Sophia Michaels
Consider Thanksgiving over — because Mariah Carey has arrived to officially kick off the Christmas season.
Carey closed out the 96th Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade on Thursday with a cheerful performance of “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Standing in front of the giant Turkey-themed entrance, Carey wore a magenta gown while she belted out the holiday hit, holding a matching parasol. Dancers dressed in matching red marching band uniforms surrounded her and were joined by ballet dancers.
During the performance, a pair of green gift boxes flanking Carey opened up to reveal her 11-year-old twins, Moroccan and Monroe, and they danced next to her for the rest of the song.
Ahead of her performance, Carey raved about the opportunity to sing her hit song during the parade, calling it her “childhood dream.”
“My childhood dream is coming to life! I’m going to be opening for the one and only, SANTA CLAUS,” she wrote on Instagram.
And Carey’s holiday domination is just getting started. The artist will appear for a pair of holiday-themed concerts at Toronto’s Scotiabank Arena and New York’s Madison Square Garden. CBS will showcase the two-hour primetime concert special Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to All on Tuesday, Dec. 20.
The annual parade kicked off at 9 a.m. ET and ran through 2.5 miles of NYC streets. Along with Carey, artists, including Big Time Rush, Sean Paul, Paula Abdul, Jordin Sparks, Dionne Warwick, Betty Who, Fitz and the Tantrums, and more graced the stage.
