Christmas number one contenders revealed: Will Wicked or Band Aid take top spot?

The contention is connected for acts trying to unafraid 2024’s authoritative Christmas fig one, with tracks from philharmonic movie Wicked: Part One, Band Aid and Sabrina Carpenter among the contenders.

Last twelvemonth Wham! claimed the festive apical spot with Last Christmas for the archetypal time, 39 years aft its archetypal release.

The track, archetypal released successful December 1984 by popular duo George Michael and Andrew Ridgeley, was famously beaten that twelvemonth by Band Aid’s foundation azygous Do They Know It’s Christmas?

To people its 40th anniversary, the Band Aid track, blending 1984’s original, 2004’s Band Aid 20 iteration and 2014’s Band Aid 30 rendition, has precocious been re-released.

To coincide with the 40th day of Last Christmas, the BBC is besides releasing the documentary Wham! Last Christmas Unwrapped, focusing connected the track.

Also marking an day this twelvemonth is Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas is You, and East 17’s Stay Another Day, which primitively bushed the US vocalist to the apical spot successful 1994.

East 17 is trying to rise funds for Nordoff and Robbins, a euphony therapy charity, by re-releasing their way 30 years on.

The lad band’s Tony Mortimer told Official Charts: “All she wanted for Christmas she didn’t get, did she? No, it was funny. She’s an implicit legend, and we respect her truthful much. To beryllium alongside specified names, 4 small lads from Walthamstow, it’s surreal.

“She’s going to privation to adjacent it up this clip – I deliberation she’s going to propulsion retired each the stops. We’ll spot what happens, but arsenic agelong arsenic Nordoff and Robbins are riding connected the backmost of it, I’d emotion different illustration battle. This is to get radical talking astir euphony therapy.”

Official Charts besides said a merchandise of the Wicked philharmonic opus Defying Gravity, sung by the prima of the movie Cynthia Erivo, featuring histrion and vocalist Ariana Grande, arsenic good arsenic YouTuber KSI’s Thick Of It way with Trippie Redd, could besides beryllium astatine chart-topper astatine Christmas.

Chief enforcement of Official Charts Martin Talbot, said: “Last twelvemonth we saw an all-time Christmas favourite yet scope the festive summit, successful the signifier of Wham!’s Last Christmas, and this twelvemonth we person a scope of aged and caller favourites preparing to participate the race.

“With conscionable 4 weeks to spell until the large reveal, the tract looks arsenic wide unfastened arsenic ever.”

It has been much than a decennary since a pistillate earned a Christmas fig one, and US singers Carpenter, Chappell Roan and Gracie Abrams person been touted arsenic beardown contenders this year.

The X Factor victor Sam Bailey had a chart-topper with 2013’s Skyscraper, and it is thought Roan’s synth-pop deed Hot To Go!, 1 of Carpenter’s fig ones, specified arsenic Espresso, Please Please Please and Taste, and Abrams’ That’s So True, could travel successful her footsteps.

New releases are besides successful with a accidental arsenic Ed Sheeran, who has had Christmas chart-toppers with 2017’s Perfect and 2021’s LadBaby and Sir Elton John collaboration Sausage Rolls For Everyone, released Under The Tree.

His caller song, retired adjacent month, appears connected the soundtrack for Richard Curtis’s 2024 Netflix animated movie That Christmas.

Kelly Clarkson’s You For Christmas, Michael Buble and Carly Pearce’s Maybe This Christmas, and Jedward’s Lovemas are among different festive tracks this year.

The victor of this year’s Christmas fig 1 rubric volition beryllium announced connected Friday December 20.