While the segment is only slightly longer than the actual song at 3:30, it’s full of festive cheer from singers like Lady Gaga, Elton John, the Red Hot Chili Peppers, Selena Gomez, and more. But the best, by far, is Adele, who makes us long for her to record and release a cover of the hit Christmas song.
The segment begins with Corden, in usual order, thanking his guest, Mariah. This time, however, he’s appreciative of her for helping him go Christmas shopping, not just using the carpool lane. When he asks her what she’d like for Christmas, she asks him to sing that overplayed (but, let’s face it, super catchy) tune with her. And so it begins.
Already, the short segment, which aired on The Late Late Show with James Corden last night and was posted to YouTube this morning, has received almost half a million views.
It’s a great pick-me-up video just before the holidays, and serves as a great reminder of how hilarious the segment is, and of some of the great musicians who have participated over the past 12 months. Just this month, both Madonna and Bruno Mars joined to sing some of their top hits, as well as to chat about life (though sadly they don’t appear as part of this video.)
Carpool Karaoke has become so successful that a spinoff series is in the works. The first 16 episodes will debut on the Apple Music streaming platform, and though Corden himself will not be the driver, he has signed on as an executive producer for the project.