Run-DMC have the definitive Christmas rapping anthem with “Christmas in Hollis” from 1987. The most successful hip hop act of the time made a deliberately commercial song at the height of their fame which still stayed true to their sound. Run raps about a chance encounter with Santa Claus that leads to him receiving a million dollars in a wallet while DMC reminisces on more simplistic Christmas traditions over a production by Rick Rubin. It was an excellent formula. Run-DMC agreed. They returned to recreate their magic in 1992 with “Christmas Is” but times had changed. Run-DMC were no longer the premier rap act and their sound was different. “Christmas Is” has a repetitively yelled hook that was the epitome of their style (“Give up the dough!”) and the verses tend to be more advisory than celebratory or reminiscent. It did not hit the same. I did not know “Christmas Is” existed until I went to write this article.

Yet, the desire to write a Christmas song every five years could not escape the mind of Run (now ordained as Rev Run). DMC was going through his own personal matters so he was not present but Rev Run was not about to debut as a solo act. He instead decided to gather a motley crew called The Christmas All Stars to help him on his Christmas anthem of 1997. Somehow Rev Run really did assemble a star roster for his humble Christmas tune. Accompanying him on “Santa Baby” are Mase, Sean Combs, Snoop Dogg, Salt-n-Pepa, Onyx and Keith Murray.

Mase was at the peak of his career with his debut Harlem World about to be released. Combs was arguably at the peak of his rapping career with his own debut No Way Out released a few months earlier. Snoop Dogg was still in the early years of his superstar career. Salt-n-Pepa were and still are the pivotal all-woman group in hip hop. Onyx and Keith Murray are the interesting inclusions; respectively, both had big songs to their name in 1993 and 1994 but were still recovering from under-appreciated sophomore albums in 1995 and 1996.

Any individual pairing can be assembled and it sounds unfathomable. Snoop Dogg and Onyx have a song together. Puff Daddy collaborated with Keith Murray. Mase shared a track with Salt-n-Pepa. Rev Run must have been armed with the absolute gift of gab to get these people on the one song. Perhaps such is the spirit of Christmas.

The amusing element of “Santa Baby” is that it could genuinely be possible that none of the acts heard each other’s verses at the time of recording. Nothing is cohesive and they are all over the place with subject matter. Rev Run harks back to his verse from “Christmas in Hollis” with a story of helping Santa delivering gifts. Mase laments that his childhood apartment had no chimney for Santa to descend. Combs brags that he “had a lot” and would shake his presents in anticipation. Snoop Dogg recounts his nights awaiting the arrival of “this fat red-suit wearing” so he could compare gifts with his friends even though sometimes he might receive none (he makes an amusing assessment of Santa as “the enemy” because he wears the red associated with the Bloods street gang). Salt-n-Pepa preach the importance of remembering Jesus on the day supposed to commemorate his birth and are generally anti-consumerist in their approach. Onyx’s appearance is split by Fredro Starr and Sticky Fingaz with former providing stock-standard Onyx verse. Sticky Fingaz claims to be a present-stealing Grinch because of the emptiness of his own Christmases while growing up (it can be perceived that Snoop Dogg received no gifts because Sticky Fingaz stole them). It is Keith Murray with closing duties who delivers the most impactful verse which touches on finding Santa Claus falling victim to the hood mentality, him realising that it was his mum who actually gave him gifts despite the credit going elsewhere, and a plea that the joy of Christmas can “do some good to the ghetto.”

Couple these verses with a hook provided by Rev Run’s wife, Justine Simmons, that wishes for Santa Claus to deliver — very specifically — a 1998 light blue Mercedes-Benz convertible under a tree and “Santa Baby” is everything possibly needed in a Christmas anthem. Mur Chrim.