Mariah Carey's claim to the "Queen of Christmas" throne challenged by fellow carolers

Darlene Love and Elizabeth Chan have both spoken out about the singer's copyright application

By Emma Keates  |  August 17, 2022 | 4:53pm
Aux News Mariah Carey
Mariah Carey's claim to the
Introducing Endless Mode: A New Games & Anime Site from Paste
Mariah Carey, Darlene Love, and Elizabeth Chan Image: Michael Loccisano (Getty Images); Mike Coppola (Getty Images for Little Kids Rock); Elizabeth Chan (YouTube)

While we’ve all been distracted by the promise of a new generation battling for the Iron Throne, another equally vicious regency war has been unspooling right beneath our noses. Grab your reindeer and sharpen your candy canes; it’s time to answer the eternal question: who is the real “Queen of Christmas”?

Mariah Carey–whose inescapable hit “All I Want For Christmas Is You” remains the most streamed Christmas song in Spotify’s history–is so sure of her claim that she filed to trademark the term in March 2021. Per NME, the singer also filed for exclusive rights to the rest of the royal family as well–namely, “QOC,” “Princess of Christmas,” and “Christmas Princess.” If Carey’s application is successful, she alone will have access to these terms (and the ample merchandising opportunities they provide) for every Christmas yet to come, in perpetuity.

Now, however, a pair of usurpers has entered the scene—or is Carey the usurper? According to fellow carolers Elizabeth Chan and Darlene Love, she absolutely is. And they’re ready to fight.

Elizabeth Chan, who exclusively composes and performs Christmas music, has been called “The Queen of Christmas” in the media since 2014 and recently used the moniker as the title of a 2021 holiday album. Now, she is taking her claim to court.

“Christmas has come way before any of us on earth, and hopefully will be around way after any of us on earth,” she told Variety. “And I feel very strongly that no one person should hold onto anything around Christmas or monopolize it in the way that Mariah seeks to in perpetuity. That’s just not the right thing to do. Christmas is for everyone. It’s meant to be shared; it’s not meant to be owned.”

Meanwhile, Darlene Love, who originally recorded the song “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home)“ in 1963 and has released several holiday albums, is also disputing Carey’s claim to the title. In a Facebook post shared on Monday, Love wrote that “David Letterman officially declared me the Queen of Christmas 29 years ago, a year before she released “All I want For Christmas Is You” and at 81 years of age I’m NOT changing anything.”


Carey’s team has yet to respond to Chan and Love’s challenges. As the long winter approaches, we are anxious to see whether the seated queen buckles, or lets her heart grow three sizes instead.

 
Join the discussion...