Oh Santa!

Album: Merry Christmas II You (2010)
Charted: 50 76
Play Video

Songfacts®:

  • This is the lead single from American R&B singer-songwriter Mariah Carey's second Christmas album Merry Christmas II You. The song premiered on AOL Music on October 1, 2010.
    Carey is one of the few modern artists to write and record an original Christmas song that has become a mainstay of the holiday season, as "All I Want For Christmas Is You," taken from her first Christmas album in 1994, is revived every year.
  • The song was written by Carey, Jermaine Dupri and Bryan-Michael Cox and is one of four brand new tracks on the album. The festive tune has Carey wishing that Santa bring her back her "baby" for Christmas.
  • Carey and Jermaine Dupri have created many hits together, including "Always Be My Baby" and "We Belong Together." She told MTV News: "I always love working with Jermaine. Every time it's just ... it reminds me of the first time we worked together, which was 'Always Be My Baby.' Once you do a song like that and you have it forever, you wanna just continue to try and re-create that magic, so that's what we do."
  • Mariah Carey re-recorded and re-released the song in 2020 as a remix featuring Ariana Grande and Jennifer Hudson. The new version was recorded for the soundtrack of Mariah Carey's Magical Christmas Special, a holiday spectacular on Apple TV+.
  • The 2020 version of "Oh Santa!" finds the three singers trading verses and harmonies.

    "When we had the chance [to work] with Ari and with Jennifer Hudson, I was like, 'Let's do a girls group, like a Supremes vibe,'" Carey told Apple Music. "I feel like the featured moments here were really fun, because you hear J Hud, you know it's her. You hear Ariana, you're like, 'Oh, wow, that sounds so great,' a new interpretation of that moment. Then I'm there as the one that wrote the song and put the whole thing together. It's fun."

Comments

Be the first to comment...

Editor's Picks

Stand By Me: The Perfect Song-Movie Combination

Stand By Me: The Perfect Song-Movie CombinationSong Writing

In 1986, a Stephen King novella was made into a movie, with a classic song serving as title, soundtrack and tone.

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real Group

Modern A Cappella with Peder Karlsson of The Real GroupSong Writing

The leader of the Modern A Cappella movement talks about the genre.

Jeff Trott

Jeff TrottSongwriter Interviews

Sheryl Crow's longtime songwriting partner/guitarist Jeff Trott reveals the stories behind many of the singer's hits, and what its like to be a producer for Leighton Meester and Max Gomez.

Michael Schenker

Michael SchenkerSongwriter Interviews

The Scorpions and UFO guitarist is also a very prolific songwriter - he explains how he writes with his various groups, and why he was so keen to get out of Germany and into England.

Loudon Wainwright III

Loudon Wainwright IIISongwriter Interviews

"Dead Skunk" became a stinker for Loudon when he felt pressure to make another hit - his latest songs deal with mortality, his son Rufus, and picking up poop.

Little Big Town

Little Big TownSongwriter Interviews

"When seeds that you sow grow by the wicked moon/Be sure your sins will find you out/Your past will hunt you down and turn to tell on you."