BTS’s V and Fifty Fifty make Billboard best new Christmas song list

The list comprises staff picks by Billboard and includes new Christmas recordings from modern artists spanning pop, R&B, hip-hop, K-pop, jazz and rock.

V ranked on the list with his song “White Christmas,” a duet in collaboration with Bing Crosby (1903-1977). “White Christmas” was made by taking an old recording of Bing Crosby’s “White Christmas,” using voice-isolating technology and fashioning it into a duet with V. The song was released on Dec. 6, presenting a “revamped version of one of music’s most enduring holiday classics with the two cross-generational stars’ silky voices blending in perfect tandem,” according to Billboard.

V enlisted in the army on Dec. 12 last year and is currently serving in the military. He is scheduled to complete his service on June 10 next year. Meanwhile, V and singer Park Hyo-shin recently released a duet titled “Winter Ahead” on Nov. 29.

Fifty Fifty secured a spot on the list with its first winter season song “Naughty or Nice,” a B-side track of its digital EP “Winter Glow” released on Dec. 9. Billboard described the song as a combination of “fun K-pop with snazzy retro jazz vibes” and “a pace-changing banger that finds the girl group taking a page out of Santa Claus’ book and asking the eternal question: Are you naughty or nice?”

Fifty Fifty recently performed on the radio channels of American broadcasters PIX11 and SiriusXM. It recently finished its first inaugural U.S. tour, “Love Sprinkle Tour in USA.”

Other notable songs that made the list are “You for Christmas” by Kelly Clarkson, “Santa is Me” by Coco Jones, “Santa Claus Is Coming to Town” by Lady Gaga, “O Holy Night” by Raye, “Santa Baby” by Laufey, “Xmas Time” by GloRilla and Kehlani, “Merry Christmas, Please Don’t Call” by Bleachers, “Merry Nothin” by Jessie Reyez and “Holidays” by Conan Gray.

BY HAHN JANE [kjdculture@joongang.co.kr]