Diandra Reviews It All - Ingrid Michaelson's Holiday Hop Is A Holiday Tradition

Ingrid Michaelson’s Holiday Hop in NYC became 11 years old this year, and I was happy to see it enter its pre-teens. There is no denying that Michaelson is one of THE BEST lyricists of our time or, as she says, one of the most depressing (lol!). Yet, there is an undeniable sadness to hope, from which she sings, because its our response to the uncertainty but inevitable need for better. Thus, at her Holiday Hop, Ingrid sang to hope and several laughs.
Ingrid Michaelson “Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas” // SiriusXM // The Pulse

Ingrid Michaelson is so funny. I was rolling from how quick-witted she is, which only made her power as a lyricist more evident; her words fire through her mind like circuits to a computer. From her hilarious shunning of a cockroach that foolishly believed it would be warmer in Terminal 5 than outside or her tale of a woman that MySpaced her about stealing her sweater, the night felt like story-time with an old friend. I probably should not say “old” as she did sing a song about being it, yet there is something eternally young and fresh about Ingrid: her thoughtfulness. Her classic tracks like, “Be Ok” to “The Chain”, obviously, got the crowd going, but her harmonized version of Hawaiian Christmas song “Mele Kalikimaka” and her somber, holiday spirit in “Happy Happy Christmas”, left the crowd in an uproar with her very human tales. We all feel like we are awkwardly waltzing through life, and Ingrid has capitalized that feeling into a music that brims with hope despite being about feeling insecure. Her ability to translate the roughness of feeling okay with your skin into the Holiday Spirit was fascinating.
Sara Bareilles, Ingrid Michaelson – Winter Song

Christmas is a weird time because It when we most demand of ourselves to be happy and invested in our life. It is as if for one month we tell our stresses, “Go away! I’m my visiting family this weekend, and I need to buy an ugly sweater for the occasion”. Thus, her songs weren’t her songs and stories felt relevant to the struggle of being human during this spectacular time of year: Christmas. From a homeless man that could sleep in split form to a lesson on how to internally yell, Ingrid’s adages were funny interjections to a beautiful voice. When she sings you feel like someone has handed you the frothiest, warmest cocoa filled with an abundance of marshmallows. Thus, her Christmas Melody and covers of classics like, “Jingle Bells”, turned Terminal 5into a Winter Wonderland, and explained why her Holiday Hop has become a holiday tradition for the past decade. For More Information On Ingrid Michaelson Click Here.