Top10 Worldwide Music Selection From Concerty - December 2022

Brenda Lee - Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree (UNITED STATES)

Given it was December, many classic Christmas tunes dominated the charts instead of hot new releases. Take the largest market, the United States, for example, where Brenda Lee’s 1958 song topped the Spotify chart for last month.

It’s a pleasant, instantly recognizable little tune from one of the few female stars of the Rock N’ Roll era. Thankfully, Lee is still with us to see the continued success of her work. She also celebrated her 78th birthday this past month, not just Christmas.

Mabel Matiz - Fırtınadayım (TURKEY)

However, as expected, not all countries shared the absolute Christmas cheer with the rest of the world. One of these countries would be Turkey (with a population that is over 90% Muslim), where Mabel Matiz’s 2018 single "Fırtınadayım" still managed to chart high, despite not being a seasonal classic.

The lyrics are rather esoteric. If you take a literal translation, it’s about the artist being in a huge storm. But what did he mean by that? Even his native Turkish fans aren’t sure, evidenced by the high volume of Google searches about the lyrics in Turkey. You can take a listen below, and if you speak Turkish, you can also take your best guess.

NewJeans - Ditto (SOUTH KOREA)

Meanwhile, even further East in South Korea, a new girl group is gaining steam. The K-pop band NewJeans was only formed in 2022, and they have already come out with a banger, “Ditto”. The ethereal pop track chartered high not just in their home country of South Korea, but in many other Asian countries as well. There’s a good chance K-pop fans around the world will hear from them again soon.

Quevedo - Playa Del Inglés feat. Myke Towers (SPAIN)

Spanish rapper Quevedo also hit big last month, with his new release “Playa Del Inglés”. The title translates to “English Beach”, while the song includes a feature from rapper Myke Towers all the way from Puerto Rico. The two artists really show off their chops as singers, rather than rappers, on this reggaeton track.

Big Nuz - Ngeke feat. DJ Yamza (SOUTH AFRICA)

This one is for those music fans who appreciate hearing some unique sounds from time to time. While Big Nuz’s new single may be something strange for European ears, it certainly found its audience in his homeland, South Africa, where many Spotify users enjoyed it quite a bit. You can take a listen for yourself below. You’ll also hear a guest gesture by DJ Yamza. The music video is uniquely African as well, with many of the actors being dressed up as Zulu warriors.

Mariah Carey - All I Want For Christmas is You (FRANCE)

Unlike the countries above, France can’t be accused of not being in the holiday spirit. Songs like Wham’s “Last Christmas” or Ariana Grande’s “Santa Tell Me” were on top of their Spotify list. And of course, so was this classic 1994 holiday pop banger “All I Want for Christmas Is You”.

It’s hard to find anybody who hasn’t heard the American R&B/pop superstar’s most iconic song, and that’s especially true around this time of the year. Evidently, France wasn’t the only country where it charted high last month. Mariah Carey is widely considered to be one of the most talented vocalists of her time - no wonder she’s had a successful career for over 30 years now.

Maria Mena - Home For Christmas (NORWAY)

Keeping with the holiday theme, we’ve got “Home For Christmas” by Maria Mena from Norway. Despite the English title and lyrics, the artist is actually Norwegian. She’s been singing in English since the beginning of her career in 2002, with all of her singles ever released being titled in English. This track is from 2010, but always gets a bump in plays around Christmas time in her country up North.

Ozuna - Hey Mor (GUATEMALA) feat. Feid

We have our second artist from Puerto Rico on our list with Ozuna, as well as the first one from Colombia, Feid, who was featured on this track. “Hey Mor” really popped off last month in many Latin American countries, including Guatemala in Central America. Ozuna put out his latest album, “OzuTochi” in October last year, this new track of his is off of that record. It’s also linked below for your listening pleasure.

Musketeers - พิจารณา feat. MAIYARAP (THAILAND)

In Thailand, the local pop rock band Musketeers was among the most popular acts, with their recent single “พิจารณา”, which has the alternative English title “Consider”. This is the titular track off of their 2022 album, which features Thai rapper MAIYARAP.

Michael Bublé - It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas (CANADA)

Since it’s our December list, let’s open and close with a Christmas track. In Canada, the pop/jazz singer Michael Bublé’s 2011 rendition of the 1951 classic “It's Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas” was played a lot to get into the holiday mood. The original version was written by Meredith Wilson, best known for his 1957 Broadway hit musical “The Music Man”.

Bublé’s 2011 Christmas album is actually the best selling one in his discography. It sold a whopping 16 million copies worldwide. While he hasn’t come even close to emulating those sales figures since, he also knows that he can still expect a nice bump in royalty payments around this time of the year.

Please make sure to listen through our Spotify playlist we made of these songs. It is bound to get you back into the Christmas spirit. Here it is, for your listening pleasure.