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Music

16th Dec 2018

Here’s how much money your fav Christmas song makes in royalties each year

Jade Hayden

Never want to work a day in your life again?

Just write a Christmas song. Simple.

They may be tacky, trashy, and totally annoying, but it’s probably the only surefire way to bag yourself a cool million quid year in, year out without ever needing to lift a finger.

No, really. It is.

Ever year we’re taunted by cliche festive love songs featuring an underlay of jingling bells.

Depending on what kind of person you are, you’ll either think of them as fun and unassuming… or the worst things to ever grace this harsh planet we call earth.

But have any of us ever really stopped to think how much money these songs make each year?

If you haven’t, buckle up because you’re in for a wild ride.

And if you have, just leave it, click away from this place, don’t ruin it for everybody else, alright?

Here’s how much 10 iconic Christmas tracks rake in for their respective artists each year, according to the Independent. 

  1. “Merry Xmas Everybody” by Slade – £1m
  2. “Fairytale of New York” by The Pogues and Kirsty MacColl – £400,000
  3. “All I Want for Christmas is You” by Mariah Carey – £400,000
  4. “White Christmas” by Bing Crosby – £328,000
  5. “Last Christmas” by Wham! – £300,000
  6. “Wonderful Christmastime” by Paul McCartney – £260,000
  7.  “Stop the Cavalry” by Jona Lewie – £120,000
  8. “2000 Miles” by The Pretenders – £102,000
  9. “Mistletoe and Wine” by Cliff Richard – £100,000
  10. “Stay Another Day” by East 17 – £97,000

One million pounds for ‘Merry Xmas Everybody’. Honestly, like.

The above are only counting royalties in the UK too, so you can imagine how much more these folks are making when you throw the rest of the world into the mix.

We’re tellin’ ye now – Christmas songs are where it’s at.

Get the bells out.