Three Festive Songs to Brighten Your Holidays: Car, the garden, Chungha, and Yunsae
It’s the holiday season, and surely, we have all marveled at Seoul’s beauty under the snow, which is featured in countless reels playing “First Snow” by EXO. And maybe we indulged in the classy languor of BTS’s V’s duet with Park Hyoshin, “Winter Ahead,” or his other much anticipated festive release, the duet with the late Bing Crosby on the immortal holiday anthem “White Christmas.” But what about the other Christmas tunes that popped up over the last few weeks?
Don’t worry, we got you covered. There are plenty of holiday songs to get into the jolly vibes, and we picked three to share the festive cheer with you. On this week’s special menu, we present to you Car, the garden’s “Wish 2025”, Yunsae’s “Jingle Bell Love,” and Chungha’s “There Goes Santa Claus!”.
Car, the garden “Wish 2025”
The unmistakable voice of Car, the garden is going to keep us company during the holidays until New Year: that’s the idea behind “Wish 2025”, a song that combines the choir of the classic “We Wish You A Merry Christmas” carol with Korean lyrics, all delivered in smooth jazzy sounds.
The song is part of a campaign launched by Hyundai Motor Company to welcome the New Year in 2025, which also includes a drone show and a busking show event with the very Car, the garden (whose real name is Cha Jeongwon, 차정원) on December 15 at the Ttukseom Hangang Park Waterside Stage in Jayang-dong, in Seoul. On that day, lucky attendees will be able to enjoy Car, the garden performing on a stage illuminated using the V2L (Vehicle to Load) technology of Hyundai's electric vehicles. During the performance, he will improvise songs based on the wishes of the audience members!
Chungha, “There Goes Santa Claus!”
We already told you about the latest single by Chungha (청하), “Sleigh,” but in the two-track version (it’s a release called Christmas Promises) available on major streaming platforms, we also find a song titled “There Goes Santa Claus!”, which sounds nothing like the Christmas carol of the same title. It’s a modern song, complete with all the bells and sounds you’d expect from a festive earworm. We bet this catchy tune will have you mumbling, “Don't forget to keep the door open for tonight/ 'Cause the chimney's gotten a little tight/ Hear the sleigh bells ringing/ There goes Santa Claus!” in no time!
Yunsae, “Jingle Bell Love”
This is another sweet treat for all those who like an upbeat, jazzy Christmas song! The singer is Yunsae (윤새), who gained popularity earlier this year by winning the “Encouragement Award” at NewsPim (뉴스핌)’s Hidden Stage (히든스테이지) singer-songwriter competition and being selected as a showcase artist for MU:CON 2024 by the Korea Creative Content Agency (한국콘텐츠진흥원).
The lively “Jingle Bell Love” combines jazzy piano and warm strings to paint a snowy winter night. Funky brass and soft bell tones add to its festive charm, while its catchy hook and lyrics about the thrill of long-awaited love make it a likely addition to many holiday playlists.
Happy Holidays to you all!
Edited by Rae Lovette