| Wednesday 22 September 2010 |
|
Mariah Carey releasing second Christmas album
Sixteen years after her first successful Christmas album, Mariah Carey will return to the format with "Merry Christmas II You", due November 2 on Island Def Jam. The set will feature four original songs penned by Carey, including lead single "Oh Santa".
Traditional holiday tunes such as "Little Drummer Boy" and "O Come All Ye Faithful" also make the cut, alongside a re-recording of Carey's Christmas standard, "All I Want For Christmas Is You". The latter has reached No. 1 each year on the Billboard Hot 100 Recurrents chart, which tracks the popularity of non-current songs, since the chart's founding in 2005. According to Nielsen SoundScan, the song has sold 1.6 million downloads to date, making it Carey's best-selling download.
"Merry Christmas", Carey's first Christmas album, peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 in 1994, the year of its release, and has sold 5 million copies in the U.S., according to Nielsen SoundScan. It also debuted at No. 1 on Billboard's Top Holiday Albums chart and has appeared annually on the tally since its release.
Producers on "Merry Christmas II You", Carey's thirteenth studio album, include "American Idol" judge Randy Jackson and Jermaine Dupri, among others. Carey's second Christmas album will likely face competition from Susan Boyle and Jessica Simpson, who are both reportedly releasing holiday albums this season. (Billboard)
|
