At approximately 10 p.m. on December 4th, thousands of citizens and tourists alike gathered in Rockefeller Center to witness the annual lighting of New York City’s enormous holiday tree. Following its lighting, voices joined to sing “Joy to the world.”
This year’s tree was cut on November 7th in Massachusetts. It reached a height of 74 feet and weighed over 11 tons. The tree is adorned from top to bottom with over 50,000 colored lights and a 900-pound crystal-studded Swarovski crystal star.
The lighting was shown on the live broadcast “Christmas at Rockefeller Center,” hosted by renowned artist Kelly Clarkson. The broadcast featured several performances by well-known artists and dancers.
Perhaps one of the most notable performances of the night was The Backstreet Boys, who sang “A Christmas Song.” Additionally, Kelly Clarkson took a break from her hosting duties to perform her song “Underneath the Tree.” Even country artists Dan + Shay made an appearance, and of course, choreography from The Radio City Rockettes was performed.
The tree will remain lit from 5 a.m. to midnight but will be lit for 24 hours to celebrate Christmas Eve. It is estimated that the tree will be taken down for the year around mid-January and will ultimately be used as lumber for Habitat for Humanity.
