Mariah Carey emerges from an ice cube to welcome Christmas

Halloween is over. That can mean only one thing: Mariah Carey has arisen from her slumber and you will be hearing “All I Want for Christmas is You” from available speakers from now until 2024.

On Wednesday, Carey released an Instagram video of herself being defrosted from a giant block of ice by an assortment of Halloween characters, then emerging in her finest Christmas attire alongside her twins, Monroe and Moroccan, as her 1994 yuletide anthem blasts.

“It’s…… TIME!!! ???????????? #MariahSZN,” the 54-year-old singer captioned her post.

This is all part of Carey’s now-yearly tradition of announcing her everlasting presence as the self-appointed “Queen of Christmas,” due to her tune’s enduring popularity, almost 30 years after its release.

“All I Want for Christmas Is You” re-emerged as an all-consuming holiday hit in December 2017 when it reached Billboard’s Hot 100 and climbed to the top five of the charts in December 2018. The song has risen to the No. 1 spot on the charts every holiday season since 2019, with an impressive 12-week reign as the champion in 2022.

Last year, the Grammy winner heralded the holiday staple by posting a social media video in which she transformed from a chortling Wiccan on an exercise bike to a reindeer rider dressed a la Mrs. Claus.

In October, Carey announced her Merry Christmas One and All! tour, which includes several stops in the United States and Canada. The seasonal concert series is scheduled to kick off Nov. 15 at the Yaamava’ Resort & Casino in Highland, near San Bernardino, followed by a Nov. 17 show at the Hollywood Bowl in Los Angeles.

“Yes, the actual defrosting has begun!” Carey said in her announcement of the tour.

After launching her Christmas tour in California, Carey is slated to travel to various cities in the U.S. and Canada before ending her holiday concert series at Madison Square Garden in New York City on Dec. 17.

In a December 2020 interview with The Times, Carey reflected on her experience co-writing the tune with longtime collaborator Walter Afanasieff, recalling the moment the infectious melody just “kind of popped out” of her.

“We wanted it to feel classic,” Carey told The Times.

“I didn’t want it to feel ’90s. It probably feels ’90s now to people who are nostalgic about the ’90s. But in the ’90s, it was something different. ... I wanted it to be timeless. And to feel festive. ... We were having the best time in the studio. It sounds corny, but I think you can hear it on the record.”

Times staff writer Christi Carras contributed to this report.

Carlos De Loera is a reporter and a member of the 2022-23 Los Angeles Times Fellowship class. He previously worked at The Times as an editorial assistant and intern with Arts and Entertainment and at the Houston Chronicle as a features intern. De Loera is a L.A. County native and a graduate of the University of Notre Dame, where he majored in history and minored in journalism, ethics and democracy.