iHeartMedia is getting in the festive mood with the return of the iHeartRadio Holiday Special, which will take over AC and Classic Hits stations nationwide and the iHeartRadio app on Nov. 22.
Hosted by Mario Lopez, the two-hour special event will feature interviews with Cher, Elton John, Train, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Meghan Trainor, Rob Thomas, and Ryan Tedder of OneRepublic discussing their favorite holiday songs and traditions.
The announcement comes Friday (Nov. 10), which marks iHeartRadio’s annual flip to holiday music on more than 85 stations across the country.
“Listeners look forward to that special day when we convert so many of our stations to Christmas music because it means that the holiday season has really started,” said Tom Poleman, chief programming officer for iHeartMedia, in a press statement. “To celebrate we are bringing back the iHeartRadio Holiday Special with Cher, David Foster and Katharine McPhee, Elton John, Meghan Trainor, Rob Thomas, Ryan Tedder and Train who will be sharing their personal holiday memories.”
It’s no surprise that Cher will make an iconic appearance during the special, as she’s fresh off the release of her first holiday album, Christmas, which debuted at No. 1 on Billboard‘s Top Holiday Albums chart last month. Produced by her longtime producer Mark Taylor, the set includes the legend’s interpretations of “Santa Baby,” “Run Rudolph Run” and “Please Come Home For Christmas.”
Cher recently told Billboard that she “had no intention of doing a Christmas album. But [Warner Records] said, ‘Why don’t you do a Christmas album, Cher?’ and I said if I can do my version I’ll do it, and they were very pleasant.”
Elton John is celebrating 50 years of his jingly single “Step Into Christmas,” which so far peaked at No. 84 on Billboard‘s Holiday 100 chart in 2017.
Listeners can hear holiday music across the iHeartRadio app on stations including iHeartChristmas, playing all the holiday favorites; North Pole Radio, hosted by Santa Claus and featuring a message line where kids can leave Christmas wishes for the big man himself; iHeartChristmas Classics, the place to hear all the timeless holiday classics; or holiday channels playing all kinds of music, including iHeartCountry Christmas, iHeartChristmas Jazz, iHeartChristmas R&B, iHeartChristmas Rock, Holiday Season Radio and more. Search “iHeart Holiday” in the app to find all the Christmas music options.
