aespa Pair With Eartha Kitt's Original 1953 Vocal on Santa Baby Ahead of Her 100th Birthday

aespa released a collaborative single of the holiday standard "Santa Baby" at midnight on the 13th, and it carries the original vocal of Eartha Kitt, who first recorded the song in 1953. The release is part of a project planned ahead of Kitt's 100th birthday on January 17, 2027.

Rather than a straight cover, the track layers aespa's singing over Kitt's own voice. Primary Wave Music, the publisher of Kitt's "Santa Baby," handled the artwork video, the cover image and the final mix of the recording. SM Entertainment, aespa's agency, supported the global IP collaboration through the group's vocal participation.

What the group and Kitt's family said

aespa said they were glad to join a song that has been loved for so long. All four members had listened to Kitt's original every year-end, they said, and adding their own color to it felt special. They hope it brings warmth and joy to listeners' holidays.

Kitt's daughter, Kitt Shapiro, said her mother valued music's power to connect generations and cultures. She believes Kitt would have been delighted to hear her voice alongside a talented act like aespa, and called the project a celebration of creativity, individuality and the way music links people.

The approval from the family matters here. Legacy duets with archival vocals tend to live or die on whether the estate is behind them, and this one clearly is. Expect the track to resurface each December, and again around the January centennial.

What's next for aespa

The group's next release is already scheduled. On November 20, aespa will put out the m-flo ☆Taku Takahashi remix of "KISS N TELL," the title track of their first Japanese mini album.