CMT Crossroadsis getting country music lovers in the holiday spirit with a little bit of help fromFOR KING + COUNTRY.
On Wednesday, PEOPLE is premiering a clip fromCMT Crossroads Christmas: FOR KING + COUNTRY & Friends, where the Grammy-winning duo takes the stage to perform the classic “Little Drummer Boy.”
In the opening of the clip, brothersJoel SmallboneandLuke Smallboneare seen on stage before an audience. Before starting the song, Joel, 38, gives the audience a short spiel about the meaning of Christmas.
FOR KING + COUNTRY.Catherine Powell/Getty for CMT
He later added, “That you are enough. So light up that Christmas tree, stand under the mistletoe, surround yourself with the ones that you love the most.”
The duo then goes on to perform their rendition of the classic with Luke, 36, passionately playing the drum.
“Little Drummer Boy” is only one of the many exciting performances set to be featured on the episode, premiering on Dec. 12 at 10 p.m. ET. There will also be encore performances on Dec. 12 at 11 p.m. ET, Dec. 18 at 11 a.m. ET and Dec. 24 at 7 a.m. ET.
FOR KING + COUNTRY and Chrissy Metz.Catherine Powell/Getty for CMT
In November 2020, the Christian pop duoopened up to PEOPLEabout re-recording “Little Drummer Boy” and making it their own.
Luke added, “It was just the lowest hanging fruit of all time, that nobody had put drums on the ‘Little Drummer Boy.’ And we were just there at the right height.”
They also said that the song and its meaning have become so embedded in the group’s DNA that Luke, who’s played the drums since childhood, now thinks of himself as a “Big Little Drummer Boy.”
“I’ve got this gift,” he said at the time. “I can play the drums a little bit, and I play them with passion, and I play them with the love I had when I was a little boy. That’s where it all started, just falling in love with creating beats.”
source: people.com
