Mariah Carey Hit With $20M Lawsuit Over 90’s Strike “All I’D LIKE for Christmas Is You”

Don PalumboJune 5, 2022

The Queen of Christmas, Mariah Carey, isn’t having a very merry start to the summer.

In documents acquired by The Post, Andy Stone, who co-wrote Vince Vance & the Valiants’ country song “All I Want For Christmas Is You,” is suing Carey for copyright infringement — claiming the diva never sought or obtained use of his title for her perennial monster holiday hit.

Stone is also coming after Carey’s co-writer on the song, Walter Afanasieff, in the civil suit, which was filed in the US District Court of the Eastern District of Louisiana.

Stone released his 1989 twangy version — which musically and lyrically sounds nothing like Carey’s pop performance — before Carey changed the holiday season forever in 1994. In the suit, he claims his song got extensive airplay during the 1993 holiday season, a year before Carey released hers.

The Scrooge is suing the “Obsessed” singer for $20 million in damages.

“Plaintiff [Stone] personally requested that Defendants [Carey and Afanasieff] cease and desist from further distribution of Plaintiff’s work,” the suit reads in part. “Despite Plaintiff’s request, Defendants continue to exploit Plaintiff’s work ‘All I Want for Christmas is You,’ reaping tremendous financial awards and other pecuniary benefits to the detriment of Plaintiff.”

Carey is being sued for $20 million for her perennial holiday hit “All I Want for Christmas Is You.” Andy Stone, who co-wrote a country song of the same title, is alleging copyright infringement. Right: A still from the music video for Stone-written tune.

FilmMagic; Vince Vance and the Valiants

According to the documents, Carey and Afanasieff “knowingly, willfully and intentionally engaged in a campaign to infringe [Stone’s] copyright in the work … to the commercial gain, personal profit and unjust enrichment of the defendants and the irreparable injury and financial loss” of Stone.

Carey’s representative declined to comment when contacted by The Post.

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Decades later, streams and radio airplay of Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” continue to stuff her stocking full of cash. The song has over a billion streams on Spotify alone.

According to the lawsuit, Stone is a self-employed artist in the business of performing, selling and licensing his copyrighted music and earns his livelihood from fees received from these activities.

Mariah Carey's — Carey’s “All I Want For Christmas Is You” is the ultimate gift that keeps on giving, reportedly putting millions into her bank account every year.

Read the full lawsuit below.

Carey’s Christmas song reached No. 1 on the Billboard Top 100 chart around the holiday in 2019 and 2020.

The song set Spotify’s most streamed track on Spotify in 24 hours (female) record in 2019 — then beat it again in 2020, according to Guinness World Records.

“WOW,” Carey tweeted in 2020. “I know people think I’m making “coin” (lil’ secret: artists make very little from streams) but the real reason I’m sitting here in astonishment & gratitude is seeing the joy this little song I wrote brings to people. THANK YOU & MERRY CHRISTMAS!!!”

When they got together in the summer of 1994 to write songs for the album “Merry Christmas,” Afanasieff and Carey carved out the chords, structure and melody for “All I Want for Christmas Is You” in just 15 minutes.

“It’s definitely not ‘Swan Lake,’ ” Afanasieff admitted. “But that’s why it’s so popular — because it’s so simple and palatable!”

He also said he hasn’t heard from the “Honey” singer since they worked on her 1997 album “Butterfly,” after which she decided to explore a more R&B-influenced direction.

“It’s a shame because we had great chemistry,” Afanasieff said. “My greatest dream is to work with her again. Mariah, all I want for Christmas is you!”