It's that time of year again when Mariah Carey's iconic holiday hit, 'All I Want For Christmas Is You,' resurfaces, dominating the airwaves and our festive playlists. But have you ever wondered just how much Carey, now 52 years old, rakes in from this timeless Christmas classic? Well, wonder no more.
Billboard recently delved into the financial details of this chart-topping Christmas anthem, and the numbers are nothing short of astounding. In 2021 alone, the song generated a staggering 1.747 million song consumption units in the USA, a term used to define music consumption equivalent to the sale of one album.
Breaking down this impressive figure, 48,000 units came from downloads, a whopping 200 million from audio streams, 52.5 million from video streams, and an additional 24 million from programmed streams. As a result, Carey and her label Sony Music pocketed a hefty $1.36 million from these streams. Furthermore, the song's publishing rights added an extra $378,000 to Carey's earnings last year, according to Billboard's estimations.
However, it's important to note that these mind-boggling numbers only account for 51% of download sales and a mere 30.7% of on-demand streaming in the United States alone. When considering global figures, the song amassed 94,000 downloads and over 800 million streams in 2021. Consequently, Carey's estimated earnings from the song likely soared to around $4.5 million, plus an additional $1.66 million in publishing royalties.
In total, Carey's estimated publishing royalties and global revenue for 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' amounted to an astounding $6.16 million. Quite an impressive Christmas bonus for a song that originally debuted in 1994!
Billboard also pointed out that Carey is one of two credited songwriters for the track, which means her share of the publishing royalties could potentially be 50%, assuming both songwriters contributed equally to the song. If Carey owns her publishing rights and factors in a 10% administration fee, her take-home pay would be approximately $747,000. Alternatively, if she has a 75/25 co-publishing deal, her share would be slightly over $622,000.
It's essential to mention that these estimates do not include any earnings from arrangements for Christmas TV specials where Carey performs the song.
In 2021, 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' achieved another milestone by becoming the first holiday single to receive the Recording Industry Association of America's (RIAA) Diamond Award, acknowledging its remarkable feat of reaching 10 million sales and streams in the United States.
So, while we mere mortals continue to play this beloved holiday classic on repeat each year, Carey continues to reap the rewards, proving that the magic of 'All I Want For Christmas Is You' is here to stay.