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The festival is just one of many appearances from the American singer this summer with Carey set to headline the Brighton and Hove Pride on August 2nd as well as King Charles’ Royal Sandringham Estate in Norfolk on August 15th as part of the Heritage Live Series. As part of the Sandringham gig, the ‘We Belong Together’ singer will be joined by special guests including Nile Rodgers and CHIC and famous 90s band Eternal.

Presale for Capital’s Summertime Ball with Barclaycard 2025 opens on April 29 at 9am. Tickets are available exclusively on Global Player, the official Capital app. Tickets to Capital’s Summertime Ball go on general sale on April 30 at 9am.

Capital Breakfast hosts Jordan North, Chris Stark and Sian Welby will announce more names from 7am on Tuesday. Jordan North said: “We are absolutely buzzing to be back at Capital’s Summertime Ball with Barclaycard this year. We’ve just announced the first half of the incredible line-up on air but be sure to tune in to Capital Breakfast tomorrow for even more names that will be playing.”

Ashley Tabor-King, founder and executive president of radio company Global, said: “Capital’s Summertime Ball with Barclaycard is back, and this year we’re bringing some huge names we’ve never had at the ball before. “We’ve got a stellar line-up of global superstars and today’s biggest hit music artists – all set to light up the stage. This is truly one of our best ever line-ups and we can’t wait to see 80,000 Capital listeners enjoy every moment, it’s going to be a day to remember.”

Last year Kylie Minogue made a surprise appearance at the event to perform to the more than 80,000 fans at the radio station’s show. Will Smith & Jazzy Jeff, Tate McRae were also announced this past week as performers for the festival.

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The live performance will be part of a larger series of major outdoor concerts presented by Heritage Live Festivals and running from the 14th to the 17th of August, including performances by Michael Bublé, Stereophonics and more.

Giles Cooper of Heritage Live Festivals said: “We’re absolutely thrilled to bring one of the greatest pop artists of all time to the Royal Sandringham Estate for an exclusive UK headline show. Mariah Carey is an award-winner, a record-breaker, and an absolute global icon – this show will be historic.”

The icon was recently unveiled as a headliner for Brighton and Hove Pride. The annual parade will be returning to Preston Park in the UK’s queer capital this year with the pop star confirmed to be on the bill for August 2. Previous headliners included fellow pop legends Christina Aguilera, Britney Spears and Girls Aloud. The Royal event will be Mariah’s second UK show this summer. The singer had been previously lined up to perform in the country in 2020 which was later cancelled due to the COVID pandemic.

The hitmaker is set to perform some of her most popular song such as ‘We Belong Together’, ‘Visions Of Love’, ‘Touch My Body’, ‘Fantasy’, ‘Emotions’ and the festive favourite ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’.

Sandringham is known to be the King’s much-loved country estate where the Royal Family traditionally spends Christmas.

As a forever chart-topping icon, Mariah Carey holds the record for the most number one songs by a solo artist in Billboard Hot 100 history, with 19 chart-toppers to her name. Since her rise to fame in 1990, she has delivered some of the most enduring hits in pop music.

@MariahCarey, the Queen of the Lambs, is coming to Pride On The Park 2025!

Sign up for pre-sale now: https://t.co/j4fEChuBHX – tickets will be available from Thursday 20th of February at 10am.

A performance we’ve been waiting five years for is finally upon us and we… pic.twitter.com/7dBFp0tDkn

— Brighton & Hove Pride (@PrideBrighton) February 13, 2025

Brighton Pride, widely recognized as one of the UK’s most significant LGBTQ+ festivals, attracts thousands of attendees each year. Known for its colourful parades, inclusive atmosphere, and world-class musical performances, the festival has previously hosted stars such as Britney Spears, Kylie Minogue, and Christina Aguilera. Mariah Carey’s upcoming performance is expected to draw massive crowds eager to see the five-time Grammy Award winner bring her powerful vocals and chart-topping hits to the stage.

