{"id":148685,"date":"2025-12-21T09:14:32","date_gmt":"2025-12-21T09:14:32","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/?p=148685"},"modified":"2025-12-21T09:14:44","modified_gmt":"2025-12-21T09:14:44","slug":"chart-topping-cheer-kylie-minogue-dethrones-wham-in-historic-bid-for-christmas-number-one","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/2025\/12\/21\/chart-topping-cheer-kylie-minogue-dethrones-wham-in-historic-bid-for-christmas-number-one\/","title":{"rendered":"Chart-Topping Cheer: Kylie Minogue Dethrones Wham! in Historic Bid for Christmas Number One"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

In a festive chart battle that had pop fans on the edge of their seats, Kylie Minogue has claimed a monumental victory. The Australian pop icon has secured her first-ever UK Christmas Number One single<\/strong> with her track \u2018XMAS,\u2019<\/strong> finally ending the two-year reign of Wham!\u2019s perennial favourite, \u2018Last Christmas\u2019 <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The announcement caps off a dramatic week-long race and marks a historic achievement in Kylie\u2019s storied career. Not only does \u2018XMAS\u2019 give Kylie her eighth UK Number One single, but it also makes her the first female solo artist in UK chart history<\/strong> to achieve Number One singles across four different decades\u2014the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s, and now the 2020s <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The Final Tally: A Close-Fought Festive Race<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

The competition was incredibly tight, with modern streaming giants and timeless classics all vying for the top spot. The chart was a mix of new campaigns and beloved holiday staples.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Here is a look at the key contenders in the 2025 UK Christmas Singles Chart Top 5:<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Position<\/th>Artist<\/th>Song<\/th>Key Notes<\/th><\/tr><\/thead>
1<\/strong><\/td>Kylie Minogue<\/strong><\/td>XMAS<\/strong><\/td>First Christmas No. 1; an Amazon Music exclusive <\/a><\/a>.<\/td><\/tr>
2<\/strong><\/td>Wham!<\/strong><\/td>Last Christmas<\/strong><\/td>The 2023 & 2024 champion; denied a historic third consecutive win <\/a><\/a>.<\/td><\/tr>
3<\/strong><\/td>Mariah Carey<\/strong><\/td>All I Want For Christmas Is You<\/td>Perennial contender; held at No. 3 for a second year <\/a>.<\/td><\/tr>
4<\/strong><\/td>Brenda Lee<\/strong><\/td>Rockin\u2019 Around The Christmas Tree<\/td>Equalled its personal best chart position <\/a>.<\/td><\/tr>
5<\/strong><\/td>Together For Palestine<\/strong><\/td>Lullaby<\/td>Highest new entry; charity single raising funds for Gaza <\/a><\/a>.<\/td><\/tr><\/tbody><\/table><\/figure>\n\n\n\n

A Victory Decades in the Making<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

For Kylie, this triumph is the culmination of a 37-year chart journey that began with \u2018I Should Be So Lucky\u2019 in 1988 <\/a>. The singer has been close to the Christmas summit before\u2014her 1988 duet with Jason Donovan, \u2018Especially For You,\u2019 was the runner-up\u2014but the top spot had always eluded her as a solo artist <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

In an exclusive statement, an emotional Kylie shared: \u201cIt\u2019s hard to put into words how special this feels. Being Christmas Number One really is the most wonderful gift!\u201d<\/strong> <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The campaign for \u2018XMAS\u2019 was strategic and powerful. As an Amazon Music Original<\/strong> track, it was unavailable on major rivals like Spotify and Apple Music <\/a><\/a>. Its success was driven by strong support on Amazon\u2019s festive playlists, exclusive physical CD and vinyl releases, and a viral, YMCA-style dance routine that captured public imagination <\/a>. According to the Official Charts Company, the campaign resulted in Kylie\u2019s biggest week of UK sales and streams in 23 years <\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Wham!\u2019s Legacy: A Global Consolation<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

While Wham!\u2019s \u2018Last Christmas\u2019 was denied a record third consecutive UK Christmas Number One, its legacy is untouchable. In a fitting consolation, the 1984 classic has simultaneously soared to Number One on the Billboard Global 200 chart<\/strong> for the very first time, proving its status as the world’s favourite festive song this season <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

The song\u2019s journey is legendary. Famously kept from the top spot in 1984 by Band Aid’s \u2018Do They Know It\u2019s Christmas?\u2019\u2014on which a young George Michael also performed\u2014it took 39 years to finally claim the UK Christmas Number One in 2023 <\/a>. Its back-to-back wins in 2023 and 2024 had already made it the first single ever to achieve consecutive Christmas Number One titles <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

A New Chapter in Christmas Chart History<\/h3>\n\n\n\n

Kylie\u2019s victory represents several firsts. She is only the third international female solo artist<\/strong> to ever clinch the UK Christmas Number One, joining Whitney Houston (1992) and Winifred Atwell (1954) <\/a>. It is also the first time an Amazon Music Original song has reached the summit <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

This year\u2019s chart also highlighted the enduring power of the Christmas Number One to support charitable causes. The Together For Palestine<\/strong> single \u2018Lullaby,\u2019 featuring artists like Brian Eno and Celeste, entered at Number Five as the week\u2019s best-selling track, raising urgent funds for humanitarian aid <\/a><\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

As the dust settles on this year’s festive chart battle, a new Christmas classic may have been crowned. Martin Talbot, Chief Executive of the Official Charts Company, suggested that \u2018XMAS\u2019 has \u201ca genuine chance of becoming one of the nation\u2019s favourite, recurrent, festive classics\u201d <\/a>. For now, Kylie Minogue can celebrate a hard-won, historic victory, proving that sometimes, the greatest Christmas gifts come after decades of patience.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

In a festive chart battle that had pop fans on the edge of their seats, Kylie Minogue has claimed a monumental victory. The Australian pop icon has secured her first-ever UK Christmas Number One single with her track \u2018XMAS,\u2019 finally ending the two-year reign of Wham!\u2019s perennial favourite, \u2018Last Christmas\u2019 . The announcement caps off a dramatic week-long race and […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":148686,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[33],"tags":[13004,13003,6762],"class_list":{"0":"post-148685","1":"post","2":"type-post","3":"status-publish","4":"format-standard","5":"has-post-thumbnail","7":"category-music","8":"tag-christmas-number-one","9":"tag-kylie-minogue","10":"tag-wham"},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148685","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=148685"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/148685\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/148686"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=148685"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=148685"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/showbizztoday.com\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=148685"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}