The song spent 18 weeks at the top of the Billboard Hot 100 chart, cementing itself as the biggest female vocal hit in history.
The Christmas anthem breaks records
Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” achieved 18 non-consecutive weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 this Monday (12/30), the longest run time by a female vocal song in history . The record, which already belonged to Mariah herself, was expanded with four consecutive weeks at the top of the song in December 2024.
Since 2019, the single has consistently returned to the top of the charts every year during the Christmas period. The song remained at the top spot for three weeks in 2019, two weeks in 2020, three weeks in 2021, four weeks in 2022, two weeks in 2023 and now another four weeks in 2024.
The Billboard Hot 100 measures downloads, physical sales, radio plays and streaming in the United States. Currently “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is at the top of downloads and streaming, as well as being among the 10 most listened to on American radio. Released in 1994, the song continues to be an annual phenomenon.
Career marked by successes
Mariah Carey is the solo artist with the most songs topping the Billboard Hot 100, totaling 19 songs over the course of her career. She is also the first artist to reach No. 1 in four different decades (1990, 2000, 2010 and 2020) and leads the chart in accumulated weeks at the top, with 96 in total.
Among the biggest female vocal hits in the history of the chart, Mariah Carey occupies the top three places. In addition to “All I Want For Christmas Is You” (18 weeks), “One Sweet Day” (16 weeks), featuring Boyz II Men, and “We Belong Together” (14 weeks), linked to “I Will Always Love You” by Whitney Houston and “I Gotta Feeling” by the Black Eyed Peas.
Brazilian composer behind the success
A curious detail about the success of “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is that the co-author of the song is Brazilian. The son of Russian immigrants, producer and composer Walter Afanasieff was born in Sao Paulo in 1958 and moved as a child to San Francisco, United States, where he began his musical career as a jazz keyboardist.
Afanasieff worked with Mariah Carey on several hits, including “Hero” and “One Sweet Day,” but “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” released in 1994, became his most popular work. According to the composer, the secret of the song lies in its simple structure and engaging melody, which is reminiscent of Christmas classics.
Financial and cultural impact
Since its release, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” has generated millions of dollars annually for Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff. The song is estimated to have earned more than $100 million in royalties over the decades.
Trajectory of a timeless classic
For all its current impact, “All I Want for Christmas Is You” wasn’t an overnight phenomenon. In the year of its release, in 1994, the song only reached the 12th position among the most played on radio in the United States. The big boost came years later, when the song was included in the soundtrack of the film “Love Happens” (2003), gaining prominence in an evocative scene that introduced it to a worldwide audience.
From then on the hit began to climb positions in the charts and established itself as a constant gift at Christmas. In the 2010s, with the advancement of digital platforms, the hit became ubiquitous on holiday playlists and gained new releases and promotional material, strengthening its popularity among several generations. In 2019, it reached the top of the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, repeating the feat in all subsequent holiday seasons through 2024.
The song also became the first Christmas song to reach 2 billion plays on Spotify.
Source: Terra
Earl Johnson is a music writer at Gossipify, known for his in-depth analysis and unique perspective on the industry. A graduate of USC with a degree in Music, he brings years of experience and passion to his writing. He covers the latest releases and trends, always on the lookout for the next big thing in music.
