The countdown to Christmas is fully underway now, as there’s only a few weeks to go until the big day.
And in the run-up to December 25, there’s no better way to get into the festive spirit than listening to your favourite Christmas songs. Whether that’s in the car, while you’re walking around the shops or when you’re putting up the decorations at home, there’s no escaping festive tunes.
New Christmas songs are released every year, but you really can’t beat the classics that never seem to get old no matter how many times that you hear them.
One that you’ll often hear in your favourite Christmas party playlist is Rockin’ Around the Christmas Tree. Catchy, fun and instantly recognisable, the song was first released all the way back in 1958 – but still remains one of the most popular festive tunes today.
However, fans of the song have been left ‘mind-blown’ after discovering an astonishing fact about who sings it.
When thinking about the tune, most of us will likely recognise the version performed by American singer Brenda Lee. This is the original recording, and is the one featured in the famous Home Alone scene where Kevin throws a fake party in the house to drive the burglars away from breaking in.
But TikToker Jasmine Chiswell said she was ‘in shock’ after discovering that singer Brenda was a lot younger than you might think when she recorded it.
Her distinctive voice and style of singing brings to mind somebody with decades of vocal experience. But she was actually only 13 years old when she recorded it – a fact that has left people dumbfounded.
In the TikTok video, captions across the screen read: “When I remember that this song was sung by a 13 year old and not an 80 year old…” with Jasmine looking very shocked indeed.
Despite being released all those years ago, it actually hit the number one spot in the charts in American last year, 65 years after it originally came out. Brenda, who was 78 at the time, became the oldest person to top the US singles chart – a record previously held by Louis Armstrong.
In the video’s comments, people were equally as shocked as Jasmine about this fact. One person said: “Blows my mind every time!!”
Another commented: “What!?!?! I thought she was in her 30s when she sang!”
Someone else couldn’t believe it, writing: “No way she wasn’t at least 40.”
And a fourth added: “Forever my fav Christmas song.”