With Christmas around the corner, Miley Cyrus, Mark Ronson and their guest, Sean Ono Lennon, have made a video for their cover of John Lennon and Yoko Ono’s 1972 single, “Happy Xmas (War Is Over).” Cyrus wears a green-and-white shirt with an approximation of the billboard campaign John Lennon and Ono paid for when they released the single at the height of the Vietnam War: “War Is Over! (If You Want It).”
She looks off as she sings the lyrics, including some revisions, such as singing “for left and for right” instead of “for yellow and red ones,” and Sean provides the backup vocals and Ronson shreds on his guitar. When it’s done, Cyrus looks over at Sean and smiles.
The ensemble recorded the song at New York’s Electric Lady Studios, with Cyrus previously explaining how it came together. “We went to Electric Lady with Sean Ono Lennon and we got to cut ‘War is Over,”” she told Jimmy Fallon. “And so we’re also doing it on SNL — we want to do a Christmas song, and I don’t think anything could speak louder than what’s going on right now than about ‘War is Over.’”
She also remarked on if Sean sounded like his father. “I mean, he’s just such an incredible being to be in the room with because that magic just radiates and I have always loved John and Yoko, I’m such a big Yoko fan, and so it’s just been amazing to work with him and his voice is just so special,” she said. “And I think more than just inheriting the voice, or you know the way he looks or whatever, that is it’s about the magic that he has and I think that’s what he’s really inherited more than anything, it’s just this radiant magic.”
Cyrus and Ronson previously collaborated on the single “Nothing Breaks Like a Heart.” It will be included on the producer’s upcoming new album.