It's not just Santa Claus who is bringing the magic to the 2022 Macy's Thanksgiving Day Parade. Queen of Christmas Mariah Carey closed the show with her holiday classic "All I Want for Christmas Is You." With the help of two adorable backup dancers, Monroe and Morocco, her twin with ex Nick Cannon, she made the event completely family-themed.
The five-time Grammy winner performed on the star-shaped stage outside Macy's Herald Square in a festive red gown with a tiara and matching parasol. As she launched into her perennial hit, there was no sign of her kids — until about halfway through, when two large gift boxes popped open to reveal them. The twins danced in the box, Moroccan in a red hoodie and Monroe in a white dress with fairy wings. Finally, they were carried out and joined the other dancers in the street.
Kelly was all smiles throughout the performance, and she revealed how special the experience was for her in an Instagram post after the show. "Happy Thanksgiving!!!" she wrote. "Grateful and proud of my beautiful children, Rock and Roy, for their vulnerability and precious moments in life." She concluded with a warm welcome to Christmas, adding: "Now is truly the time!! !” and Christmas tree and Santa Claus emojis.
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Fans cheered the music legend on in the comments, with one writing: "So perfect. So festive!" Another described it as "the best," while someone else added, " yassssssss iconic." Meanwhile, TV personality B. Scott called it "pure opulence."
However, there was some criticism on Twitter as viewers speculated that Carey lip-synced during the performance. “Mariah Carey is lip-syncing so hard,” one person tweeted. "I mean, it sucks. I could do without a close-up." Another added, "Why is Mariah Carey holding a parasol while lip-syncing a Christmas song in New York?" According to veteran John Legend A tweet from 2018, lip-syncing is actually a must-do for all Macy’s Thanksgiving Day Parade performers.
"Fun fact. We all had to lip-sync in this parade because the floats were not equipped to handle the vocal demands of a live performance," he wrote in response to a tweet criticizing him and Rita Ora for lip-syncing during the parade road.
Hopefully the complaining won’t take away Carey’s happiness. Before the parade, she made clear how much it means to her to be a part of this long-standing holiday tradition. “My childhood dream is about to come true!” she wrote on Nov. 18. “I will be opening for the one and only Santa Claus in this year’s @macys Thanksgiving Parade!”