With a career spanning over three decades, Mariah Carey remains one of the most influential and best-selling artists of all time. She has sold over 200 million records worldwide, with iconic hits such as ‘Fantasy‘, ‘We Belong Together‘, and her everlasting holiday favourite, ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You‘. Beyond her music, Carey has been an outspoken advocate for LGBTQ+ rights, frequently voicing her support for the community and receiving the GLAAD Ally Award for her contributions in 2016.
Brighton Pride is set to take place from August 1-3, 2025, featuring a variety of events, including the iconic Pride Parade, the Pride Village Party, and the We Are Fabuloso concert in Preston Park, where Carey will be headlining. The festival’s theme for 2025 will center around love, unity, and resilience, reinforcing its mission to promote equality and inclusion.

Tickets for Brighton Pride 2025 go on sale on February 20, 2025, with high demand expected due to Carey’s star power. Fans and festival-goers are encouraged to secure their tickets early to avoid disappointment. The full lineup for Brighton & Hove Pride 2025 has yet to be announced. Historically, the festival has featured a diverse range of artists and performers across multiple stages, including cabaret tents, dance tents, and community village areas. Attendees can expect a vibrant celebration of LGBTQ+ culture and community.

Currently standing at No. 1 on the Official Singles Chart is ‘Last Christmas’ by WHAM!, first released in 1984. Remarkably, half of the singles in the Top 10 this week were released before 2000. This pattern isn’t just limited to the charts – on Spotify’s 100 most popular Christmas songs, two-thirds were released over 30 years ago. Despite new festive contenders arriving each year, listeners still gravitate towards the timeless hits. But why?

See how @WhamOfficial_ are shaping up in the race for #XmasNo1 ❄️ ❄️ ❄️ https://t.co/OdGAoclxlZ pic.twitter.com/Tzv5H0yDcc

— Official Charts (@officialcharts) December 16, 2024

Professor Joe Bennet, a forensic musicologist at Berklee College of Music, concludes that nostalgia is the key driver behind a Christmas classic. Christmas “is a time for returning to where we came from” he explains. This desire for familiarity and tradition is reflected in the music we play around the holiday season.

Therefore it is no surprise that his analysis of the UK’s most favourite Christmas songs found that they share recurring lyrical themes: family, homecoming, Santa, snow, and mistletoe. These universal ideas pair optimism for the future with fond memories of the past. Irving Berlin’s ‘White Christmas’ is a perfect example of this nostalgic magic: 

“I’m dreaming of a white Christmas

Just like the ones I used to know

Where the treetops glisten and children listen

To hear sleigh bells in the snow.”

Written in 1940, Berlin famously told his musical secretary “it’s the best song anybody ever wrote”, and the record sales seem to back up his claim. With an estimated 50 million copies sold and over 20,000 covers available on Spotify, ‘White Christmas’ remains the best-selling single of all time and sits in the Top 75 on the Singles Chart this week.

However, nostalgia isn’t limited to lyrics. Classic FM highlights that musical composition plays a major role. To achieve timeless success, Christmas songs often pair joyous melodies with hints of melancholy, typically achieved by using minor chords in a major key, and usually incorporate sleigh bells, as found in 49% of songs in Prof Bennet’s study. This technique can be found in festive tunes from Tchaikovsky’s Nutcracker Ballet to Mariah Carey’s ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’, the 1994 anthem that still dominates charts worldwide and takes the No. 3 spot this week.

Genre plays another important role in a song’s nostalgic feel. Half of the most popular Christmas songs are rooted in mid-20th century genres. Even modern artists pay homage to these timeless sounds such as Ed Sheeran and Elton John’s 2023 single ‘Merry Christmas’ which channels Phil Spector’s 1963 album ‘A Christmas Gift for You’ through its lush, festive instrumentation and layered vocals – the single currently sits in the Chart’s Top 50.

