With the holidays near, people begin to play their favorite albums on repeat throughout the next month and a half. While many tend to listen to classic holiday songs such as "All I Want for Christmas Is You" by Mariah Carey, "It’s Beginning to Look a Lot Like Christmas" by Michael Bublé or even "I Want a Hippopotamus for Christmas" by Gayla Peevey, there may be a new contender to dethrone those staples in holiday music. Deriving from The Philadelphia Eagles' offensive line comes one of the world’s newest and possibly best Christmas album, "A Philly Special Christmas."
Jason Kelce originally had the idea of writing an album back in 2021, and with the help of The War on Drugs’ drummer Charlie Hall, he released the debut studio album last year with features from some of Kelce’s teammates. With the vocals of The Eagles’ Jordan Mailata, Lane Johnson and Kelce, the album made many marvel at their talents outside of football.
Don’t dismiss this album due to their day jobs. Mailata specifically has an extremely talented set of vocals. He was a former contestant on "The Masked Singer" and can hit high notes one may not expect from him. He is the primary singer of the trio due to his butter-smooth Australian voice. He brings a unique spark and twist on classics for those looking to not only listen due to name likeness but also talented vocals.
This album isn’t perfect, however; there are only seven songs on the album released last year, with most of them being covers. Despite their best efforts, these men are not professional singers, and it can show at times. They plan on improving that with the release of a brand new album coming out on the first of December.
This album will include eleven songs and much more original content. Of the few that have been released, one hit song that has been making its way around is "Fairytale of Philadelphia." Sung by Jason Kelce and a surprise cameo of his brother Travis, this song has hit No. 1 on iTunes. Is it due to Swifties playing it on constant repeat to appease their overlord, maybe? It does not take away from the fact that this song is a straight banger and shows off both Kelces’ rather impressive pipes. It also shows who has the better vocals in the relationship, and let’s just say Taylor should be glad Travis is only a part-time singer.
As stated above, not only is this album suitable for NFL fans, but Swifties supporting Taylor’s new man. There has been much controversy about Taylor Swift appearing at NFL games hogging all of the attention. With Travis appearing on this album, however, both fanbases can listen to this with little problems from the other side.
This arrangement of songs isn’t going to win any Grammys or be revolutionary in the subject of holiday albums. This is merely an alternative listening option for those who may be tired of the same dozen or so songs that constantly play on repeat. The direction brought along by Mailata to many of these songs is what makes this album worth a listen in my mind. It definitely won’t be for everyone due to the overall burly tone of the album. Yet, due to the professions of the singers and the location of their day jobs, it’s rather fitting for this charming album.
Quinn Elfers is a freshman studying journalism at Ohio University. Please note that the views and opinions of the columnists do not reflect those of The Post. Want to share your thoughts about the column? Let Quinn know by emailing him at me989022@ohio.edu.
