Ed Sheeran and Elton John Pay Tribute to Christmas Classics in Their "Merry Christmas" Video

Feeling festive? No? Well, allow Elton John and Ed Sheeran to change that with the their newly released Christmas single. The song is simply titled "Merry Christmas"; however, it's anything but simple as the video takes us through a journey of reinventing Christmas classics.

The video opens with John and Sheeran wearing matching festive Gucci tracksuits (the first of many epic coordinating outfits), singing by the piano and an open fire. It continues with Sheeran flying with The Snowman and a snowy nod to Wham's "Last Christmas". But best of all, the video features a reenactment of East 17's "Stay Another Day" with special guests Michael McIntyre, Jonathan Ross, and Big Narstie — yes, really. The special Christmas classics don't end there either, but you're just going to have to watch and enjoy it for yourself.

Sheeran first announced the Christmas duet back in October, when he appeared on a Dutch talk show. "It's f*cking great," he told the hosts, adding that it was all John's idea back in 2020. "He rung me on Christmas Day, and he said, '"Step Into Christmas" is No. 6 on the charts, and I'm 74, and I'm still having f*cking chart hits — this is great! I want to do another Christmas song. Will you do it with me?'" Sheeran was initially hesitant about the idea, admitting that he "never really wanted to do a Christmas song". But after the death of a close friend, he decided to accept John's offer. "It really just hit home how stuff can just change overnight," Sheeran said. "I was like, 'Why the f*ck am I not doing a Christmas song with Elton John? I might not be here tomorrow — this will be a f*cing great way to celebrate Christmas.'"

When speaking to Jimmy Fallon about the festive collab, Sheeran also explained that if he was going to do a Christmas song, he wanted to do it properly. "In terms of doing a Christmas song, you need to chuck the kitchen sink at it. So I said to Elton, I was like, 'I really don't want to do a Christmas song unless we're going in. Unless it's like sleigh bells, ding-dong . . . It need to be a proper Christmas song."

The end result was "Merry Christmas", for which Sheeran wrote the chorus. "So get this", Sheeran told Fallon. "I title it 'Merry Christmas', and I'm like, we're going to have to change that title 'cause there's probably loads of songs called "Merry Christmas". I went on Spotify, and I typed in "Merry Christmas", and nothing . . . There's not a song called "Merry Christmas". And then I went on YouTube, and I checked it out. And it baffled me."

All proceeds raised from the single will support the Ed Sheeran Suffolk Music Foundation and the Elton John AIDS Foundation.

With this new track and video, we officially mark it the beginning of the festive season. Watch the full video above.