Advent Caroling Madness XI

It was ten years ago that I first had the idea for what is now a favorite part of the holiday season: Advent Caroling Madness! You all send me versions of Advent/Christmas songs, I put it in a March Madness-like bracket, and we vote our way to find the best version. (Spoiler: the votes NEVER pick the best, but I get new good songs added to my Christmas playlist every year, and we have fun fake-yelling and criticizing each other along the way.)

The OG Advent Caroling Madness was to pick the best version of one song. We’ve done this so many years now that we’ve covered most of the standards, so last year we tried a new format. I give a theme, and you send me your favorite Advent/Christmas songs that meet that theme. We’ll have two brackets this year, on two of the traditional themes of Advent: Hope and Joy.

So, by Sunday Dec. 3 at 7 pm PST, send me the Advent/Christmas song you think most exemplifies hope. We need hope once again in a world that feels rather hopeless currently. Submit with a YouTube link of the song so that others can hear it as they vote. You can give your suggestions by commenting on this blog post, by commenting on social media, or by emailing me.

By Friday, Dec. 15 at 7 pm PST, send me the Advent/Christmas song you think most exemplifies joy.

Let’s go!

(Last year, I gave more background on this annual event, feel free to take a look and click all the links in that post.)