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As the holidays grow closer, there’s nothing better than snuggling up by the fire and listening to some Christmas tunes. There’s a wide range of holiday-themed songs to choose from whether they are classics or modern interpretations. It seems every musician or band has a Christmas song on their roster, but there are a few that you wouldn’t expect to release something quite so jolly. Here are ten musicians who you just won’t believe have released a Christmas song.
10/10 Ozzy Osbourne
The Prince of Darkness is known for many things, including some horrific stage accidents, but he’s also indulged in some Christmas cheer. While not a fully-fledged release, Osbourne went on to perform the song “Winter Wonderland” with Jessica Simpson on a Christmas special of the famous The Osbourne Family reality show. Not only is it shocking to see this heavy metal performer singing about building a snowman, but Osbourne has even admitted he hates the holiday!
9/10 Alice Cooper
Another musician known for the macabre and the gruesome, Cooper released his spin on a Christmas song with “Santa Claws Is Coming To Town”. Unlike Osbourne’s relatively close rendition, Cooper decided to put his flair and edgy style into this track that featured on the 2008 album We Wish You A Metal Xmas… And A Headbanging New Year. The song is perfect for those who wish Christmas songs were just a little less safe and experimented more.
8/10 Vanilla Ice
Why create an entirely new song for the holidays when you can just take a classic and remix it? Vanilla Ice did exactly that with his 2011 release of “Ice Ice Baby (Too Cold For Christmas Mix)”. It’s pretty much the same song besides some sleigh bells and Santa Claus talking to Vanilla Ice about whether he’s been a good boy or not. The fact that this song exists is bizarre in its own right, but something about the classic sounds of Christmas music in the background combined with the beat works.
7/10 Fall Out Boy
One of the most iconic pop punk bands, Fall Out Boy may be known for their emo days and guitar shredding, but they’ve dabbled in music for the holidays as well. In 2009, they released their song “Yule Shoot Your Eye Out”, cleverly playing on the iconic quote from the film A Christmas Story. The song is an anthem for moody teens and those who would rather have nothing to do with the holidays and the family members they just can’t stand. Fall Out Boy even took part in a special edition soundtrack of Tim Burton’s Halloween slash Christmas animated feature The Nightmare Before Christmas which was released in 2006 by recording a cover of the song “What’s This?”. Frontman Patrick Stump has even composed songs for the animated comic show Marvel’s Spidey and His-Amazing Friends, including “Merry Spidey Christmas”.
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6/10 Green Day
Another punk rock band that’s famous for their special brand of sticking it to the man, Green Day has recorded numerous Christmas songs. They’ve not only done Christmas remixes of some of their most recognizable tunes and performed some classics with a twist, but they’ve also released their very own. In 2015 the band released “Xmas Time of the Year”, making us nostalgic for the 2000s punk era and poking fun at some Christmastime traditions.
5/10 Run-DMC
A legendary hip-hop group, Run-DMC may be one of the most unlikely groups to have ever released a Christmas song, but they did way back in 1987! Their song “Christmas in Hollis” honored their background in Hollis, Queens, New York City, and was featured on two of the year’s collective Christmas albums. The song is a tribute to their neighborhood as well as one to other iconic songs played around the holidays by sampling melodies from songs like “Frosty the Snowman” and “Joy to the World”. There’s truly a song from any genre to joy when it comes to gift-giving and hot cocoa.
4/10 Snoop Dogg
In the same vein as Run-DMC, Snoop Dogg has shockingly released a plethora of Christmas tunes and even a compilation album. Playing to his audience with hilarious renditions of holiday tracks, his catalog for the season includes “Christmas in the Hood”, “Landy in My Egg Nog”, and “A Pimp’s Christmas Song”, to name a few. The compilation album, Snoop Dogg Presents Christmas in Tha Dogg House, was released in 2008, but Snoop has continuously released songs centered around the winter holidays since then, such as 2020’s “Doggy Dogg Christmas”.
3/10 Smash Mouth
While Smash Mouth has become synonymous with internet gags and the soundtrack for the animated feature Shrek, few probably know they released an entire studio album about Christmas. Their fifth album, released in 2005, was dedicated to the holiday and is titled The Gift of Rock. The band mostly sticks to covers with the album, such as “Father Christmas” and “Christmas (Baby Please Come Home”), and delivers exactly what you’d expect from the band.
2/10 RuPaul
While he’s known for his work as a drag queen, model, and television judge on the show RuPaul’s Drag Race, RuPaul has accumulated a lengthy career in the music industry, including three Christmas albums! His first was in 1997 with Ho Ho Ho, the second was in 2015 with Slay Belles, and his third and latest was Christmas Party in 2018. All of his albums feature covers and remixes of songs and a few creations like the titular “Christmas Party”.
1/10 David Hasselhoff
Hasselhoff may be one of the most recognizable actors in Hollywood, but he’s also dedicated a lot of his career to both theater and music. With over fifteen albums to his name, he was bound to have a Christmas one sneak in there somewhere. In 2004, he released The Night Before Christmas album, where he sang nearly every iconic Christmas song out there. The only issue is that it seems nobody liked the album, practically calling it an assault on Christmas.
