You may recognize Sufjan Stevens’ music before you recognize his name. His Oscar-nominated Mystery of Love helped give Elio and Oliver’s summer romance in Call Me by Your Name its tenderness and longing.
Now the singer-songwriter has released his first new Christmas song in nearly 15 years. On This Christmas (It Only Gets Better) explores apology, forgiveness and the possibility of becoming more loving toward one another.
The Love Behind the Music
In October 2023, Stevens shared a deeply personal dedication when he released Javelin. He named his late partner and best friend, Evans Richardson, as the person to whom the album was dedicated.
In the Instagram message, also reported by The FADER, Stevens remembered Richardson’s warmth, curiosity and joy. He also wrote about the work of caring for someone you love, encouraging people to hold that love close through difficult times.
His music has continued accompanying gay relationships on screen. In a July Instagram post, Asthmatic Kitty Records confirmed that With My Whole Heart features in Heartstopper Forever, adding another connection for listeners who first encountered Stevens through a screen romance.
A Christmas Apology
The new holiday song arrived with its video on November 2, ahead of the November 6 release of Worst Christmas Ever!. The collection combines 15 earlier holiday recordings with the new original.
In his statement about the song, Stevens imagines a Christmas made better by giving and receiving forgiveness alongside gifts. He describes an apology as a way to begin breaking through conflict and misunderstanding, and the song as a prayer for greater understanding.
That invitation may resonate with anyone who has rehearsed a difficult conversation in their head. Finding the words can take time, even when the person matters enormously.
Six Thousand Images, Painted by Hand
The official music video carries that sense of care into its making. Stevens directed and edited it, working with photographers Michael O’Neal and Cubby Graham and a cast of friends and neighbors.
Inspired by Leesa Allmond’s mixed-media animation, the team printed 6,000 still images. Stevens, O’Neal, Graham and Hannah Cohen painted them before they were scanned again to create the video’s overlay effect.
Stevens’ Christmas recordings began in 2001 as homemade gifts for friends and family. Those sessions eventually grew into Songs for Christmas and Silver & Gold.
For listeners who found him through Call Me by Your Name or Heartstopper, this new song offers another way into his music: a few minutes to consider someone they care about, and what they might want to say.
📷 Asthmatic Kitty Records / Official Music Video / @sufjan