"Under the Christmas Lights" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter

Gwen Stefani Gwen Renée Stefani (; born October 3, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter, fashion designer and actress. She is a co-founder, lead vocalist, and the primary songwriter of the band No Doubt, whose singles include "Just a Girl", "Spiderwebs ...

for her fourth studio album, ''

You Make It Feel Like Christmas ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'' is the fourth studio album by American singer-songwriter Gwen Stefani. The album, which is Stefani's first full-length Christmas-themed album, was released on October 6, 2017, by Interscope Records. The record ...

'' (2017). It was written by Stefani,

Justin Tranter Justin Drew Tranter (born June 16, 1980) is an American songwriter, singer, and activist. Frequently co-writing with Julia Michaels, Tranter has written songs for artists such as Britney Spears, Gwen Stefani, Linkin Park, Kelly Clarkson, Selena ...

, and

busbee Michael James Ryan Busbee (June 18, 1976 – September 29, 2019), known professionally as Busbee, was an American songwriter, record producer, publisher, record label executive, and multi-instrumentalist. He is known for his work in both po ...

, who co-produced the song with

Eric Valentine Eric Dodd, known professionally as Eric Valentine, is an American record producer who began his career as drummer and producer in the heavy metal band T-Ride. He subsequently produced albums for artists such as Good Charlotte, Lostprophets, Tak ...

. The song was released alongside the rest of the album on October 6, 2017 through

Interscope Records Interscope Records is an American record label owned by Universal Music Group through its Interscope Geffen A&M imprint. Founded in late 1990 by Jimmy Iovine and Ted Field as a $20 million joint venture with Atlantic Records of Warner Mus ...

. Details about the track first emerged in August 2017, when the song title appeared as a registered work on BMI and GEMA. "Under the Christmas Lights" is a pop and

Christmas song Christmas music comprises a variety of genres of music regularly performed or heard around the Christmas season. Music associated with Christmas may be purely instrumental, or, in the case of carols or songs, may employ lyrics whose subject ma ...

with a

doo-wop Doo-wop (also spelled doowop and doo wop) is a genre of rhythm and blues music that originated in African-American communities during the 1940s, mainly in the large cities of the United States, including New York, Philadelphia, Pittsburgh, Chica ...

melody and romantic lyrics. In terms of critical reception, the song was described as silly but ultimately relatable, lyrically. The song entered ''

Billboard A billboard (also called a hoarding in the UK and many other parts of the world) is a large outdoor advertising structure (a billing board), typically found in high-traffic areas such as alongside busy roads. Billboards present large advertise ...

''s Holiday Digital Song Sales chart in the United States at number 16. It also appeared on the Rádio Top 100 airplay chart in Slovakia. Stefani performed the song twice live; one performance occurred on ''

The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy Fallon'' is an American late-night talk show hosted by Jimmy Fallon that airs on NBC. The show premiered on February 17, 2014, and is produced by Broadway Video and Universal Television. It is the seventh incar ...

'', where she was also the episode's guest. She also sang the song on her 2017

television special A television special (often TV special, or rarely television spectacular) is a standalone television show which may also temporarily interrupt episodic programming normally scheduled for a given time slot. Some specials provide a full range of ent ...

, ''

Gwen Stefani's You Make It Feel Like Christmas ''Gwen Stefani's You Make It Feel Like Christmas'' is a Christmas television special that aired on December 12, 2017, in the United States on NBC. Production On October 6, 2017, Stefani released her fourth studio album, ''You Make It Feel Like C ...

''.

Background and release

Following the release of her third studio album, ''

This Is What the Truth Feels Like ''This Is What the Truth Feels Like'' is the third studio album by American singer Gwen Stefani. It was released on March 18, 2016, by Interscope Records. Initially, the album was scheduled to be released in December 2014 with Stefani working wit ...

