.
In 2021, the song became the first holiday track to achieve diamond certification from the RIAA (Recording Industry Association of America). This year, Carey celebrated the 30th anniversary of her festive album by going on a 20-city Christmas time tour. Wrapping up on December 17, the tour included stops in Los Angeles, Houston, and Atlanta.
Celebrating the success, Carey offered a “grateful” thank you to all Spotify listeners that have made her song part of their holiday tradition each year.
Mariah Carey
A holiday tradition for the streaming era
With the rise of Christmas playlisting and the ever-growing accessibility of streaming platforms, “All I Want For Christmas Is You” has found a new life, especially in the past five years. In that period, the track’s Spotify streams have grown by 120% globally!
For eight consecutive years, the track has claimed the No. 1 spot on Spotify’s global charts every Christmas Day- dating back to 2016. On Christmas Day in 2023, the song reached the summit of Spotify’s Daily Top Songs chart in 21 countries. In 2024 alone, streams surged 860% globally since November 1, with a staggering 1,100% increase in the US.
Despite the track’s enduring popularity, streaming data suggests that its popularity may be slowing compared to its peak in 2019.
Billboard success
The song’s success is not exclusive to Spotify, and can also translate to its Billboard success. This charting week (December 28, 2024), the song topped the Billboard Hot 100 for its 17th total week, making it the third-longest-running No. 1 song in the chart’s 66-year history.
The song’s gradual rise in recent years can be signified as it only broke into the Hot 100’s Top 10 in December 2017, reached the top five in 2018, and has dominated during every holiday season since 2019. Following a third consecutive week at the top of the chart this festive season, here is the week-by-week dominance of the song over the years:
- 2019: 3 weeks at No. 1
- 2020: 2 weeks at No. 1
- 2021: 3 weeks at No. 1
- 2022: 4 weeks at No. 1
- 2023: 2 weeks at No. 1
A festive classic
“All I Want For Christmas Is You” also became TikTok’s most popular Christmas track of 2024, proving its multigenerational appeal. From smashing Spotify records to dominating Billboard charts and TikTok trends, the song is a global phenomenon that is undoubtedly one of the most iconic Christmas songs of all time.