Brenda Lee‘s rockabilly smash “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” has been recognized as a holiday classic for decades. Monday, in light of the song’s resurgence, Spotify and the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) honored it with plaque presentations at a ceremony in Nashville.
Lee’s plaque from Spotify celebrates “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” reaching one billion streams on the platform. It’s the only holiday song by a female country artist to enter Spotify’s Billions Club. The song is well on its way to a second billion; it currently sits at No. 1 on Spotify’s US songs chart.
The RIAA recognized “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” reaching 7x Platinum status, which makes it the second highest certified Christmas title in RIAA history. Last year the song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Hot 100 for the first time, 65 years after its release, making 79-year-old Lee the oldest artist to ever top the chart. It’s only the third holiday song to reach No. 1 on the chart, following Dave Seville’s “The Chipmunk Song” and Mariah Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You.”
After signing to Decca Records at age 11, Lee released a series of beloved hits including “Sweet Nothin’s,” “All Alone Am I,” “Break it to Me Gently,” and “I’m Sorry.” From 1960 to 1962, she racked up nine consecutive Hot 100 top 10 singles. Lee’s legendary career includes milestones such as 100 million in global album sales and performances alongside fellow icons like the Beatles (who opened for Lee) and Elvis Presley (who made his Grand Ole Opry debut on the same night as Lee).
“Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree” was written by Johnny Marks, the songwriter behind other holiday classics such as “Rudolph the Red-Nosed Reindeer” and “A Holly Jolly Christmas.” Marks specifically chose Lee, who was not yet a teenager at the time, to record “Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree.” As Lee once explained it, “I had not had a lot of success in records, but for some reason he heard me and wanted me to do it. And I did.”
Listen to the best Christmas songs on Apple Music and Spotify.
