USA
Billboard Report (excerpt)
Mariah Carey's carol notches 21st week at no.1
Tuesday, December 23, 2025
by Keith Caulfield & Gary Trust, Los Angeles

Mariah Carey's “All I Want for Christmas Is You” adds a record-extending 21st week at No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Carey claims her unprecedented and milestone 100th career week at

No. 1 on the Hot 100, having accumulated her haul over 19 leaders, dating to her first, “Vision of Love,” in 1990. “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” on Columbia Records, drew 43.6 million streams (up 10%) and 28 million radio airplay audience impressions (up 24%) and sold 3,000 downloads (up 1%) in the U.S. Dec. 12-18, according to Luminate. The single holds for a record-extending 25th week atop the Streaming Songs chart; dashes 23-15 on Radio Song, where it has hit a No. 7 best; and stays at No. 5 on Digital Song Sales, following six weeks on top. Bobby Helms’ 1957 release “Jingle Bell Rock” giddyaps 4-2 on the Hot 100, besting its prior No. 3 peak. Helms, who died in 1997, has a new highest career Hot 100 rank, with “Jingle Bell Rock” matching Wham!’s “Last Christmas” — which reached a new No. 2 high two weeks ago — as one of only five holiday songs ever to have made the chart’s top two. The other three have hit No. 1: “All I Want for

Christmas Is You”; “The Chipmunk Song,” by the Chipmunks with David Seville (for four weeks, beginning in December 1958); and Brenda Lee’s fellow 1958 classic “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” (three weeks in the 2023 holiday season). Lee’s “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” dips 2-3 on the Hot 100; Wham!’s “Last Christmas,” from 1984, descends 3-4; and Ariana Grande’s 2014 single “Santa Tell Me” keeps at its No. 5 high. Nat “King” Cole’s “The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas to You)” ascends 8-6 on the Hot 100, marking a new high for the track that he first recorded in 1946. It’s the late legend’s highest placement since the chart dated June 29, 1963, when the opposite-themed “Those Lazy-Hazy-Crazy Days of Summer” climbed to its No. 6 peak. Kelly Clarkson’s “Underneath the Tree” rises 9-7 for a new Hot 100 best. The 2013 release is her highest charting song since “Stronger (What Doesn’t Kill You),” which ruled for three weeks in winter 2012. The late Dean Martin’s “Let It Snow! Let It Snow! Let It Snow!,” from 1959, reenters the Hot 100’s top 10 (11-8), after reaching No. 7, and the late Andy Williams’ “It’s the Most Wonderful Time of the Year,” released in 1963, lifts 10-9, after hitting No. 5. Taylor Swift’s nonseasonal “The Fate of Ophelia” falls 7-10 on the Hot 100 after spending its first eight weeks at No. 1 beginning in October, having tied “Anti-Hero” as her longest-leading career hit. Her The Life of a Showgirl hits double-digit weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard Top 200 albums chart, as the set collects a 10th nonconsecutive week atop the list (dated Dec. 27). It earned 104,000 equivalent album units in the United States in the week ending Dec. 18 (up 18%), according to Luminate. The album got a boost thanks to sales generated from new color vinyl variants of the album, exclusively sold via Swift’s webstore, that began shipping out to customers. As The Life of a Showgirl notches a 10th week at No. 1, Swift becomes the first woman, and third act overall, to have at least four albums with at least 10 weeks at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 since the chart began publishing on a regular weekly basis in March of 1956. She previously nabbed 10-week-or-more No. 1s with her previous release, The Tortured Poets Department (17 weeks in 2024), along with 1989 (11 weeks in 2014-15) and Fearless (11 weeks in 2008-09). Of The Life of a Showgirl’s 104,000 equivalent album units earned in the latest tracking week, album sales comprise 55,000 (up 43% — it’s steady at No. 1 on Top Album Sales), SEA units comprise 48,000 (down 4%, equaling 63.06 million on-demand official streams of the set’s tracks; it moves 4-6 on Top Streaming Albums) and TEA units comprise 1,000 (down 3%). Morgan Wallen’s chart-topping I’m the Problem is a non-mover at No. 2 with just more than 73,000 equivalent album units earned (down 1%). 21 Savage’s What Happened To The Streets? debuts at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 with 73,000 equivalent album units earned. Of that sum, SEA units comprise 48,000 (equaling 65.83 million on-demand official streams of the set’s songs; it debuts at No. 5 on Top Streaming Albums), album sales comprise 25,000 (it debuts at No. 5 on Top Album Sales) and TEA units comprise a negligible sum. The former No. 1 KPop Demon Hunters soundtrack goes 3-4 with 71,000 equivalent album units earned (up 6%). It spends its 26th week (all consecutive from its debut) in the top 10. The last soundtrack to tally at least 26 weeks , or half a year, in the top 10 was Lady Gaga and Bradley Cooper’s A Star Is Born, which also spent its first 26 weeks on the chart in the top 10 (including one week at No. 1), in 2018-19. Michael Bublé's former No. 1 Christmas shifts 4-5 with 69,000 equivalent album units earned. It leads the parade of a record-tying six holiday albums in the top 10 — a feat that has happened multiple times, most recently on the Jan. 4, 2025-dated list. The first time it occurred was on the Jan. 5, 1959, chart, when holiday sets by Mitch Miller, Bing Crosby, Johnny Mathis, Tennessee Ernie Ford, Mantovani and Perry Como dotted the region. The rest of the top 10 of the latest Billboard 200 are all holiday titles. Crosby’s Ultimate Christmas dips 5-6 (66,000 equivalent album units, up 1%); Nat King Cole’s The Christmas Song is pushed down 6-7 (55,000, up 9%); Vince Guaraldi Trio’s A Charlie Brown Christmas soundtrack is steady at No. 8 (50,000, up 3%); the multi-artist A Christmas Gift for You From Phil Spector is stationary at No. 9 (48,000, up 12%); and Mariah Carey’s Merry Christmas jingles back to the top 10, rising 11-10 (46,000, up 11%).

