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Mariah Carey Makes HOW MUCH from That Stupid Christmas Song?

Call it “All I Want for Christmas” Creep. Every year, Mariah Carey’s stupid 1994 Christmas song seems to start showing up earlier and earlier. I even made a note of when I first heard it this year: around 2pm on November 2. That’s insane. No wonder it’s the most-performed holiday song in the US. (Scroll down for the Top 20-most played songs.)

Since 1994, the song has sold more than 16 million copies globally, making it the 11th best-selling single of all time. Royalties just for the song are somewhere north of $50 million USD. After all the expenses are paid (Carey had a co-writer for the song), she gets a cheque for about $650,000 CAD every year from just the UK.

And that’s not all. There’s a new straight-to-video animated feature this year called Mariah Carey’s All I Want for Christmas is You, which is about a girl named Mariah (natch) who wants a puppy. And then there’s her share of a children’s book of the same name, which has sold at least 750,000 copies. In other words, there’s an entire industry based around “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Can you a job where all you do is care and feed for that stupid song? Such a gig exists. With this kind of money involved, it has to.

By the way, other Christmas songs also earn big dollars. The Pogues reportedly bring in about $700,00 a year just from “A Fairytale of New York” sales and play in the New York. Even Paul McCartney’s awful “Wonderful Christmastime” earns an estimated $500,000 CAD.

Here are the most-performed Christmas songs in the US according to ASCAP (via VVN)

  1. “All I Want for Christmas Is You” by Mariah Carey and Walter Afanasieff (1994)
  2. “A Holly Jolly Christmas” by Johnny Marks (1962)
  3. “Let It Snow, Let It Snow, Let It Snow” by Sammy Cahn and Jule Styne (1945)
  4. “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” by Johnny Marks (1958)
  5. “Last Christmas” by George Michael (1984)
  6. “Jingle Bell Rock” by Joseph Carleton Beal and James Ross Boothe (1957)
  7. “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year” by Edward Pola and George Wyle (1963)
  8. “It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” by Meredith Willson (1951)
  9. “Sleigh Ride” by Leroy Anderson and Mitchell Parish (1951)
  10. “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” by Johnny Marks (1949)
  11. “White Christmas” by Irving Berlin (1941)
  12. “Winter Wonderland” by Felix Bernard and Richard B. Smith (1934)
  13. “Feliz Navidad” by Jose Feliciano (1970)
  14. “Santa Claus Is Comin’ to Town” by Fred Coots and Haven Gillespie (1934)
  15. “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” by Ralph Blane and Hugh Martin (1943)
  16. “Here Comes Santa Claus (Down Santa Claus Lane)” by Gene Autry and Oakley Haldeman (1947)
  17. “The Christmas Song” by Mel Tormé and Robert Wells (1946)
  18. “Frosty the Snowman” by Steve Nelson and Walter E. Rollins (1950)
  19. “Christmas Eve/Sarajevo 12/24” by Robert Kinkel, Paul O’Neill and John Oliva (1995)
  20. “Jingle Bells” by James Lord Pierpont; Frank Sinatra version arranged by Gordon Jenkins (ASCAP, 1958)
  21. “Baby It’s Cold Outside” by Frank Loesser (1948)
  22. “Santa Baby” by Joan Javits, Anthony Springer and Philip Springer (1953)
  23. “Run Rudolph Run” by John Marks and Marvin Broadie (1958)
  24. “Blue Christmas” by Billy Hayes and Jay Johnson (1948)
  25. “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney (1979)

 

 

 

 

Alan Cross

is an internationally known broadcaster, interviewer, writer, consultant, blogger and speaker. In his 40+ years in the music business, Alan has interviewed the biggest names in rock, from David Bowie and U2 to Pearl Jam and the Foo Fighters. He’s also known as a musicologist and documentarian through programs like The Ongoing History of New Music.

Alan Cross has 38035 posts and counting. See all posts by Alan Cross

5 thoughts on “Mariah Carey Makes HOW MUCH from That Stupid Christmas Song?

  • No Run-DMC? It has to be making some money since it was used in Office Christmas Party.

    Reply
  • Bing/Bowie – Peace on Earth/Little Drummer Boy – Do we really need any other x-mas songs?

    Reply
  • that is her only income before her Reality TV show-duhh thats why her whole career is directed at suffocating Santa and capitalizing on a greedy, materialistic, over consumptive, earth killing retail Xmas-which has NOTHING to do with the Spirit of Christmas-luckily Karma sent Tanaka to steal all her ill gotten gain and stab the gross hag in the back -by her own hand-thats how karma likes to do it

    Reply
  • It’s so sad how you have to insult this song, you’re probably just jealous Mariah Carey earns alot from just a single song she wrote within just 15 minutes… Well apparently, YOU still try your best to atleast make an income and even has a stupid Journal website which is apparently “UNPOPULAR” LMAO go and reflect on yourself before you insult other people’s success! Jealousy bites bitch!

    Reply

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