Another Queen of Christmas Has Been Crowned

You will get a sentimental feeling when you hear this news: Brenda Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” finally hit No. 1 on the Hot 100, 65 years after it was first released. Lee’s hit had stayed just outside the top spot for years, peaking at No. 2 every year since 2019. It finally summited the chart this year, thanks to a campaign around the song’s 65th anniversary, which included the otherwise-retired Lee filming a music video and joining TikTok. (This is an exciting day for the Brendanators, her new stans.) To reach No. 1, Lee had to beat Mariah Carey’s perennial hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” which sits at No. 2 this week. But don’t worry, Lee isn’t dethroning anybody — there’s room for more than one queen in this holiday.

Lee, who turns 79 next week, becomes the oldest artist to ever top the Hot 100. (She was just 13 when she recorded “Rockin’.”) She also caps off the longest-ever ascent to No. 1 since a song’s release — again besting Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas,” which took 25 years. “Rockin’” is Lee’s third No. 1, behind her 1960 hits “I’m Sorry” and “I Want to be Wanted.”

Also filling out the top of this week’s Hot 100 are Bobby Helms’s “Jingle Bell Rock” at No. 4, Wham!’s “Last Christmas” at No. 5, Burl Ives’s “Holly Jolly Christmas” at No. 6, and Andy Williams’s “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” at No. 10. Could one of those songs be next to follow “Rockin’”? Next year is the 60th anniversary of “Holly Jolly Christmas” and the 40th of “Last Christmas” …

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