Vocal harmonies are the basis for almost every iconic moment an R&B song can offer us, and in the case of Tealand Smith’s holiday-themed “Christmas Day in America,” they’re going to give you chills like few other new singles out this season will. In “Christmas Day in America,” Tealand Smith introduces himself to us with a honeysweet lead vocal that could sooth even the biggest of Grinches among us this December, and while this genre is one of the harder ones to break into with any long-term success, his is a performance that I found to be one of the best in its class to debut in 2020.

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Beyond the cosmetics of the track and its music video, “Christmas Day in America” is actually a really well-built song. It bears a strong likeness to the traditional pop aesthetics of a 1950s vocal-based single but utilizes all of the space behind its singer to fill the air with acrylic textures that speak to the seasonal garnish recognizable in all Christmas music. There’s a wintery vibe to the very rhythm of the song, alluding to a dash through the snow that many of us only get to enjoy once a year.

The beat is seamlessly fluid behind the verse, giving “Christmas Day in America” a casual yet pop-centric hook right when we need its embrace more than ever. Smith, of course, is the true star of the show here, giving us one of the more potently melodic lead vocals I’ve heard from a rook lately, but his demeanor is never more than that of a healthy swagger. Arrogance ruins a quality composition right out of the gate, but that’s not a problem for this guy – I like his approachable persona in this performance, and I really hope that I get to experience it in another song soon.

Tis the season for music of an especially cheerful nature, and while I can’t speak for every indie critic out there, Tealand Smith’s new song has earned a spot on my speakers this December for sure. “Christmas Day in America” does everything by the book but it doesn’t ask for us to laude its aesthetical relationship with the legendary Christmas songs of old. There’s more too Tealand Smith that I want to explore, and for this being the tip-off, one really has to wonder just how much this young man could accomplish in a freeform setting outside of the holiday season.

John McCall