With the use of contemporary production techniques, artists can recreate the warmth of mid-century genres. Michael Bublé, often crowned the king of modern Christmas songs, exemplifies this in his iconic 2011 album ‘Christmas’ which has over 2 million streams. This week, 3 of the album’s tracks can be found on the Official Charts. 

Occasionally, modern styles find success. Jackson 5’s pop disco rendition of ‘Santa Claus is Coming to Town’ shines through as an enduring example. This holiday season, Tom Grennan’s ‘It Can’t Be Christmas’ stands its ground in the Top 10 on the Charts illustrating that there can be room for modern sound in the fight for Christmas No. 1. 

In conclusion, the enduring success of Christmas classics lies in their ability to evoke a sense of nostalgia while maintaining universal themes of joy, family, and tradition. Whether it’s through lyrics, timeless chord progressions, or production styles, these songs strike a unique balance between the past and present. Allowing tracks like ‘White Christmas’, ‘Last Christmas’, and ‘All I Want for Christmas Is You’ to resonate across generations. 

As this year’s festive season unfolds, the question remains: will any modern release ever match the timelessness of those beloved classics? For now, we must await the Official Charts announcement for Christmas No. 1 this Friday, December 20. 

WHAM! “Last Christmas” is on its 103^rd week in the top 100, and eight as number one. The song first begun charting in 2007, many years after its first release in December 1984. It took almost forty years for the song to achieve the number one position, despite being one of the most popular Christmas songs ever released. It achieved the number one position in 2021 and 2023, peaking at one around Christmas in 2022 but failing to hold on to the position over Christmas day. Will it take the title again this year?

Right after “Last Christmas”, Gracie Abrams is still holding on to the top five with her hit song “That’s so True” off of the deluxe edition of “The Secret of Us”, her second full length album. This is Abrams’s first song to achieve such a high position, which has granted her a fanbase big enough to play a sold-out show at the London’s O2 Arena next year. Will Abrams hold on to the title long enough, or will it lose spots to give space to other Christmas hits?

At number three, Mariah Carey is getting closer and closer to that number one spot that “All I want for Christmas is You” has never reached over Christmas. In 2021 and 2023, the song reached the top spots of UK charts in the weeks leading up to Christmas, but each time lost the place before the Christmas number one of the year could be announced. Is this Mariah’s year? The song is already playing all over radios all throughout the UK, and it is perhaps seen worldwide as the most iconic of all Christmas songs. It’s only a couple more spots to climb, and the title goes to Carey!

Rosè and Bruno Mars’s “APT” is still charting in the top five, on its eight week in UK’s charts. After peaking at number two, the song has held on the top spots tight despite the growing number of Christmas songs climbing the charts.

Finally, at number five, Brenda Lee’s “Rocking Around the Christmas Tree” is climbing up the charts. It’s its 78^th week charting, and has, so far, only peaked at number four in 2023. But this is the song’s fourth year in the top five. Does this mean 2024 is Lee’s year? Only time will tell.

The Christmas number one will be announced on the BBC Radio 1 on December 20.

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American singers Gracie Abrams and Gigi Perez hold their positions tight, and the latter is once again at number two with the viral hit “Sailor Song” which first begun getting recognition over tiktok. This is the first of Perez’s songs which achieves such popularity and success, being at its 18th week charting and having already achieved the first position. Currently, Perez counts almost 28 million listeners on spotify and a million followers on TikTok.

Rosè and Bruno Mars’s “Apt” is also firm on their number three position, on their sixth week charting. This is one of Rosè’s first releases as a solo artist, and its success is really a testament to the singer’s talent. It is also Bruno Mars’s second hit song this year, as he had previously peaked at number two with his collaboration with Lady Gaga titled “Die With a Smile”. 

British singer Sam Fender, who last week was peaking at number four with his song “People Watching” is now charting at number 11, at its second week charting. “The Door” by Teddy Swims, which we saw last week peaking at number 5, has now gone down to number 9 at its 32rd week charting. 

