In the Spirit of Profit

By Heather Murphy, 11.07.06

What do Twisted Sister, Hilary Duff and Jimi Hendrix have in common? Besides having big hair and adoring fans, they all released Christmas albums.

The wide variety of artists cutting Christmas albums is not surprising as it seems every artist can sing their unique version of Silent Night and profit from it. One scan of the radio dial results in more versions of the Christmas classics than shoppers clamoring for the last parking spot at the mall.

Christmas albums, a well-established genre, are saturating the industry. A search on Billboard.com of albums with the word Christmas in the title yielded 500 results. That’s a lot of holiday cheer. And a lot of extra money for the artists.

Despite the many ways Christmas music is packaged and sold, there remains a universal appeal.

Christmas is a holiday loved by many for both religious and secular reasons, but it’s hard to believe that so many singers have that much Christmas spirit.

The truth might be that holiday carols are a shot at bringing new money to their ever-growing bank accounts.

It seems that compared to original albums, Christmas albums take little time and money to record and produce, making the risks low and profits high. As a result, many singers end up with Christmas records. Hilary Duff, for example, released her Christmas album before she ever released a regular record. "Santa Clause Lane" was made to see if she could make the transition from actress to pop star.

Other artists wait until they’ve had recording success before they release their Christmas albums, a strategy that can really pay off.

According to vh1.com, as of 2003, Destiny’s Child sold over a million copies of their Christmas album while Mariah Carey sold over four million. In contrast Duff sold 206,000 copies of “Santa Clause Lane.”

But chart-toppers or not, Christmas records still yield much revenue for artists recording mostly cover songs.

With so many Christmas albums on the market, chances are good that your favorite artist sings about mistletoe and holly. If it bothers you that these artists are cashing in on Christmas too much, limit the number of Christmas albums you buy.

Remember, you too can sing “Jingle Bells.”