My Kind of Christmas

Aguilera achieved her early success following the release of the two first studio albums, Christina Aguilera in 1999 and Mi Reflejo in late-2000, both of which were certified multi-platinum by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA).[3] My Kind of Christmas was recorded from late-1999 to mid-2000, when Aguilera was touring to support her two debut recordings.[4] Originally, Aguilera's idol Etta James was planned to be included as a featured performer on the track "Merry Christmas, Baby".[5] However the idea was later canceled, and Dr. John was chosen as her replacement afterwards.[4] It is a Christmas and dance-pop album,[1] which contains mainly cover versions of Christmas standards and several new tracks, including "Christmas Time", "This Year" and "Xtina's Xmas".[4] "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas" and "Merry Christmas, Baby" are the two "soulful" ballads from the album, backed by a 70-piece orchestra. "Christmas Time" and a cover of Celine Dion's "These Are the Special Times", meanwhile, are two of the more modern tracks. "Christmas Time" and "This Year" are the two "hip hop influenced" pop tracks. "The Christmas Song (Holiday Remix)" was remade as a dance-styled number, which is set to "a kicking dance beat".[2] "The Christmas Song (Chestnuts Roasting on an Open Fire)" released as a single in late-1999 was included in the album.[1][6]

The album was released on October 24, 2000, by RCA Records as Aguilera's third studio album in the United States, following her two first albums Christina Aguilera (1999) and Mi Reflejo (2000).[1] It was released as two formats: CD and cassette.[1] In order to promote the album, Aguilera promoted the album on a number of shows, including The Rosie O'Donnell Show, The Early Show, and David Letterman Show.[7] On December 10, 2000, Aguilera performed "The Christmas Song", "Genie in a Bottle" and "What a Girl Wants" during a concert at Franklin High in Milwaukee, being watched by 1,300 students.[8] She also performed during an ABC special concert later in December; the set list included songs from her three first studio albums, including a song from My Kind of Christmas, "Have Yourself A Little Merry Christmas".[9] There, she performed the track with Brian McKnight.[9] The concert was filmed and released as a DVD entitled My Reflection (2001).[9]

"Christmas Time" was released in December 2000 on a compact disc as a promotional single.[10] RCA released the song in the United States and BMG distributed it throughout Europe.[11] A promotional live video was released as well.[12][13][14]

Professional ratings

Review scores
Source	Rating
AllMusic	[1]
Entertainment Weekly	(C)[5]
Rolling Stone	(negative)[15]
The Atlanta Journal-Constitution	(mixed)[2]

The album garnered mixed to negative reviews from music critics who criticized the production and Aguilera's vocal delivery. AllMusic editor Stephen Thomas Erlewine wrote that "none of the new songs are knockouts" but the album was an "entertaining seasonal dance-pop" that "may not add too much to Christina's catalog" but "suggest that she may not be a mere one-album wonder."[1] Chris Willman from Entertainment Weekly thought that "Aguilera oversings so wildly that there wouldn't have been enough oxygen in the booth to sustain another life form", and that Aguilera "is out of control here, spoiling some nifty modern arrangements with her exhausting insistence on making every other syllable an octave spanning tour de force."[5] Jaan Uhelszki from Rolling Stone criticized the album as being "chilly, forced and overdone",[15] and claimed that the album "is just another forum to showcase Aguilera’s formidable bag of vocal gymnastics and posturing without a shred of sincerity or warmth".[15] The The Atlanta Journal-Constitution was not impressed toward Aguilera's vocal ability on the album, giving it a mixed review.[2]

My Kind of Christmas debuted at number 38 on the Billboard 200 with first week sales of about 25,000.[16][17] It reached its peak at number 28.[18] It eventually peaked atop the Billboard Holiday Albums. Due to its chart success, the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) certified the album platinum,[3] having sold more than 1,015,000 copies in the country.[19] "The Christmas Song" became Aguilera's fifth top-twenty hit on the Billboard Hot 100, peaking at number 18 on the chart.[18]

• Dominguez, Pier (2003). Christina Aguilera – A Star Is Made: The Unauthorized Biography. Amber Communications Group, Inc. ISBN 978-0-9702224-5-9.

• My Kind of Christmas at Discogs (list of releases)