Kevin Bessey joins us on the InQua Podcast to talk about his favorite Christmas albums and songs, a little about the Christmas Canon, and about the Christmas music he recorded in the last few years.
Enjoy this episode of the InQua Podcast and let us know what you’ve been listening to during the holidays!
Check out some of the albums and songs we discussed on the InQua Podcast below:
Everyday is Christmas – Sia
Don’t Waste Your Wishes – The Killers
Christmas – Michael Bublé
The Good Night is Still Everywhere – Dustin Kensrue
And while you’re here…
Listen to some of Kevin’s Christmas Releases as well!
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News:
The Dark Side of Christmas Music
- https://www.theatlantic.com/newsletters/archive/2023/12/christmas-music-dark-canon/676290/
- “The season of Christmas music–of Mariah Carey blasting in malls, carolers gracing street corners, and children singing about Rudolph–has once again arrived. Fans of festive cheer are rejoicing, and haters are rolling their eyes. I spoke with my colleague Spencer Kornhaber, who covers music for The Atlantic, about what makes holiday music sound distinct, how the genre relies on nostalgia, and why sleigh-bell-sprinkled tunes can be so polarizing.”
- “Spencer: If you look at the Christmas canon, it’s all wrapped up in nostalgia. The canon hasn’t changed much over the decades. Once in a while, a new song will sneak in there and remain in rotation. But it’s very rare that that’s happened, especially given how many people are trying every year to make a new Christmas classic.”
- “What many people like about holiday music is that it reminds us of previous holidays, especially childhood’s. A lot of what we consider classic holiday music was written or recorded a long time ago, in the middle of the 20th century or earlier. In our culture and politics, that’s often portrayed as an era that was more pure, more prosperous, simpler than our own.”
- “But a lot of these songs from the mid-century that we love to hear–from artists like Bing Crosby, Nat King Cole–were written at a time of crisis and responding to a mood of crisis. “Do You Hear What I Hear?” was written during the Cuban Missile crisis, and it’s shaped by the fear of nuclear war. “I’ll Be Home for Christmas” resonated during World War II, when soldiers were dreaming of being home again.”
- “Spencer: When I think about pop music, I consider: What is this saying about society? How is it tracking with trends? Holiday music is not something that provides a whole lot of meaning in my life. It’s like wallpaper to me. But it’s nice wallpaper.”
- “Holiday music is a sector that doesn’t change much. It’s a canon that grows very slowly. That’s the beauty of it, and why people like it. So much changes in the world, but what we listen to every December doesn’t.”
The Christmas song canon rarely changes and this year, Mariah Carey even hit No. 1 with one – from 1994
- https://www.ajc.com/blog/radiotvtalk/the-christmas-song-canon-rarely-changes-and-this-year-mariah-carey-even-hit-with-one-from-1994/TUvD5I0KAF5HOaeMLVFBFI/
- “Sure, the world keeps changing faster than you can say TikTok but the Christmas music canon still features plenty of songs from the 1940s, 50s and 60s by artists that otherwise would not be known by anybody under the age of 30: Dean Martin, Burl Ives, Gene Autry, Bing Crosby.”
- ” “It’s baked-in nostalgia,” said Jessica Besack, who programs Sirius/XM’s “Holly” channel, which focuses on modern pop Christmas hits by the likes of Colby Caillat and Gwen Stefani but includes classics as well because how could it not? “Collectively as a society, our social experience of Christmas is interwoven with these classic songs. This makes it incredibly difficult to introduce new songs into the genre.” “
- “While current pop music is about what’s hot now and rarely welcomes artists once they hit 40, Christmas music is the opposite. It’s about familiarity, simple lyrics and, as this Washington Post story noted, a preponderance of sleigh bell sounds.”
- “Although current artists release original Christmas music every year and some radio stations will sample them, it’s rare for any to truly break through. Ariana Grande, for instance, really tried in 2014 to break out with “Santa Tell Me” but that song was barely a blip in 2019.”
- “And the last time a song really broke into the Christmas canon was 25 years ago: the now ubiquitous Mariah Carey earworm “All I Want For Christmas is You.” “
- “And thanks to a marketing push, the song landed on the Billboard Hot 100 at No. 1 for the very first time this year. It also received the most streams ever for a holiday song for the week ending December 19 at 54.5 million, according to Nielsen Music.”
Why Are There No New Christmas Songs?
- https://www.npr.org/2019/12/17/788894853/why-are-there-no-new-christmas-songs
- “This year, Mariah Carey‘s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” turns 25. Her single-item wish list seems to have been the punctuation mark on half a century in which a new, original and secular holiday song became ubiquitous every few years.”
- “In 1979, that was Paul McCartney‘s “Wonderful Christmastime.” In 1982, it was The Waitresses‘ “Christmas Wrapping.” 1984 gave us “Last Christmas” by Wham! and 1987 saw Run-D.M.C. rap about “Christmas in Hollis.” Love these songs or hate them, chances are you know them. That’s not something you can likely say about any yule-tunes written this century, but that doesn’t mean people aren’t writing them.”
- ” “It is intimidating to think about trying to write something that will stand the test of time,” Blacc says, especially as he also wanted to expand the emotional palette of holiday music. “My goal was to do songs that felt sentimental from a direction that it’s not usually presented from. Yeah, we want to get together and give hugs and have Christmas cheer, but there’s also some family members you don’t want to see during the holidays.” “
- ” “I really love when songs have utility and can point to milestones in people’s lives,” Miller says. “When songs do that for us, that’s a really special thing … I don’t think there are any songs that are useful or as fraught with emotional baggage — in a good way — as Christmas and holiday songs are.” “
- “If that sounds far-fetched, consider that Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” just hit No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time ever this week.”
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Check out more articles from the host and guest today, Tristan and Kevin, before you leave. Thanks!