Instead, positions number four, five and six are now taken by Kendrick Lamar who has recently released his sixth studio album “GNX”. The first single off the album, titled “Luther”, a collaboration with SZA, is currently peaking at number five. The song “Squabble Up” holds number four and “TV off”, featuring Lefty Gunplay, holds number six. Lamar’s new album is expected to take over more sosta in the top ten chart in the upcoming weeks and is already gaining popularity and success at its first week on charts. The album is currently at number one on UK album charts. 

Number seven is, to no surprise, held by Wicked’s “Defying Gravity”: the iconic song originally performed by Idina Menzel, now in the movie version sung by Cynthia Erivo and Ariana Grande.

Only a few days before December, positions 8 and 10 are taken by two of the most iconic modern Christmas hits: “Last Christmas” by WHAM and “All I want for Christmas is you” by Mariah Carey. Both songs have previously peaked at number one and have spent countless weeks in charts. Both songs are expected to rise as the Christmas excitement grows and are surely going to be some of the most played songs on radio for the upcoming month. 

Reflecting on its unexpected success, Sam acknowledges that while many people are enjoying the song, there are still a significant number who are unaware of its existence. As a 34-year-old artist, Sam faces tough competition from holiday classics such as Wham’s “Last Christmas,” Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You,” and the resurgence of “Fairytale of New York” following the passing of Pogues frontman Shane MacGowan. Additionally, Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” has gained momentum after being covered by Olivia Rodrigo on Radio 1’s Live Lounge, posing a potential upset. Despite these challenges, Sam Ryder remains hopeful and determined to make a mark with his festive tune.

Sam acknowledges that while he had hoped for his track from Your Christmas or Mine 2 to become a popular holiday hit, he understands that it may only resonate with a niche audience who watch the film.

He recognises that the song may not have a widespread impact on the culture or the music charts. Therefore, he and his team recorded it purely out of love for the project. Despite writing the song in August, Sam found it surprisingly easy to get into the festive spirit, even during the summer months. He recalls,“It was quite a gloomy day and I was like, ‘this is actually quite perfect’. I can just pretend it’s Christmas.”

Sam’s latest release, “You’re Christmas To Me,” has the potential to become his first Christmas number one. This achievement holds even more significance as it marks his debut as an independent artist following his departure from Parlophone Records in September. Sam describes this transition as a “free-ng experience,” Sam added, “Your team becomes so much smaller, it becomes so much more potent because it’s made up mostly of your pals. And even if you get battered and bruised by the end of whatever it is that you’re after, it doesn’t matter because you’re in it together. And it’s such a lovely experience.”

In other news, Wham! has made a triumphant return to the top of the Christmas chart race. Additionally, Sam Ryder’s remarkable year continues to unfold after the success of his hit single, “Space Man.” Furthermore, Sam reflects on how a surfing accident has profoundly impacted his life.

Sam is often described as a glass-half-full individual, exuding an abundance of positive energy.” He said, “When I was in college, my tutors used to call me Tigger,” he says. “I think I was always just a bit too, like, annoyingly enthusiastic about things.”

He firmly believes that being cool is overrated, particularly in the arts, where people tend to place value on being enigmatic and detached. Sam rejects this notion, asserting that life is too short. Sam added further, “Cool is the enemy,” he says. “I’ve always thought that, especially in the arts, people put this currency on being deep and mysterious and aloof. To hell with that. Life’s too preciously short to not be bounding for joy and gratitude.”

After news of the late Shane MacGowan’s death, aged 65, last Thursday, his wife Victoria Mary Clarke reportedly told the BBC she would love to see the song at the top of the charts. On BBC Radio 4 Clarke said “It would be nice, wouldn’t it?… It should be Christmas number one, it absolutely should. I’m very much in favour of that.” 

