Mariah Carey Hit With Copyright Infringement Lawsuit Over 'All I Want for Christmas Is You'

Carey's 1994 hit catapulted her Christmas album into longstanding success, earning her the title of 'Christmas Queen.'

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Mariah Carey attends the premiere of Tyler Perry’s “A Fall From Grace” at Metrograph on January 13, 2020 in New York City.
Mariah Carey attends the premiere of Tyler Perry’s “A Fall From Grace” at Metrograph on January 13, 2020 in New York City.
Photo: Jamie McCarthy (Getty Images)

The “Christmas Queen” a.k.a. Mariah Carey is now facing a new lawsuit stemming from her popular holiday hit, “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

According to NBC News, Carey is being sued by songwriter Andy Stone—professionally known as Vince Vance from the New Orleans-based country pop group Vince Vance & the Valiants—for copyright infringement, misappropriation and more. The complaint was filed over the weekend in a New Orleans federal court with Stone seeking $20 million from Carey, co-writer Walter Afanasieff, Sony Corporation of America, and Sony Music Entertainment.

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Per the suit, Stone claims he co-wrote a song of the same back in 1989 that got “extensive airplay during the 1993 Christmas season and began making appearances on the Billboard Music Charts.”

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As most Americans are aware, Carey’s 1994 hit helped catapult her Christmas album into commercial success, serving as the unofficial official song of the season as the years progressed. As previously reported by The Root, last year, the song made history as the first and only holiday single to reach certified diamond status by the RIAA.

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“Mariah is the Queen of Christmas,” said President of the Commercial Music Group at Sony Music Entertainment, Richard Story at the time. “Her Sony Music family congratulates her on breaking yet another record, and continuing to make history as the first and only artist to achieve this incredible milestone.”

Added Carey, “The continued love for my song never ceases to amaze me and fill my heart with a multitude of emotions. It blows my mind that ‘All I Want for Christmas is You’ has endured different eras of the music industry. The RIAA DIAMOND award?! Wowww! I’m so fortunate to have the greatest fans on Earth, my Lambily, who continue to support my legacy. I love you.”

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It will definitely be interesting to see if and how this lawsuit will play out.