The Best Original Holiday Tracks of 2023
Whether you love it or hate it, we're deep into the season of 24/7 Christmas music. As much as we adore the classics, one of our favorite parts of the holiday season is discovering brand-new festive tracks to add to our holiday playlists.
And lucky for us, 2023 may have given us some of the best seasonal hits yet. Between Sabrina Carpenter's fruitcake EP and new songs from Ally Brooke, Brandy and so many more, we can't stop listening. To discover our new favorites, just keep scrolling.
(Photo credit: Sarah Carpenter)
Ally Brooke – 'Under the Tree'
There are few things we love more than a holiday romance, and Ally Brooke's "Under the Tree" is the perfect upbeat, sexy and fun Christmas love song. We adore its disco-infused pop sound and chorus that's sure to get stuck in your head through the new year.
Also read about: Ally Brooke Dishes on Her Comeback and What New Single, 'Gone to Bed,' Means to Her
Matt Rogers – 'Everything You Want' ft. MUNA
Most holiday songs about lost love tend to be downers, which is what we adore about Matt Rogers' "Everything You Want," featuring MUNA. It's a twinkly pop track reminiscing about past Christmases with an ex while wishing them nothing but the very best. It's as festive as it is refreshing.
Sam Williams – 'I Hate the Holidays'
We're also suckers for sad holiday music, and Sam William's "I Hate the Holidays" is exactly the melancholy country track we needed this year. It's about the loneliness that can accompany Christmas and missing the warmth and joy they brought you when you were younger.
Brandy – 'Christmas Party for Two'
Leave it to Brandy to have our jaws on the floor with her holiday sultry new holiday song "Christmas Party for Two." The R&B love ballad is just the thing for a chilly, romantic night in with the one you love most.
Paul McDonald & The Mourning Doves – 'Maybe This Christmas'
If you find the holidays (and all of the prodding and questions that come along with them) a bit overwhelming, Paul McDonald & The Mourning Doves' "Maybe This Christmas" is the song for you. It's got a sweet, folksy sound with lyrics about loneliness and longing, as well as wishing for strength and the ability to put the past behind you.
HunterGirl – 'Christmas Again'
There's something about country music and Christmas that go together like holiday cookies and milk, and HunterGirl has our hearts with "Christmas Again." The romantic track is all about the kind of love that feels a special as the holiday magic of Christmas. You can also catch it in the Hallmark Christmas movie Haul Out the Holly: Lit Up.
Also read about: HunterGirl Dishes on 'the Song That Kept [Her] in Nashville,' 'Ain't About You'
Elle Darlington – 'christmas is you'
If you're not obsessed with rising singer-songwriter Elle Darlington just yet, prepare to be hooked thanks to her angelic pop vocals on the new song "christmas is you." This love song feels like an instant classic as she sings about a love as good as Christmas and getting everything you want for the holiday in the form of the one you love.
New Rules – 'Might Ruin Christmas'
English-Irish trio New Rules are known for thinking outside the box, and their jaunty pop-rock holiday track "Might Ruin Christmas" does just that. It's a song about getting a little too wild ahead of the holiday and getting in trouble for it, which we're sure many a merrymaker can relate to.
Lauren Spencer Smith – 'Broke Christmas'
Not feeling rich enough to get everyone on your shopping list what they want this year? Lauren Spencer Smith's "Broke Christmas" was written or you. This guitar-driven pop anthem tells the all-too-relatable story of being extra broke at Christmas and feeling like you're letting everyone down when it comes time to open presents.
Also read about: Everything You Wanted to Know About 'Fingers Crossed' Singer-Songwriter Lauren Spencer-Smith
Sabrina Carpenter – 'santa doesn't know you like i do'
Sabrina Carpenter went all out with her extra seductive fruitcake Christmas EP this year. It's filled with undeniable pop-R&B hits with their own holiday twists, and at the moment, we can't take "santa doesn't know you like i do" off repeat.
VALÉ – 'the homesick song (xmas version)'
Just in time for the holidays, VALÉ has updated her hit "the homesick song" with a sweet Christmas twist that makes the track even more poignant. Sung in both English and Spanish, with acoustic guitars and magical sleigh bells, it's about longing for home and missing family—and it all stings a little more during Christmas.
For more Christmas inspiration, click HERE for our favorite lyrics from Sabrina Carpenter's fruitcake to use as Instagram captions.