It would be foolish of Mariah Carey not to capitalize on her, now iconic identity as a holiday songstress. So it should come as no surprise to any fans of the "All I Want For Christmas" singer that Carey will be taking over Hallmark's cable channel tonight to help celebrate the holiday season.

First up is a made-for-TV movie, A Christmas Melody, which stars Mean Girls alumni, Lacy Chabert as a single mother who is forced to relocate from Manhattan to Ohio after losing her clothing boutique. Upon arriving back to her hometown, Chabert is faced with the two most terrifying things imaginable, mean girls (yes, more of them) and PTA meetings. The story begins to unfold after Kristin runs into her former teen nemesis, Melissa, played by Carey. But probably most important to mention is that A Christmas Melody is Carey's directorial debut.

Savy pop culture fans will tell you that Carey's has been slowly dipping her toes back into cinema's waters since the disasterous 2001 feature Glitter with supporting roles in 2009's critically acclaimed Precious and 2013's Lee Daniels' The Butler. So it's kind of a big deal.

The TV movie will be followed by another festive hour of Mariah in an "exclusive musical event" from Hallmark, in the form of a one hour holiday musical special featuring Carey, along with appearances and performances by Kenny “Babyface” Edmonds, Kelsey Grammer, Billy Gardell from Mike & Molly and cast members from A Christmas Melody.

Since Mariah and her unbelievable voice have been all too quiet in recent years, this could be the only excuse you need to be on your couch, singing out of tune in a flannel onesie, while shoveling fistfuls of popcorn into your mouth on a Saturday night.

A Christmas Melody airs tonight at 8 P.M. EDT/ 7 P.M. CDT, follwed by Mariah Carey's Merriest Christmas at 10 P.M. EDT/ 9 P.M. CDT on the Hallmark Channel.

Tags
Mariah Carey, Christmas music, Christmas movies, Christmas special