After Halloween, there seems to be a cheerful ambiance that starts to creep in. You don’t notice it at first — it usually hides within shopping store spaces. You don’t notice it until the familiar sounds of classical Christmas music blares through speakers. When this happens, I stop cold in the middle of the store. There’s absolutely no reason for stores to play Christmas music at the start of November. 

I understand how the catchiness of these songs put everyone in the holiday mood, but is it really necessary to start so early? Not really. Nevertheless, when Halloween is over, the world is divided into two groups: those who play Christmas music as soon as Nov. 1 hits, and those who wait until Dec. 1 to bust out the Christmas playlist. 

Let’s think about the time frame. November is a time for Dia de Los Muertos and Thanksgiving — holidays that are very family-oriented and show appreciation for what we’ve been given. We celebrate with family gatherings, food and one another’s company during these holidays. It’s a real turn-off when you’re trying to get ingredients for a Thanksgiving meal and you hear “All I want for Christmas is You” in an H-E-B aisle. I’m sorry Mariah, but as much as I adore you and your music, I don’t want you for Christmas if I’m hearing you way before December has even started. 

Another thing to note is that Christmas music is helping to facilitate the never-ending cycle of consumerism. When new Christmas-themed music is released, people often buy the song or album without a second thought. This is something that’s been ingrained since we were little kids. Buying or streaming Christmas music reminds us that this holiday is mainly about buying things related to Christmas. 

This time of year is only important if one of your family members buys you that brand new thing you’ve been eyeing since February. We think that if we have something shiny and brand new, we’re now suddenly much closer to one another. Christmas music places us in the consumer mindset instead of allowing us to be thankful for what we already have.

Playing Christmas music before December takes away from the celebratory energy of  November holidays. Another thing to note is that playing these songs so early causes  us to get tired of them quicker. They won’t bring the same excitement because we’ll already have heard them more than a million times. The “magic” of these songs die out before December even starts.