Record Of The Month
As the first salvo from her new album, Lux, Spanish reggaeton and flamenco artist Rosalíá has uncorked a dazzling opus featuring Björk, Yves Tumor and a full-on symphony orchestra.

United Kingdom
Music Week Report (excerpt)
Kylie Minogue's 'Xmas' storms at number one
Monday, December 22, 2025
by Alan Jones, London
 
-Y-L-I-E: Stymying Last Christmas’ efforts to be the first record to be No.1 at Christmas for three years in a row, Xmas rockets from No.16 to secure a glittering victory for Kylie Minogue. The Australian star and her team pulled out all the stops to secure the victory for the track, an Amazon exclusive which delivered

a succession of sucker punches to earn pole position. The original, extended, instrumental and acapella mixes were all made available at Amazon at 59p, simultaneous with the single’s physical release on white vinyl 7-inch, zoetrope 12-inch and CD. With Minogue performing the song on Strictly Come Dancing and the release of a promotional video – with choreography clearly inspired by YMCA – Last Christmas didn’t stand a chance. Racking up a 154.83% increase in consumption week-on-week to 55,926 units (3,130 CDs, 2,606 7-inch, 2,165 12-inch, 10,286 digital downloads and 37,739 sales-equivalent streams) – Xmas duly delivers Minogue’s eighth No.1 in all. It is her first for more than 22 years, joining debut hit I Should Be So Lucky (1988), Especially For You (with Jason Donovan, 1989), Hand On Your Heart (1989), Tears On My Pillow ( 1990), Spinning Around (2000) and Slow (2003) on the honours list a week after Kylie Christmas (Fully Wrapped), from