'' (2016), Stefani announced in July 2017 that she had plans to release new music by the end of the year. She did not provide further details, but several publications speculated that Stefani's new material would be Christmas-related due to song titles such as "Under the Christmas Lights", "

Christmas Eve Christmas Eve is the evening or entire day before Christmas Day, the festival commemorating the birth of Jesus. Christmas Day is observed around the world, and Christmas Eve is widely observed as a full or partial holiday in anticipation ...

", and "

" becoming registered on two music databases, BMI and GEMA. On September 18 that year, she took to her social media accounts and claimed that she "had something big planned for the holidays", and that more information would follow. The next day, Stefani revealed her next studio album, ''

'', and revealed that the title track would be released as the

lead single A lead single (also known as a debut single) is the first single to be released from a studio album by an artist or a band, usually before the album itself is released and also occasionally on the same day of the album's release date. Release s ...

. Stefani spent much of summer 2017 residing with her fiancé American singer

Blake Shelton Blake Tollison Shelton (born June 18, 1976) is an American country music singer and television personality. In 2001, he made his debut with the single " Austin". The lead-off single from his self-titled debut album, "Austin" spent five weeks at ...

at his

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

estate. She had already began developing ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'', and went on a run one morning in search of inspiration. She started envisioning what her own original Christmas song would sound like, and began writing the lyrics to what would later become the album's first song, "Christmas Eve". "Under the Christmas Lights" was written by Stefani, Tranter, and busbee, with busbee and

serving as producers. The song was released for digital download and

streaming Streaming media is multimedia that is delivered and consumed in a continuous manner from a source, with little or no intermediate storage in network elements. ''Streaming'' refers to the delivery method of content, rather than the content it ...

on October 6, 2017, by

, along with the rest of ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas''.References regarding the release of ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'' by Gwen Stefani on Apple Music: * * * * * "Under the Christmas Lights" serves as one of the album's six original tracks and appears as the eighth track on the standard edition.

Composition and lyrics

"Under the Christmas Lights" is a pop and Christmas song with a

melody. Many instruments were used in the production of the song, including bass,

bass trombone The bass trombone (german: Bassposaune, it, trombone basso) is the bass instrument in the trombone family of brass instruments. Modern instruments are pitched in the same B♭ as the tenor trombone but with a larger bore, bell and mouthpiece to ...

, drums, electric guitar,

flugelhorn The flugelhorn (), also spelled fluegelhorn, flugel horn, or flügelhorn, is a brass instrument that resembles the trumpet and cornet but has a wider, more conical bore. Like trumpets and cornets, most flugelhorns are pitched in B, though some ...

, flute, piano, piccolo,

timpani Timpani (; ) or kettledrums (also informally called timps) are musical instruments in the percussion family. A type of drum categorised as a hemispherical drum, they consist of a membrane called a head stretched over a large bowl traditionall ...

, trombone, and trumpet. The staff at ''

Rolling Stone ''Rolling Stone'' is an American monthly magazine that focuses on music, politics, and popular culture. It was founded in San Francisco, San Francisco, California, in 1967 by Jann Wenner, and the music critic Ralph J. Gleason. It was first kno ...

'' wrote that it sounds like a

1960s File:1960s montage.png, Clockwise from top left: U.S. soldiers during the Vietnam War; the Beatles led the British Invasion of the U.S. music market; a half-a-million people participate in the 1969 Woodstock Festival; Neil Armstrong and Buzz ...

holiday song, in response to Stefani who said the parent album was inspired by the Christmas music of

Cher Cher (; born Cherilyn Sarkisian; May 20, 1946) is an American singer, actress and television personality. Often referred to by the media as the Honorific nicknames in popular music, "Goddess of Pop", she has been described as embodying female ...

Phil Spector Harvey Phillip Spector (born Harvey Philip Spector; December 26, 1939January 16, 2021) was an American record producer and songwriter, best known for his innovative recording practices and entrepreneurship in the 1960s, followed decades later by ...

