The new Mariah Carey Christmas video has arrived, with the singer marking the start of November by moving from a punk club performance to a festive scene on top of a giant Christmas tree. Released as Halloween ended, the 2026 instalment of her annual It’s Time tradition introduces the season with a song from her lesser-known rock project.
Carey’s announcement comes ahead of her previously confirmed Christmastime concerts, including three UK arena dates later this month and in December. The video supplies the fresh seasonal curtain-raiser, while the live shows will bring that celebration to Birmingham, London and Manchester.
The Mariah Carey Christmas video takes a rock detour
The clip, shared through Carey’s social channels and featured on her official website, begins with a New York City setting on 31 October. A countdown approaches midnight as the camera enters a bar, where Carey appears in a punk-inspired outfit and performs Hermit.
It is a different entrance from the festive styling associated with her Christmas recordings. The opening uses a club setting, vivid make-up and a rock soundtrack before delivering the transformation that viewers of her annual videos have come to expect. As midnight arrives, she gives her familiar “It’s time” declaration and the scene changes.
Entertainment Focus’s report on the new video describes Carey standing above a giant Christmas tree in a sparkling outfit as All I Want for Christmas Is You plays. Santa, reindeer and other festive characters complete the scene, turning the short film from a Halloween farewell into a Christmas welcome.
Why Hermit appears in the opening
The rock song has a history within Carey’s own catalogue. Hermit comes from Someone’s Ugly Daughter, the album released under the band name Chick in 1995. Carey’s role in that project was far less visible than her work as a solo pop and R&B artist.
As Entertainment Weekly explains, she wrote, produced and contributed backing vocals to the record, working with her friend Clarissa Dane. Carey revealed her involvement in her 2020 memoir. Including the song in this year’s seasonal video brings that chapter of her career into a format usually associated with her best-known Christmas hit.
The contrast gives the 2026 clip its central joke: the route to the Christmas tree begins on a rock stage. It also makes the choice of music more than a generic Halloween soundtrack, connecting the opening directly to a recording from Carey’s past.
A long journey to the UK chart summit
All I Want for Christmas Is You originally appeared in 1994 on Merry Christmas. Its place in British pop culture developed over a much longer period than a single release campaign, with the song returning to the charts as listeners revisited it each festive season.
Official Charts records that it first reached UK number one in December 2020, 26 years after release. It had originally peaked at number two behind East 17’s Stay Another Day. When it finally reached the summit, it was spending its 70th week in the Top 40, setting a record for the longest wait in that part of the chart before reaching number one.
Three festive dates for UK fans
The confirmed UK itinerary begins at Utilita Arena Birmingham on Friday 27 November, followed by The O2 in London on Monday 30 November and Co-op Live in Manchester on Wednesday 2 December.
The O2’s official event page lists DJ Suss One as special guest and describes a production combining festive songs with Carey’s wider hits and fan favourites. Those concerts provide the next opportunity for British audiences to experience her seasonal repertoire live, following a video that has now opened her 2026 Christmas countdown.
For anyone planning to attend the London show, The O2 lists doors at 6.30pm. Tickets bought through the venue or AXS are displayed through The O2 app, with purchasers receiving instructions about mobile entry. The venue page also provides its accessibility booking information and links to the seating plan, giving fans practical details alongside the outline of the Christmas production.
