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When will radio B101 and SiriusXM launch holiday music programs?

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When will radio B101 and SiriusXM launch holiday music programs?

Tom Haines
| Bucks County Courier Times

You’ve been waiting for some holiday cheer, but 80-degree fall days mixed with a barrage of political campaign ads were like a Scrooge cocktail with a dash of Grinch and a dash of Heat Miser.

Well, there’s finally a November chill in the air and the election is behind us. Time to turn your attention to the winter holidays.

So, why not start listening to Christmas music? After all, it’s never too early to embrace the holiday spirit.

If you are one of those people who demand that we not rush things, stop reading. But if you’re ready to ‘Deck the Halls’ or do a little ‘Christmas Wrapping’ then this is for you.

When will SiriusXM start playing Christmas music?

Technically it never stops. According to the website, SiriusXM’s “official holiday music channel, Holiday Traditions (Ch. 602), is available 24 hours a day, 365 days a year to the biggest Christmas fans out there. You’ll hear traditional holiday recordings from the ’40s,” 50s and 60s from artists such as Bing Crosby, Andy Williams, Ray Conniff and Nat “King” Cole.”

But if you want the big rollout, you’re in luck. It’s already happening.

In 2023, SiriusXM’s holiday music lineup began on November 1. This year it offers 26 festive channels, including the new Jimmy Fallon’s Holiday Seasoning Radio.

SiriusXM Christmas Channels 2024 schedule

Here’s the list of channels Sirius XM will offer this year, and how they’re described on the site.

Holidays from the 70s/80s: Popular sing-along hits from the 70s and 80s.
Acoustic Christmas: A warm mix of acoustic holiday tunes.
Christmas atmosphere: Christmas music and family holiday favorites from contemporary Christian artists heard on The Message.
Cool Jazz Christmas: Christmas classics from the greatest contemporary and smooth jazz instrumentalists and vocalists.
Rural Christmas: Generations of country artists come together to perform both classic and contemporary holiday songs.
Quality mark radio: Timeless Christmas music and carols that celebrate the joy of the season.
Chill-out during the holidays: Downtempo, relaxing electronic holiday favorites.
Holiday instrumentals: String, piano and orchestral versions of seasonal favorites designed to set the holiday spirit.
Holiday doll: Christmas carols and holiday favorites performed by the greatest classical artists of all time.
Holiday Traditions: Traditional holiday recordings from the 40s, 50s and 60s.
Holiday with Jessi and friends: Jessi Cruickshank and friends bring you a festive mix of comedy, stories and music.
Holly: Modern holiday hits
Jimmy Fallon Holiday Spice Radio: A mix of holiday classics picked by Jimmy Fallon, funny stories and more.
Jingle Jamz: A mix of R&B and hip-hop artists from the ’90s to today singing and rapping about the holidays.
Merry Christmas: Cheerful, energetic holiday hits and feel-good sing-along songs.
Christmas for children: Songs the whole family will love, from Christmas classics to today’s tinkliest tunes.
Mannheim steamroller: Mannheim Steamroller’s signature blend of symphonic, new age and rock-inspired Christmas music.
Navidad: Latin American holiday music and traditional sounds
New Year Nation: Your ultimate cheerful multi-format collection with the biggest hits of the year that will be heard in 2025. Doesn’t start until December 27th.
Noël Incontournable: French-language Christmas classics and contemporary Christmas hits from the 60s to the present.
Radio Hanukkah: An extensive collection of Hanukkah music, prayers and daily reflections. Starts December 24th
Real jazz holiday: Swinging Christmas carols played by classical and contemporary jazz artists.
Rocking Christmas: Classic Christmas songs that rock, including hits, rarities and live songs.
Sleep Christmas: Meditative versions of classic Christmas melodies.
Smokey’s Vacation Soul Town: Smokey Robinson plays soulful holiday favorites from the ’60s, ’70s and ’80s.
Trans-Siberian Orchestra: Trans-Siberian Orchestra’s iconic Christmas discography, exclusive concert recordings and more.

Which radio stations play Christmas music?

iHeartRadio also offers some Christmas music options.

There’s the classic iHeart Christmas station, along with a few more specialty channels like:

iHeart Christmas
Arctic Radio
iHeartChristmas Classics
iHeartCountry Christmas
iHeartChristmas Rock
Holy Christmas

View the full list at https://www.iheart.com/live/iheart-christmas-4596/.

Spotify is another great option for streaming Christmas music.

Here are some playlists to check out:

Christmas classics: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/37i9dQZF1DX6R7QUWePReA
Christmas music: top classic songs: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/5l6rFyXN63iINVsbaBObag

There are MANY more options, you can find them all here: https://open.spotify.com/search/christmas/playlists.

If you’re looking local radio stationstune in to these channels:

B101 Philly (Philadelphia)
NEW 102.7 (New York)

If you are out of range, you can find these stations at audacy.com.

Sounds of the Season on Xfinity

If you’re an Xfinity cable subscriber, you can listen to holiday classics on Sounds of the Seasons, which played Christmas music earlier in November. It’s channel 441.

Joe Mason of the Asbury Park Press contributed to this report.

Vaseline4 days ago

8 3 minutes read