The wife of Shane MacGowan, Victoria Mary Clarke, tells @MarthaKearney on #R4Today she hopes Fairytale of New York will be Christmas No 1.

Hear her memories of The Pogues frontman, who died this week aged 65, and how he enjoyed watching programmes about the Royal Family.

— BBC Radio 4 Today (@BBCr4today) December 2, 2023

The Anglo-Irish Celtic punk band The Pogues, fronted by Shane MacGowan, reached international heights with their popular hit ‘Fairytale of New York’  back in 1987. The duet with Kirsty MacColl quickly became a favourite of the UK and Irish nations, reaching number one in the Irish charts and number two in the British charts over Christmas. It has returned to the top 40 every year since 2005. Although, despite it being the third most streamed Christmas song in the UK, it has surprisingly never reached number one in Britain. 

The nostalgic song follows the story of two lovers, Irish immigrants in New York City, who quarrel and reminisce on Christmas Eve about their early love life. The song received huge criticism due to the fact it uses the word “faggot”, deemed offensive to homosexual people and in 2007, was briefly censored by the BBC. However, following protests from fans and the late Kirsty MacColl’s mother, the censorship was lifted. 

Watch the official video for ‘Fairytale of New York’ here

As it currently stands, ‘Last Christmas’ by the pop duo Wham!  is on track to take the number one spot next Friday. The duo consists of the late George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley and has been a crowd-pleaser every year since its release in 1986. Mariah Carey is close behind, moving from number six to number two, with her classic ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You’. However, The Pogues are competing currently at spot number three. 

Watch Wham!’s Last Christmas below

There is also a new festive song by Eurovision’s Sam Ryder ‘You’re Christmas to Me’, released solely on Amazon Music, which is currently placing at number four in the UK singles chart.

The 2023 Christmas title will be announced in less than three weeks live on BBC Radio 1’s The Official Chart show on December 22.

The app has worked with American artist L.A. Migiotto on the new series. The digital virtual reality platform and Migiotto have teamed up to create 10 assembles.
The app’s pieces have been re-imagined from never-before-seen images and artwork from the chosen musical artists. Terra Virtua’s website has provided the following statement concerning their exciting new partnership. “Fuelled by a very modern obsession, L.A. Migiotto gained access to the Lyons Archive, a vast photographic treasure chest, chronicling over 30 years of celebrity from candid shots, to infamous moments in time. From this gold mine, Migiotto has curated images of icons such as Bowie, Madonna, Jagger and Winehouse – figures the world has elevated to levels of unattainable perfection, previously reserved for those depicted in myths, legend and fiction. While to many they are heroes, in just one moment they can be made the villain… Migiotto’s work seeks to question, who created them? Was it us, as a society? Do we have as much influence over them as they have over us.”

L.A. Migiotto has LANDED!! Witness the evolution of celebrity! Iconic paparazzi shots transformed into beautiful animated #NFTs

Amy Winehouse, Britney, Jagger, Bono, Sir Elton and more RIGHT NOW https://t.co/UMgBo6ba7h #NFTdrop #NFT #nftart #NFT #nftcollectors $TVK pic.twitter.com/dzZhkBpHVG

— Terra Virtua $TVK | Collecting. Reinvented. (@terra_virtua) September 3, 2021

The purpose of an NFT or a non-fungible token is to store data, the NFT is a unit of data that is then stored on a digital ledger. The ledger is often called a blockchain and exists to certify the digital asset (files and information that is in a digital format and includes the right to use) to enable the asset to be distinctive and thus non-interchangeable.
Terra Virtua is often regarded as a new and exciting format in which fans can boost their passion and own un-breakable collectables of their favourite artists and interests.

