Pop star Mariah Carey is being sued by another artist who released a holiday song titled "All I Want for Christmas Is You" years before her holiday hit with the same title.
Vince Vance and the Valiants dropped their song in 1989 and it became a hit in 1993, his lawsuit claims. Then, in 1994, Carey and her co-writer Walter Afanasieff released their version.
Though the songs are different in melody and lyrics, Vance's lawsuit claims he owns the copyright on the title, "All I Want For Christmas Is You."
The lawsuit argues that Carey, Afanasieff and Sony didn't seek or obtain permission to use, reproduce or distribute Vance's song, which was “copyrightable subject matter."
Attorneys representing Vance did not respond to requests for comment.
Sony and Afanasieff and Carey's representatives also did not respond to requests for comment.
In the years since Carey’s version was released, it has topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart every year around Christmastime since 2019.