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Gwen Stefani's Holiday Album Proves She Is the Queen of Christmas
The Voice Coach's You Make It Feel Like Christmas is perfect for spending time with loved ones during the holidays.
The holiday season would be incomplete without hearing the cherished Christmas and holiday tunes we’ve come to know and love. And, if anyone knows how to rock around the Christmas tree, it's The Voice’s Gwen Stefani.
Stefani’s 2017 holiday album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas, is responsible for several nostalgic holiday bops perfect for snuggling up around the fireplace. Featuring a delightful combination of traditional Christmas carols and beloved modern holiday hits, Stefani’s holiday album has something for everyone. All but one of the album’s original songs were co-written by Stefani herself — including the titular single, which was penned with her husband, Blake Shelton.
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Stefani’s holiday album is perfect for getting into the Christmas spirit. Below, take a walk through the winter wonderland of Stefani’s holiday discography.
Gwen Stefani’s Christmas Album You Make It Feel Like Christmas
Stefani's fourth studio album, You Make It Feel Like Christmas, was released in 2017 and she performed many of the album's tracks for the NBC holiday special Gwen Stefani's You Make It Feel Like Christmas. In 2022, Stefani and Shelton radiated holiday spirit during the Rockefeller Christmas Tree lighting, delivering an energizing duet of "You Make It Feel Like Christmas" that had the crowd rocking.
Stefani's Christmas album also boasts several traditional carols. Stefani's fresh spin on timeless classics speaks to The Voice Coach's chameleonic talent, as she delivered mesmerizing takes on favorites like "Silent Night," "Santa Baby," and "Winter Wonderland," to name a few.
You Make It Feel Like Christmas also features several collaborations, including Stefani and James Lord Pierpont's spin on "Jingle Bells," her and Mon Laferte's ska-inspired duet for "Feliz Navidad," as well as Shelton and Stefani's darling titular single. Peaking at No. 16 on Billboard's Hot 200, You Make It Feel Like Christmas continues to rock radio waves each holiday season.
“I love the idea of being a part of the joy of Christmas,” Stefani told EW ahead of the album's release. “And I love the idea of having a record that will be an annual thing. I really hope we hit on something that people want to hear every year. That would be the fantasy.”
Listening to the album is a sonic cup of hot cocoa, an instant ticket to visions of dancing sugar plums and holiday treats.
Gwen Stefani's Original Holiday Songs
But Stefani's holiday album wouldn't be complete without her original tracks to the record. Between its initial release and subsequent deluxe editions in 2018 and 2020, Stefani penned nine original holiday singles for the album. Many of these original tracks are romantic and nostalgic, with Stefani looking back on her childhood holidays and basking in the holiday season with Shelton.
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"I think every writer would fantasize about writing a Christmas hit because it's kind of that thing that comes back..." Stefani said in a 2017 interview on The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon. "To write and be part of [the listener's] holiday and their memories for that part, I mean musically, would be like my dream."
From her Shelton-inspired track "Christmas Eve" to the tongue-in-cheek "Secret Santa," Stefani shines a touching spotlight on the holiday season that demands an annual replay.
"Christmas Eve," The Song Inspired by Blake Shelton
In her 2017 appearance on The Tonight Show, Stefani revealed that "Christmas Eve" was the first song she penned for her holiday album. Stefani also discussed how Shelton inspired the "Christmas miracle song" after she spent time on his sprawling Oklahoma ranch. The chorus came to her while on a jog after she witnessed a majestic herd of Shelton's wildebeests passing by.
"What's crazy is that Blake heard it and he loved it so much that he decided to put it on his Christmas record..." Stefani explained before adorably adding, "Which, nobody's ever recorded any of my songs, and especially not, like, the hottest cowboy like ever."
"You Make It Feel Like Christmas" (featuring Blake Shelton)
Some of the most iconic holiday bops are duets, so Stefani knew she needed to team up with her husband Shelton for a jolly track.
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The song turned into the album's titular single, leading to several heartwarming performances between the two, as well as a cheer-inducing music video.
"When I Was a Little Girl"
Stefani's single about looking back at our childhood selves with a sense of wonder is a vulnerable track about the unexpected nature of love. In 2017, Stefani took the TODAY stage to perform the song live.
"My Gift Is You"
In 2021, Stefani performed four of her singles from her holiday album for her "Live from the Orange Grove" performance series for Facebook Live.
"My Gift Is You" is Stefani's holiday love ballad centered around foregoing presents in favor of quality time with her loved one.
"Under the Christmas Lights"
One of the best parts of the holidays is watching the world become aglow with twinkling lights and seeing the Christmas tree light up for the first time.
Stefani zeroed in on this beloved holiday phenomenon with "Under the Christmas Lights," a reflective track about soaking up all of the wonders of the winter season.
"Never Kissed Anyone with Blue Eyes"
Another bop from Stefani's holiday repertoire is her love song "Never Kissed Anyone with Blue Eyes," a romantic ballad about newfound love (with maybe a certain country singer with blazing baby blues).
"Cheer for the Elves"
For the 2018 reissue, Stefani penned an adorable holiday song celebrating Christmas' hardest helpers: The lovable elves working hard to grant wishes at the North Pole.
RELATED: Gwen Stefani's Heart Is "So Full" During Christmas With Blake Shelton
Shelton loved the jingle so much he covered it on his 2022 re-release of his holiday album Cheers, It's Christmas.
"Secret Santa"
Another one of Stefani's most delicious holiday originals includes "Secret Santa," another track added to the 2018 deluxe recording of You Make It Feel Like Christmas.
The sultry yet sweet single is a love letter to the holiday season and all the heartwarming connections made during Christmastime.
"Here This Christmas"
Stefani married her love for pop and her affinity for the holidays with the feel-good jingle, "Here This Christmas" from the 2020 reissue — the only original track from the album on which she's not credited as as writer.
The song was such a certified holiday anthem that it was chosen as the theme for Hallmark's 2022 Countdown to Christmas event.
Originally published Nov 11, 2023.