, and

the Osmonds The Osmonds were an American family music group who reached the height of their fame in the early to mid-1970s. The group had its best-known configurations as a quartet (billed as the Osmond Brothers) and a quintet (as the Osmonds). The group ...

. "Under the Christmas Lights" is set in the

time signature The time signature (also known as meter signature, metre signature, or measure signature) is a notational convention used in Western musical notation to specify how many beats (pulses) are contained in each measure (bar), and which note value ...

of common time, and has an average

tempo In musical terminology, tempo (Italian, 'time'; plural ''tempos'', or ''tempi'' from the Italian plural) is the speed or pace of a given piece. In classical music, tempo is typically indicated with an instruction at the start of a piece (often ...

of 120

beats per minute Beat, beats or beating may refer to: Common uses * Patrol, or beat, a group of personnel assigned to monitor a specific area ** Beat (police), the territory that a police officer patrols ** Gay beat, an area frequented by gay men * Battery ( ...

. The

key Key or The Key may refer to: Common meanings * Key (cryptography), a piece of information that controls the operation of a cryptography algorithm * Key (lock), device used to control access to places or facilities restricted by a lock * Key (map ...

of the song is in

D-flat major D-flat major (or the key of D-flat) is a major scale based on D, consisting of the pitches D, E, F, G, A, B and C. Its key signature has five flats. It is enharmonically equivalent to C-sharp major. The D-flat major scale is: : Its r ...

and it follows the setup of verse-chorus-verse-chorus. Stefani's vocal range advances in the chord progressions of C–G–A#–F in the verses and Am–F–C–G in the chorus. The track was mixed by Dave Clauss and engineered by Valentine. Jonathan Sterling served as assistant engineer, busbee and Dave Way served as lead vocals engineers, and were assisted by Peter Chun. Laura Mace, Monet Owens, and Dolly Sparks provided background vocals for the track with arrangements from Grace Potter. Lyrically, the song mentions seasonal activities, such as wrapping gifts and beginning traditions with loved ones. She opens the song with "Late night, gotta do the wrapping / I'm running out of

tape Tape or Tapes may refer to: Material A long, narrow, thin strip of material (see also Ribbon (disambiguation): Adhesive tapes * Adhesive tape, any of many varieties of backing materials coated with an adhesive *Athletic tape, pressure-sensitiv ...

". With the six original songs on ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'', many critics believed their lyrical content was inspired by Stefani's relationship with

country A country is a distinct part of the world, such as a state, nation, or other political entity. It may be a sovereign state or make up one part of a larger state. For example, the country of Japan is an independent, sovereign state, while the ...

singer

. In "Under the Christmas Lights", she sings "When it's cold outside, put your arms around me / And we'll countdown to December 25 / I thank God I got you 'cause you're all that I need / Under the Christmas lights, baby you and I".

Reception

Sal Cinquemani from ''

Slant Magazine ''Slant Magazine'' is an American online publication that features reviews of movies, music, TV, DVDs, theater, and video games, as well as interviews with actors, directors, and musicians. The site covers various film festivals like the New York ...

'' said that "Under the Christmas Lights" in addition to a few other tracks, made up the "mixed bag" of songs on ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas''; he referred to the song as silly, but equally relatable in terms of lyrical content. Alan Sculley, a writer for the ''

Montgomery Advertiser The ''Montgomery Advertiser'' is a daily newspaper and news website located in Montgomery, Alabama. It was founded in 1829. History The newspaper began publication in 1829 as ''The Planter's Gazette.'' Its first editor was Moseley Baker. It ...

'', included the track with "

My Gift Is You "My Gift Is You" is a song recorded by American singer and songwriter Gwen Stefani for her fourth studio album, ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'' (2017). It was released digitally on October 6, 2017, along with the rest of the parent album, t ...

