The snow has arrived in Kingston, and with it comes end-of-semester assignments and exams. But we should keep our chins up: the winter break is right around the corner.

To get into the holiday spirit, a few Journal staff members shared their favourite festive songs.

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The best holiday song of all time is irrefutably Justin Bieber’s “Mistletoe.” It has everything you could want: romance, snow, the same line repeated 10 times. It’s catchy, it’s pretty secular (aside from Christmas-y traditions), and it’s always playing on a radio station somewhere during the winter months.

I was very anti-Bieber during his heyday, so this is my apology: I’m sorry I was so dismissive, Justin. “Mistletoe” is a masterpiece.

This December, I should be playin’ in the winter snow, but I know I’m going to be listening to “Mistletoe.”

—Shelby Talbot, Lifestyle Editor

“All I Want for Christmas is You” (the My Chemical Romance cover), is the clear winner.

After working in a grocery store for four years during high school, I’ve gone through several phases of loving and hating this pop-y Christmas classic. While I’ve come to terms with the song again and tend to enjoy it the first few times I hear the tune again each winter season, I find myself liking the My Chemical Romance cover the best.

As someone who never passes up a good chance to hate on the Christmas season, this rendition adds the perfect amount of grit, making it a bop that even the Grinch would enjoy.

—Cassidy McMackon, Assistant News Editor

My favourite Christmas song is probably “It’s Me and You (This Christmas)” by Elijah Woods and Jamie Fine.

It’s a pretty jolly song, so I spent a lot of my exam period last December listening to it to calm my pre-exam jitters. Exams ended and I remember taking the Megabus home for the break, and it played right as I saw my mom’s car arriving in the parking lot to pick me up.

I listen to it year-round when I’m feeling a little homesick, and it reminds me of the feeling of getting home for a long break from school.

—Jodie Grieve, Photo Editor

“O Tannenbaum”—A Charlie Brown Christmas.

Two reasons.

One: from the moment you open your advent calendar to when Santa comes poking down the chimney, this track will always help you unwind during the holidays. Be it waking up, making a home-cooked meal, or walking through your childhood neighbourhood, Charlie Brown’s piano will unfailingly soothe the soul, whether it’s needed or not. It’s delicate and beautiful—the musical definition of Christmas.

Two: Charlie Brown. Christmas wouldn’t be Christmas without poor Charlie, Linus and his putrid blanket, and Lucy’s awful but, in some ways relatable, attitude. She and I wouldn’t get along too well—it takes a special mentality to spout pop psychology for profit to a clearly ailing Charlie Brown—but we also both want the same thing for Christmas: real estate. So, there’s that.

This song is the backdrop for every ounce of heart-warming and hilarious beauty A Charlie Brown Christmas has to offer, and each December would be nothing without it.

—Matt Scace, Managing Editor