Country singer Darius Rucker released his Christmas album in October of this year, but one track on the record asks the important question: What does God want for Christmas?
If you haven't had a chance to listen to the new Home for the Holidays album, it's a collection of classic remakes and some new favorites, including the hit song and video that features God and Jesus front and center.
"I am so excited to finally make a Christmas album," Rucker says in an interview with Rolling Stone. "This has been a lifelong dream, and I hope my fans enjoy listening as much as I enjoyed making it."
The 12-track album features Rucker's take on songs like "Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas," "O Come All Ye Faithful," "Winter Wonderland," "Hark! The Herald Angels Sing," "White Christmas," and "Baby It's Cold Outside" with special guest Sheryl Crow. But it's the original song "What God Wants for Christmas" that has really struck a chord with Christian fans.
"What do you give someone who gave His only Son? What if we believe in Him like He believes in us?" The powerful lyrics show off the fact that the singer isn't afraid to proclaim his Christian faith.
"I wonder what God wants for Christmas," the song continues. "What might put a smile on His face? Every Bible with no dust, the devil giving up, might be what's on His wishlist."
Rucker started his life in the spotlight with the 90s rock band Hootie & the Blowfish when he released five studio albums with the group. After an unsuccessful stint at R&B in 2002, the artist decided to pursue his lifelong dream of recording a country album in 2008.
"There are days where I still have to pinch myself and say, 'Is this really happening?'" Rucker said during the Rolling Stone interview. "[Making a country album] was just something I was going to do in a basement studio with my buddies in Charleston. Now I got a record deal and here I am making my fourth record. It's absolutely crazy to think.... I thank God every day for this."
As a country star, Rucker has enjoyed historical success. His first country album's first single, "Don't Think I Don't Think About It" earned him the title of the first African American man to hit number one on the Hot Country Songs charts since Charley Pride did it back in 1983. In 2009, he was the first African American man to win the New Artist Award from the Country Music Association.
Home for the Holidays is Rucker's fifth solo album and fourth as a country artist. He has stated several times that he plans to make country music his lifelong career at this point, but has hinted in 2011 that Hootie & the Blowfish aren't gone completely as he and fellow band members are still good friends.
"I don't think we'll ever break up totally," he said to CBS News. "We're Hootie & the Blowfish ... We'll make another record and do another tour someday. I don't know when, but it will happen. There's one more in us."
