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Singer Brandy is opening up about her favorite Christmas album while detailing three of her family’s holiday traditions.
The 44-year-old singer sat down for an exclusive interview with Billboard published on December 13. During the conversation, Brandy shared three of her family’s holiday traditions.
The first, she says, is spending quality time with her relatives.
“So we get together and celebrate memories and dance and play Spades and just do a lot for Christmas together as a family,” Brandy explained. “Quality time is key.”
As the conversation continued, Brandy explained that her mother only cooks twice a year. Therefore, she has to be thankful for the occasion and savor the moment.
“It just makes us appreciate her food so much more — so we love her dressing, we love her sweet potato pie,” Brandy continued. “Because my mom starts cooking on Christmas Day, we’re just all in the kitchen, soaking it all up.”
Before the singer wrapped up her favorite holiday traditions, she revealed that her third and final one involves listening to a fellow artist’s Christmas album.
“I’m going to tell you my favorite Christmas album, and I probably shouldn’t be saying this because I have a Christmas album out,” Brandy explained. “But, besides ‘Christmas with Brandy,’ my favorite Christmas album that I play over and over and over… is Mariah Carey.”
The singer explained that her favorite holiday songs from Carey are ‘O Holy Night,‘ ‘Joy To The World,’ and ‘All I Want For Christmas Is You.’
According to Variety, Brandy released her Christmas album in early November. At the time, she sat down exclusively with the outlet to share what prompted the release.
“I’ve had seven albums out and I always wanted to do a Christmas project, and my fans have always requested it, so it just seemed like the right time to do it,” Brandy shared. “I felt that I was in the spirit, I was in the mood and it just came together perfectly. My team thought it was a great idea, so I’m here with a Christmas album…”
According to Billboard, the project features classic holiday jingles such as ‘Deck the Halls,’ ‘Jingle Bell Rock,’ and ‘Someday At Christmas.’ Additionally, it even showcases vocals from Brandy’s daughter, Sy’Rai Smith.
“It was so fun working with her, it doesn’t even feel like work. We just love our bond and how we work together in the studio. We love the song that we recorded. We just thought the melody was so great. I’m just so proud to see her coming into her own and creating her own lane and really putting forth the effort to become the singer that she’s always dreamed to be,” Brandy told Variety in November.
Watch as the singer shares more about recording with Sy’Rai below.
