What makes a holiday song a lasting hit?

Whether you play it on loop or whether it drives you crazy, there's no question Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You," song has become a permanent fixture of the Christmas song canon.

But the holiday song canon is big, and a number of other pop artists have made their own Yuletide jingles since 1994 including John Legend, Justin Bieber and Taylor Swift.

But not even the woman who shattered records with her Eras tour has given us a holiday song that has had staying power worthy of The Canon.

For 30 years Mariah Carey's "All I Want for Christmas is You" has dominated the holiday music charts. NPR's Stephen Thompson explains what makes it a lasting hit?

For sponsor-free episodes of Consider This, sign up for Consider This+ via Apple Podcasts or at plus.npr.org.

Email us at [email protected].

See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for sponsorship and to manage your podcast sponsorship preferences.

NPR Privacy Policy