The holiday season kicks off with the Christmas tree lighting ceremony at Rockefeller Center in New York City every year. This year’s ceremony will be hosted by Kelly Clarkson, who first performed at the event more than 20 years ago and is excited to be back in New York City for the holidays. The ceremony will take place on Wednesday at 8 p.m. ET and will be televised live on NBC and streamed on Peacock.
More than 50,000 multicolor LED lights will adorn the 74-foot tall, 43-foot-wide Norway spruce tree from West Stockbridge, Massachusetts. The tree will be topped with a Swarovski star designed by architect Daniel Libeskind. The event will feature performances by music stars such as the Backstreet Boys, Jennifer Hudson, Dan + Shay, and Thalia, as well as the Radio City Rockettes.
Attendees can purchase tickets to be photographed with the tree in the background or to view it up close from a VIP area. After the event, the tree will be lit daily from 5 a.m. to midnight through mid-January, with a 24-hour lighting on Christmas Eve and an early cutoff at 9 p.m. on New Year’s Eve. After the holidays, the tree will be donated to Habitat for Humanity to build homes for those in need.
The Rockefeller Center Christmas tree lighting ceremony has a long history, dating back to 1931 when the first tree was erected and the lighting ceremony was born in 1933. The event has been televised since 1951, and it continues to be a beloved holiday tradition for New Yorkers and visitors alike.
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