The CEO at Terra Virtua, Gary Bracey has given the following statement regarding the new collection and the platforms new alliance with Migiotto. “This is an incredibly exciting partnership for us. Our collaboration with Lyons Gallery provides another exciting platform for us to showcase the breadth and quality of Terra Virtua’s digital collectables. It’s fascinating to see how this collection of images, of icons from past and present, have been brought to life by L.A. Migiotto and we look forward to building on this partnership in future.”

The complete collection was made accessible on 2nd September 2021 at 5 PM via the Terra Virtua marketplace. The full collection includes a list of iconic figures from various genres of music including David Bowie, Sir Mick Jagger, Beyonce, Britney Spears, Madonna, Amy Winehouse, Mariah Carey, Jay Z, Iggy Pop and Sir Elton John. The website has affixed the collection’s piece staring Sir John with this description. “With his ‘dressing-up box’ the envy of the world, Elton has taken on many guises from Louis XIV to Rocket Man with as much added glitter as you can handle. In real life existing in a bubble of success – outside the chaos of reality – but still feeling the itch of the universe calling for more. Are the successful ever satisfied as they battle against the insatiability of the ‘id’.”

A press release provides the following statement concerning the new series: “the relationship society as an audience has with these figures”. The statement describes the collection’s representation of Bowie. (The piece) “draws on images from NASA expeditions in an ode to Starman, Major Tom and Ziggy Stardust.”

This is not Terra Virtua’s only exciting project, the pioneering digital platform recently made headlines with a historical venture. The app acquired the exclusive rights to the popular film ‘Godzilla Vs. Kong‘, making it the first NFT to be released in accordance with a major motion picture.

Click here to see the full collection.

26 years after its release, it looks like @MariahCarey's All I Want For Christmas Is You could finally reach Number 1 on the Official UK Singles Chart this week: https://t.co/NNS725nYwd

— Official Charts (@officialcharts) November 30, 2020

Streams of Christmas songs are on a surge this year as Official Charts confirm that their is almost a 44% increase compared with last year, as the nation wishes it’s troubles of 2020 away. The track is one of four festive favourites to enter the top 10 in this weeks official charts. Since 2007, when streaming and downloads were first introduced, the song has re-entered the charts every year leading up to Christmas. When first released in 1994, the song peaked at Number 2 having lost out to East 17’s ‘Stay Another Day,’ for the Number 1 spot. In last last few years the song has peaked at Number 2 in the UK, but we will find out on the Radio 1 show with Chris Moyles on Friday 4th December if it can claim it’s first ever Number 1 position.

On talking about the previous success of the track, Mariah said to Entertainment Weekly, “When it first came out, it was more of a gradual thing. It was popular, but it didn’t have what it has now. I feel like people have grown up with the song and it’s become a part of people’s lives in terms of the way they celebrate the holidays. That makes me feel really proud as someone that loves Christmas so much.” When asked about the writing and recording of the festive favourite, Mariah said to Entertainment Weekly, “I wrote the beginning and the middle on the keyboard in a little house in Upstate New York, in a room by myself. I just started thinking about all things Christmas and growing up as a kid that loves Christmas. I think that’s why it’s such a festive record.”

Mariah is set to release a new version of her song ‘Oh Santa’ this coming Friday 4th December, featuring Arianna Grande and Jennifer Hudson. The song will be played on ‘Apple TV + Special Mariah Carey’s Magical Christmas’ which airs the same day. As well as the two stars on her latest single release, other guests will include Tiffany Haddish, Billy Eichner, Snoop Dogg and Jermaine Dupri.

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With the streams being on a high increase, it now places the song a high contender for this years ‘Official Christmas Number 1.’ The race will kick off on December 18th and will be announced on BBC Radio 1 on 25th December with Katie Thistleton, which will then be aired on BBC ‘Top Of The Pops’ later on Christmas day. There is no doubt that the success of the song is felt globally as it reached Number 1 in the Billboard Hot 100 charts last year. The ‘Queen Of Christmas’ will be hoping for the same success in the UK charts this year, with the commemorative song that symbolises Christmas Pop Music.