Brenda Lee was honored at a ceremony at the Tennessee State Capitol, which named her classic song “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree” the Official Holiday Song of Tennessee.
Lee was given a signed proclamation by Governor Bill Lee and Representative Jason Powell (D-Nashville).
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Representative Powell filed the bill making the song the official holiday song of the state last December. The bill passed the state legislature earlier this year and was signed into law by Governor Bill Lee in April.
“Brenda Lee is a music icon and a true Tennessee treasure. ‘Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree’ has spread holiday joy throughout the world for decades and we are proud her number one song was made in Nashville,” said Representative Jason Powell. “I am thrilled that my legislation made the beloved ‘Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree’ by Brenda Lee the first official holiday song of Tennessee.”
Last month, Lee unveiled the video for “Noche Buena y Navidad,” the new Spanish adaptation of her iconic holiday hit, “Rockin’ Around The Christmas Tree.”
The charming animated clip was created by Fantoons, which shows the myriad ways Christmas is celebrated across Latin America and amongst Latine families in the U.S.
Fantoons is the renowned animation studio co-founded by Venezuelan-born, U.S.-based writer and director, David Calcano, and producer, Linda Otero.
Throughout the festive, colorful clip, viewers are taken on a Christmas Eve bike ride that begins below the equator in the summer, traveling through beautiful Latin American towns in Argentina, Colombia, Venezuela, Guatemala, and El Salvador, before transitioning to winter and heading north to Mexico and Miami in the United States, all along the way showcasing the many Noche Buena traditions of Spanish speaking people all over the world. The video culminates with Brenda Lee performing “Noche Buena y Navidad” on stage in Los Angeles.
“Noche Buena y Navidad” was refreshed under the production of acclaimed four-time Latin GRAMMY Award-winning producer Auero Baqueiro, keeping the original music and background vocals while replacing Lee’s original lead vocals with a newly translated Spanish language vocal, created using a new AI vocal model, derived from Brenda Lee’s voice that has been fully approved by her.
