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Q: Is there a quality that makes it sound like Christmas music? And how do you go about capturing that?Ī: To be honest, I really wanted to find a balance between that classic Christmas sound and also modern day - like, "Hi, we're here in 2020" (laughs). So I feel I was kind of born with this initial Christmas spirit. Pentatonix Christmas albums are incredible. Whitney Houston's Christmas album inspired me. It's this general overall spirit of Christmas. And it's hard and intimidating to think about writing Christmas music because you have to embody so much more than just how you feel about Christmas. I wrote eight out of the 10 tracks on this album. It was so much fun because it's such a great mix of up-tempos, ballads and some of the classics. Q: Are there Christmas albums or songs that meant a lot to you growing up?Ī: Yes! You know I can't answer this question without talking about the Queen of Christmas that is Mariah Carey. What Christmas music meant to her growing up

So I hope this holiday season is the biggest dose of joy and kindness we've ever experienced. We have to find the joy when it's so dark. Not saying that we can forget about everything, but to allow ourselves to feel a little bit of joy. It's OK. With how crazy and heavy this year has been, it's nice to have a little bit of cheer. Q: Does it feel like people maybe need a Christmas album more than ever this year?Ī: I feel like everybody's definitely looking forward to some holiday cheer, to people being a little bit kinder to each other and that wonderment you get when you see the lights go up. Why not stay in this space and see what I can do?" So I was in the Christmas space and I thought "Why not? I have all this time. And because of COVID, we didn't do the project. I was only supposed to do one or two songs for a Christmas project. To be honest, I wasn't planning on doing a Christmas album this year. And I knew that I wanted to do a Christmas album (laughs). Before "Idol," I knew that I wanted to sing. Did something in particular inspire you to make a Christmas album this year?Ī: That's been a dream of mine since I was a kid. He was able to drive up with my Mom Number Two, Vivian, and I got to spend some time with them and my cousin, who also moved here. We did a big family Zoom over Thanksgiving.Īnd I am grateful and blessed that my dad actually moved to California sometime last year. That's the precaution that I'm gonna take for me and my little family. Question: Will you be able to spend the holidays with family?Īnswer: We've got family all over - in Texas, Arizona, North Dakota, Minnesota. I am definitely not traveling. Why a Christmas album is so important to Sparks The singer laughs freely and often but also adopts a more serious tone when the conversation calls for that, whether discussing the heartbreak many have endured in 2020 or sharing her hope that the holiday season will inspire us to be a little kinder. There's a contagious, almost effervescent energy to Sparks' presence on the phone, especially when the conversation turns to how excited her 2-year-old son, Dana Jr. - or D.J.

Speaking by phone from her home in Los Angeles, Sparks reflected on the making of the album, which she's proud to say she executive produced with her husband of three years, Dana Isaiah. And then it just kind of smacked us over the head that this whole year was about wanting to see somebody face to face." "We were thinking about it in terms of that. "There are lots of people all the time that might not get a chance to go home for the holidays, whether because of financial reasons or health reasons or troops overseas," Sparks explains. Filming was supposed to start in August but was put on hold because of COVID-19. The album started with the Phoenix native writing music for a Christmas movie she's producing. That's when the singer released her first holiday album, a spirited effort called "Cider & Hennessy" that opens with a soulful gem that perfectly encapsulates the 2020 Christmas challenge with a chorus of "I wanna wish you Merry Christmas to your face." Her other dream came true Thanksgiving weekend. One was becoming a singer - a dream that came true in spectacular fashion in 2007, when a 17-year-old Sparks sang her way to the head of the class on "American Idol" to be crowned the youngest winner in the history of the show. Growing up in Glendale, Arizona, Jordin Sparks had two dreams.

View Gallery: Glendale's Jordin Sparks: From American Idol winner to pop music star