Christmas Music Before Thanksgiving?

IS CHRISTMAS MUSIC BEFORE THANKSGIVING TOO SOON?

Livie Timmins • Opinion • Holiday • Posted 12/15/21

As the autumn decorations are tucked away and the holly and tinsel come out in full force, most people can agree that the holiday season is in full swing as soon as Thanksgiving has passed. But what about those people who were already in the festive spirit? For some, holiday playlists can be heard spilling from their cars on the morning of November first, belting ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ at the top of their lungs. For others, Christmas music is a crime before Thanksgiving, and the holiday season cannot begin until after that day. So, what exactly marks the start of Christmas music? Personally, the Halloween decorations barely have time to be taken down before I bring out my holiday playlist, and let’s talk about why.

The classic argument that I stand by is that there is no music to fill the gap between our Halloween playlist and our Christmas playlist. And don’t come after me with that one Adam Sandler Thanksgiving song, we both know that isn’t enough to count as Thanksgiving music. So, it seems simple enough to stroll right from one holiday’s music into the next. Sure, we could take a break for a month and go back to listening to Taylor Swift’s entire discography, but there are ten other months to spend doing that. Imagine if you only had a brief window of time each year where you could listen to your favorite type of music. I bet you would try and stretch it for as long as you could, too! And it seems like every year December goes by a little bit quicker, and the time for Christmas music comes and goes in the blink of an eye. There’s so little time to enjoy this cheerful holiday music, why is it such a bad thing to take the extra span between Halloween and Thanksgiving to get a few more listens in?

It also seems that some people are afraid society might forget the holiday as a whole if Jingle Bells starts playing too early. Christmas music starting in November doesn’t mean anyone plans on skipping right over Thanksgiving, it’s simply a filler until we reach it! Thanksgiving typically is not a holiday that you celebrate except for the one day that the holiday actually falls on, while the Christmas season stretches on for much longer than just December 25th, so it makes sense that the holiday season might start a bit early, take a break to give Thanksgiving it's time to shine, and then pick back up. So many people love Thanksgiving, as it’s a time of joy, giving thanks, and spending time with loved ones. Sounds curiously similar to what holiday songs say the Christmas season is all about too, doesn’t it? Both Thanksgiving and Christmas revolve around these same things, so breaking out the Christmas music a little early isn’t overshadowing Thanksgiving, but simply an extension to celebrate the same thing that people cherish Thanksgiving for.

But no matter whether you’re the type who has been blasting the holiday tunes since November first or you’re just now breaking out the Christmas playlist, it’s finally that time of year where everyone can agree on getting into the festive spirit. Happy holidays everyone!