Kylie Minogue lands Christmas No.1 with XMAS, ending Wham!'s Last Christmas run
Australian icon ends a 37-year wait for festive chart-topper as Amazon streams lift XMAS to the top ahead of Wham!'s Last Christmas
Kylie Minogue has claimed the Christmas No.1 single in the United Kingdom with XMAS, beating Wham!'s Last Christmas to the top spot. The win comes 37 years after her first UK No.1 with I Should Be So Lucky and marks her first Christmas No.1. Wham!’s Last Christmas had been the favorite after two consecutive wins in 2023 and 2024, but Minogue’s track prevailed this year.
XMAS was propelled by exclusive streaming on Amazon. It is not on Spotify or Apple Music, and industry insiders say the Amazon-exclusive model helped push the track up the chart as streams counted toward sales. A commentator noted that Amazon’s Alexa-driven listening contributed to XMAS' high streaming totals.
The top five this week saw Mariah Carey’s All I Want For Christmas landing at No.3 and Brenda Lee’s Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree at No.4, with Together For Palestine’s Lullaby entering at No.5 as the week’s best-selling new track. Lullaby is a charity single featuring roughly 15 artists, including Neneh Cherry, Brian Eno and Leigh-Anne Pinnock of Little Mix, and was released to raise funds for Gazan children.
Minogue’s win follows a high-profile promotional push across social media and television. In the days leading up to the chart close, she posted dance clips of herself performing XMAS in a Mrs. Christmas persona on Instagram, TikTok and X. She also performed the song on last Sunday’s edition of Strictly Come Dancing, drawing millions of viewers and further fueling streams.
The chart’s evolving methodology also factors into the result. With fewer physical sales, chart compilers now count 100 streams as a single sale, a shift that has favored established hits and streaming-led tracks. While some observers see the new approach as a shift toward algorithms, industry insiders stress that it reflects changing consumer behavior rather than a surrender to automation.
Kylie Minogue has not ruled out further chart success. Sources close to the singer say she is planning a new album, taking advantage of renewed popularity and an eager fanbase. Even as she enjoys Christmas No.1 glory, the wider arc of her career appears to be entering a fresh phase, described by industry insiders as a renaissance.