" as two of the successful original cuts off of the album. During the release week of ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'', "Under the Christmas Lights" appeared on ''

''s Holiday Digital Song Sales component chart in the United States. On the issue dated October 27, 2017, it peaked at number 16, becoming the fifth best-selling song from the album that week. In Slovakia, the song was sent out for airplay rotation, prompting it to enter the Rádio Hot 100 chart. During the final week of 2017, it debuted at number 83 and as the tenth-highest new entry; "Under the Christmas Lights" was also one of three songs by Stefani to chart that particular week, with "You Make It Feel Like Christmas" ranked at number 33 and her cover of " White Christmas" at number 86.

Live performances

"Under the Christmas Lights" was performed twice by Stefani during the 2017

holiday season The Christmas season or the festive season (also known in some countries as the holiday season or the holidays) is an annually recurring period recognized in many Western and other countries that is generally considered to run from late November ...

. Her first appearance was on ''

'' on November 21, 2017, when she was also a special guest. She was interviewed by

Jimmy Fallon James Thomas Fallon (born September 19, 1974) is an American comedian, television host, actor, and writer. He is known for his work in television as a cast member on ''Saturday Night Live'' and as the host of the late-night talk show ''The Ton ...

, who asked her questions about recording ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas'' among others. She concluded the show by performing the track, and was accompanied by

the Roots The Roots are an American hip hop band formed in 1987 by Tariq "Black Thought" Trotter and Ahmir "Questlove" Thompson in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. The Roots serve as the house band on NBC's ''The Tonight Show Starring Jimmy F ...

, the

house band A house band is a group of musicians, often centrally organized by a band leader, who regularly play at an establishment. It is widely used to refer both to the bands who work on entertainment programs on television or radio, and to bands which ...

for the television series. On her

Christmas Christmas is an annual festival commemorating Nativity of Jesus, the birth of Jesus, Jesus Christ, observed primarily on December 25 as a religious and cultural celebration among billions of people Observance of Christmas by country, around t ...

, ''

'', which was broadcast on

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

on December 12, 2017, she performed "Under the Christmas Lights" as the sixth song on the set list. She wore a "

Nutcracker A nutcracker is a tool designed to open nuts by cracking their shells. There are many designs, including levers, screws, and ratchets. The lever version is also used for cracking lobster and crab shells. A decorative version portrays a person w ...

-inspired uniform, complete with green sleeves and red bows, plus a little bit of punk flair with plaid add-ons around her waist, fishnets and thigh-high boots"; Emily Krauser from ''

Entertainment Tonight ''Entertainment Tonight'' (or simply ''ET'') is an American Broadcast syndication, first-run syndicated news broadcasting news magazine, newsmagazine program that is distributed by CBS Media Ventures throughout the United States and owned by Para ...

'' enjoyed the performance, writing "she gave little drummer boys everywhere a run for their money". The performance from the televised special was uploaded to Stefani's official

Vevo Vevo ( , an abbreviation for "Video Evolution", stylized as VEVO until 2013) is an American multinational video hosting service, best known for providing music videos to YouTube. The service is also available as an app on selected smart TVs, di ...

account on December 30, 2017.

Credits and personnel

Credits adapted from the liner notes of ''You Make It Feel Like Christmas''. * Gwen Stefaniwriter, lead vocals * Justin Tranterwriter * busbeewriter, production * Eric Valentineproduction * Laura Macebackground vocals * Monet Owensbackground vocals * Dolly Sparksbackground vocals * Sean Hurleybass * Ryan Dragonbass trombone * Aaron Sterlingdrums * Greg Campelectric guitar, hand claps * John Storieelectric guitar, hand claps * Stewart Coleflugelhorn, trumpet * David Moyerflute, piccolo * Matthew Mustypercussion, timpani, hand claps * Patrick Warrenpiano * Danny Levintrombone * Jamie Hovorkatrumpet

Charts

References

External links

* {{Authority control 2017 songs American Christmas songs Doo-wop songs Gwen Stefani songs Songs written by busbee Songs written by Justin Tranter Songs written by Gwen Stefani