"It's Christmas Time Again" is a Christmas song by the American vocal group

Backstreet Boys Backstreet Boys (often abbreviated as BSB) are an American vocal group consisting of Nick Carter, Howie Dorough, AJ McLean, and cousins Brian Littrell and Kevin Richardson (musician), Kevin Richardson. The band formed in 1993 in Orlando, Flori ...

. The song was written by Backstreet Boys members

Nick Carter Nickolas Gene Carter (born January 28, 1980) is an American singer, the lead vocalist of the vocal group Backstreet Boys, and an alleged rapist. As of 2015, he has released three solo albums, '' Now or Never'', '' I'm Taking Off'' and '' All A ...

and

Howie Dorough Howard Dwaine Dorough (born August 22, 1973), also known as Howie D, is an American singer and actor. He is a member of the pop vocal group Backstreet Boys. Early life Dorough was born August 22, 1973, in Orlando, Florida, where he met his frie ...

along with Mika Guillory and Morgan Taylor Reid in early October 2012. It is the first song by the Backstreet Boys to feature Kevin Richardson's vocals in six years. Richardson left the group in 2006 and rejoined in 2012. It is also the first song released under the group's own label, K-BAHN. It's also their second seasonal song following their original Christmas song "

Christmas Time The Christmas season or the festive season, also known as the holiday season or the holidays, is an annual period generally spanning from November or December to early January. Incorporating Christmas Day and New Year's Day, the various celebrat ...

," which was released 16 years after it. A sneak preview of "It's Christmas Time Again" was posted on the group's official website on November 1, 2012, and AOL Music premiered the whole song on November 5, 2012. "It's Christmas Time Again" was released digitally on November 6, 2012. The Backstreet Boys performed the song publicly for the first time on November 4, 2012, at the taping of

Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade The ''Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade'' is an American television special that airs on Christmas Day annually on ABC, airing live and taped, primarily inside the Magic Kingdom theme park at Walt Disney World in Orlando, Florida, approximately ...

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. On November 14, 2012, the group debuted the song on national TV on '' The Talk'', and on December 19, 2012, they performed the song on ''

Late Night with Jimmy Fallon ''Late Night with Jimmy Fallon'' is an American television talk show broadcast by NBC. The show was the third installment of the '' Late Night'' franchise. Hosted by Jimmy Fallon,

''. In December 2013, the Backstreet Boys performed this song in the annual "

Christmas in Washington ''Christmas in Washington'' was an annual Christmas television special that originated on NBC and later aired on TNT. It ended in 2015 after a 33-year run. Background One of two annual holiday specials produced by George Stevens Jr. (the othe ...

" TV special, which was also attended by the President of the United States

Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II (born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who was the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, he was the first African American president in American history. O ...

and his family. After ten years, it appears on the group's first-holiday album, A Very Backstreet Christmas.

Background

The Backstreet Boys had been working on their eighth studio album since mid-2012. They originally aimed to have something out before the end of the year, but later pushed back the release date for the single to early 2013. When they got the opportunity to perform at Disney Parks Christmas Day Parade, Disney gave them the option to sing their previous original Christmas song "

" or a classic, but they figured they would write a new Christmas song instead which would also serve as a gift to their fans while they're waiting for the new album. Dorough and Carter wrote the song in early October 2012 with Morgan Taylor Reid and Mika Guillory in about two hours. Within a week, they had the song demoed, written, and recorded by the rest of the Backstreet Boys members. They then presented it to Disney, who quickly approved it.

Critical reception

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gave the song a positive review and 5 out of 5 stars, describing the song as a "timeless Christmas anthem" with a smooth acoustic guitar build-up, resounding bells, and soaring five-part harmonies. ''

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'' also gave the song a positive review, noting that the song has a catchy tune, a little "boy band hook," and a five-part harmony.

Charts

The song peaked at No. 1 on ''

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 advertis ...

s Holiday Digital Songs chart in November 2012.

Music video

The music video for this song is animated and premiered on Artist Direct. It features the members of the Backstreet Boys as cartoon characters. It follows the story of a couple who grow old together and how they spend Christmas over the years.

References

{{authority control Backstreet Boys songs 2012 singles American Christmas songs Songs written by Nick Carter (musician) 2012 songs Songs written by Morgan Taylor Reid