"Christmas Without You" is a song by American singer-songwriter Ava Max, released on October 15, 2020, through Atlantic Records. It was written by Max, Jesse Aicher, Sam Martin, and producers Gian Stone and Cirkut. A Christmas pop song, it contains a piano, jingle bell and bassline, alongside Max's melisma and whistle register vocals. "Christmas Without You" received generally favorable reviews from music critics, who praised the Christmas sound and Max's vocal performance. The song peaked at number 28 on both the US Adult Contemporary chart and in Germany. A music video was released in 2022, which depicts Max in front of a winter-themed background.
Composition Musically, "Christmas Without You" is a Christmas pop song, which is bouncy, upbeat, and has a retro influence. The song begins with piano chords, which transitions into the first chorus with jingle bell sounds. During the next verse, a bassline is used with a basic beat and harmony, before leading to the second chorus. Max uses melisma throughout the vocal-driven ballad, which climaxes with a whistle register in the last chorus. Jerrett Franklin of Nashville Music Reviews stated that Max's vocals become stronger in the song, comparing her whistle register to Mariah Carey.
Critical reception Writing for Idolator, Mike Wass described "Christmas Without You" as a "feel-good festive anthem" with a "loved-up chorus", declaring the song as one of the best modern Christmas anthems. David Gleisner of Washington City Paper praised Max's vocals and songwriting, stating that the song evokes a positive emotion during Christmas.
Promotion The music video for "Christmas Without You" was released on December 17, 2022. Max sports symmetrical, long, blonde hair and a Christmas-styled red dress, while appearing in front of a winter-themed background.
Personnel Credits adapted from Tidal.
Amanda Ava Kocivocals, songwriting Henry Walterproduction, engineering, songwriting, instruments, keyboards, programmer Gian Stoneproduction, bass, engineering, instruments, keyboards, programmer, songwriting Jesse Aichersongwriting Sam Martinsongwriting Rafael Fadulengineering Mark Schicguitar Kurt Thumkeyboard Chris Gehringermastering Serban Gheneamixing John Hanesmixing, engineering Yasmeen "YAS" Al-Mazeedistrings
Charts + Chart performance for "Christmas Without You" Chart (2020–2025) Peakposition Croatia International Airplay (Top lista) 20 Lithuania (AGATA) 43 New Zealand Hot Singles (RMNZ) 31 Poland (Polish Airplay Top 100) 72 Romania Airplay (TopHit) 191 South Korea (Circle) 86 Sweden Heatseeker (Sverigetopplistan) 16 US Holiday Digital Song Sales (Billboard) 10
Certifications
Release history + Release dates and formats for "Christmas Without You" Region Date Format(s) Label Various October 15, 2020 Atlantic
References