which it is taken, became her 11th No.1 album. Dipping to No.2 despite increasing DUS consumption 9.76% week-on-week to 46,616 units, Last Christmas by Wham! nevertheless continues atop the Top 200 Combined Tracks chart – where its VAR status doesn’t count against it, with unadjusted consumption of 91,751 units. It is one of six oldies on ACR to have higher unadjusted consumption than Xmas. The highest of just two new entries to the Top 75 is Lullaby (No.5, 34,531 sales). Credited to Together For Palestine, Nai Barghouti, Leigh-Anne, Neneh Cherry, Amena, Bastille, Brian Eno, Celeste, Kieran Brunt, Lana Lubany, London Community Gospel Choir, Mabel, Nadine Shah, Sura Abdo, Tyson, Yasmeen Ayyashi and Ysée, it is a charity single benefitting Palestinian humanitarian charities Taawon, The Palestine Children’s Relief Fund and The Palestinian Medical Relief Society. Based on a traditional Palestinian tune, with English lyrics by Peter Gabriel, it debuts at No.1 on the download singles chart, with 29,879 sales – more than the rest of the Top 20 combined. It is three years since a download sold more copies in a week, Food Aid by LadBaby (54,295 sales) and F**k The Tories by The K**ts (36,850 sales) both doing so in this very week in 2022. With one exception, the rest of the Top 10 is stuffed with Christmas songs, namely: All I Want For Christmas Is You (3-3, 38,972 sales) by Mariah Carey, Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree (4-4, 35,675 sales) by Brenda Lee, Fairytale Of New York (8-6, 31,541 sales) by The Pogues feat. Kirsty MacColl, Underneath The Tree (5-8, 30,355 sales) by Kelly Clarkson, Step Into Christmas (18-9, 28,144 sales) by Elton John and Jingle Bell Rock (10-10, 27,931 sales) by Bobby Helms. Standing out like a sore thumb, Raindance by Dave & Tems rebounds 13-7, with consumption up 34.94% at 31,358 units, seven weeks after it debuted and peaked at No.5. It is being helped considerably by its new viral success, kickstarted by the pair’s own 26-second TikTok video in support of the song. Overall singles consumption is down 0.13% week-on-week to 32,360,950 units, 4.39% above same week 2024 consumption of 31,000,560 units. Paid-for sales are up 17.71% week-on-week at 320,821, 8.08% above same week 2024 sales of 296,841. Their ninth studio album and the second of their seven No.1s when it was first released, Pink Floyd’s seminal 1975 release Wish You Were Here is the subject of a plethora of deluxe, expanded editions to mark its 50th birthday. It duly reaches No.1 again on consumption of 24,476 units (5,889 CDs, 13,295 vinyl albums, 4,431 Blu-rays, 277 digital downloads and 584 sales-equivalent streams). Returning to the summit a mere 32 weeks after the remastered and expanded Pink Floyd At Pompeii: MCMLXXII topped the chart for the first time, Wish You Were Here was last in the chart in 2011 - when 14 Pink Floyd albums were simultaneously released in remastered editions - reaching No.38. It has undoubtedly sold well in excess of a million copies, though no exact data is available. It has achieved consumption of 894,538 units in the Kantar (Millward Brown) era, since February 1994, and will receive a triple platinum award when it surpasses 900,000 units imminently. The band’s biggest seller, of course, is 1973 magnum opus Dark Side Of The Moon, which has racked up an estimated 4,928,396 sales, and is one of the 10 biggest albums of all-time in the UK. (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? elevates 13-10 (6,999 sales) for Oasis and is joined in the chart by the 30th anniversary edition of (What’s The Story) Morning Glory? – The Singles, which opens at No.25 (4,936 sales), after being released in limited edition black vinyl and ‘splatter-vinyl’ box sets whose design and contents – the four singles taken from the album, and their B-sides – replicate the 1996 cigarette box style CD release of the same material. The vinyl edition is charted as a new entry. The original box set - styled as (What’s The Story) Morning Glory?: Gold - for chart purposes, debuted and peaked at No.24, eventually selling 47,467 copies. In the week it becomes the first studio album to spend 500 weeks in the Top 40, Rumours (10-7, 7,330 sales) achieves its highest chart position for 670 weeks for Fleetwood Mac. The album, which was released in 1977, and topped the chart in 1978, was last higher on the list in February 2013, just after the release of expanded and remastered editions across all formats. It hasn’t been made available in a new variant recently – but the 2013 vinyl edition and a March 2025 vinyl edition contributed 3,382 towards its total this week, while increasing 21st century vinyl sales of Rumours to 345,352 units – more than any other album. Like Dark Side Of The Moon, cited above, Rumours is one of the 10 best-sellers of all-time with to-date consumption of 5,378,700 units. This is the fourth week in a row that Rumours has climbed, and the first time in 51 weeks that it has been higher in the chart than Fleetwood Mac’s blockbusting 2018 compilation 50 Years: Don’t Stop, which eases 8-9 (7,283 sales). The rest of the Top 10: The Art Of Loving (2-2, 21,793 sales) by Olivia Dean, The Life Of A Showgirl (4-3, 17,133 sales) by Taylor Swift, Christmas (5-4, 11,714 sales) by Michael Bublé, Man’s Best Friend (6-5, 9,678 sales) by Sabrina Carpenter, People Watching (3-6, 8,609 sales) by Sam Fender and The Highlights (9-8, 7,299 sales) by The Weeknd. Overall album sales are up 2.07% week-on-week at 2,962,747 units, 5.30% above same week 2024 sales of 2,813,696. On the 20th anniversary of their highest ever weekly tally of 10,581,571 sales (all physical), it is the highest level for exactly seven years, having reached 3,228,818 this week in 2018. Physical product accounts for 702,493 sales, 23.71% of the total.