Streaming data and reporting from December 2025 show Christmas music is arriving earlier and dominating charts well before the holiday season. Spotify analysis and third‑party chart trackers indicate the first major surge in holiday streaming begins on September 1, with a second lift in October; playlist creation in the U.S. rose about 60% year‑on‑year from October 2024 to October 2025. By early December, roughly 20 of Spotify’s top 25 tracks were festive songs. Comparative data show 30 holiday tracks in the U.S. top 50 on December 1, 2025, versus 14 on the same date in 2019. Reasons cited include nostalgia and collective comfort amid economic and geopolitical stress, platform playlisting dynamics, and clear commercial incentive for artists: legacy seasonal hits (Mariah Carey, Brenda Lee, Wham!) and newer holiday releases earn sustained streams, while artists use festive singles to experiment and generate reliable catalog revenue — examples include Sia’s holiday catalogue streaming strongly. The trend is visible in retail and public playlists as well as personal streaming behaviour, shifting how labels and artists plan releases and catalogue promotion.