Which song did Billboard compare with Taylor Swift’s annual August streaming phenomenon?

Billboard compared Taylor Swift’s annual August streaming phenomenon with Mariah Carey’s “All I Want for Christmas Is You.”

The comparison highlights the unusual seasonal behavior of “august.” Carey’s song returns every holiday season because listeners deliberately stream it during a particular time of year. Swift’s track shows a similar, though summer-based, pattern: its streams and chart activity rise when August arrives.

The two songs are not alike in subject or musical style. “All I Want for Christmas Is You” is a Christmas standard, while “august” is a dream-pop and soft-rock ballad about a fleeting summer romance. The comparison concerns recurring listening habits, not the stories told by the songs.

“august” was released in 2020 and initially appeared as an album track. Its repeated annual resurgence later gave it a cultural identity tied to the calendar, with fans sharing memes and streaming the song at the beginning of August.