Kacey Musgraves Dreams of ‘Green and Bright’ Christmas with ‘Mele Kalikimaka’ Performance

Watch Kacey Musgraves perform "Mele Kalikimaka" from this year's CMA Country Christmas show. 

Written by Lauren Laffer
Kacey Musgraves Dreams of ‘Green and Bright’ Christmas with ‘Mele Kalikimaka’ Performance
Kacey Musgraves; Photo courtesy Country Music Association

Fans at the CMA Country Christmas taping and ones who watched at home were treated to a tropical holiday treat when Kacey Musgraves stepped onstage to sing “Mele Kalikimaka.”

Donning a silver tinsel “grass skirt” and no shoes, Musgraves crooned her way through the festive track, which appears on her new holiday album, A Very Kacey Christmas.

“One of my favorite Christmas songs has always been ‘Mele Kalikimaka,’” she told Sounds Like Nashville and other reporters at the taping. “I got to go to Hawaii this past December right before Christmas time so I was actually in Hawaii during Christmastime and it was very inspiring. I love the aesthetic, the feel, there’s something very classic about Hawaii to me and the correlation between Hawaiian music and western swing, with the pedal steel and lap steel that’s used, and that’s always really inspired me.”

Musgraves was also inspired by three sisters from Texas… The Quebe Sisters, who also appear on the version the Texas native recorded for her album. Together, the four women brought Musgraves’ love of the Bing Crosby/Andrews Sisters’ version to life.

“It’s just fun more than anything and I love the Bing Crosby/Andrews Sisters version of ‘Mele Kalikimaka’ so I thought it was appropriate to bring along some sisters from Texas that I’m a big fan of called The Quebe Sisters,” she explained. “They’re three siblings and they play fiddle and they sing these beautiful sibling harmonies so they’re going to join me and we’re going to recreate our own version of the Bing Crosby ‘Mele Kalikimaka.’”

Watch as she performs the Bing Crosby hit with The Quebe Sisters above.

CMA Country Christmas will re-air Saturday, December 24 at 9/8c on ABC.