When it comes to Christmas, musically gifted married couple Hannah Ellis and Nick Wayne are pressing the pedal to the metal, flooring it into the Yuletide festivities early this year with the release of their brand new holiday-themed duet, “Christmas At 60 MPH,” out today, Friday, November 7.
With equal parts heart and humor, this jovial tune captures the spirit of spending the holidays on the highway with the one you love, as Ellis and Wayne bring the storyline of dashing between family gatherings to life. Ellis and Wayne share vocals on the verses, offering listeners a call-and-response style of song, before joining in with beautiful harmony on the chorus.
“A holiday on the highway / Pulling in and outta driveways / Mistletoe hanging in the rearview / ‘I’ll Be Home For Christmas’ on repeat / Twice as many families / A million miles in a Camry / But you still make the season feel bright / Baby, even while we’re spending Christmas at 60 miles and hour,” they sing, showcasing their country vocals with a subtle hint of jazz over a sway-worthy beat.
Lyrically, the festive track, which follows the pair’s previously-released duet, “Waiting To Die,” is reminiscent of the 2008 movie Four Christmases, starring Reese Witherspoon and Vince Vaughn, with Ellis telling Music Mayhem, “We always joke that Four Christmases is our life. It starts with Nick’s dad’s Christmas on the second weekend of December, and then we’re off—back and forth across the miles. But we make the most of it. There’s this cute coffee shop in my hometown that we always stop at. It’s our little tradition amid the mayhem.”
But the spouses, who tied the knot in May 2021, didn’t actually pull inspiration from that movie when it came to writing the song. Opening up about the origin of “Christmas At 60 MPH,” Wayne said, “We actually wrote this song a couple of years ago on a cold December day with a friend of ours, Mark Trussell. We didn’t think much about it at first — just laughed and wrote something that felt true to our story.”
That story found new life last year when Ellis performed it during her annual December 15th Christmas show, a beloved tradition that’s been going strong for nearly five years. “Her label was there,” Wayne recalled. “We played the song after ‘Baby, It’s Cold Outside,’ and the label just absolutely loved it. The crowd was losing it, laughing, and it was a really great moment. The label was like, ‘We have to do this.’ And so we kind of just started making arrangements to put on this song.”
When asked if they have any family traditions they stick to year-round, both artists say their extended families have special moments they relive every season. “Every Christmas Eve, my mom and I have to watch The Muppet Christmas Carol. It’s been our thing for years,” Wayne shares while Ellis adds, “On Christmas Eve at my mom’s house, her whole side of the family gets together. We pass out sheet music and sing carols in the living room. It’s so special. It’s something I look forward to every year.”
But don’t expect Ellis or Wayne to be the entertainment when it comes to going home for the holidays. “I think they get enough from social media and my Christmas show every year,” Ellis jokes, adding that she comes from a musical family. “They’re like, ‘Alright, we’ve heard enough!’”
Wayne laughs, “Yeah, I think our families are probably a little tired of us performing.”
With a holiday-themed track under their belt, Ellis and Wayne say it would be “a dream” to add more Christmas-centric music to their catalog, but they are also confident they will be treating folks to more duets in the future. However, they haven’t planned anything as of yet. And, rightfully so, as the pair are heading into 2026 with a very busy schedule. The husband and wife will soon welcome their new baby, a boy, into the world, due this month.
So, how far are they on building out the nursery? “We’re getting really close,” Ellis says. “The nursery’s painted, the clothes are washed — it’s coming together.”
“Some of the registry items are still coming in,” Wayne adds. “All the curtains are hung and all the decor, we’re still landing on certain art pieces and stuff for the walls, but for the most part, it’s ready to go.”
For now, the singer/songwriters are keeping their baby’s name under wraps, but both mom and dad are ready for the adventure ahead. “We’re lucky because all our siblings and friends have kids,” Ellis says. “It’s kind of nice to have all of those people as resources as we go into this next phase. But honestly, I think we’re just excited more than anything. We know that those first couple of weeks, it’s going to be crazy.”
Wayne agrees, “I’m looking forward to seeing just the primal instincts kick in, leaving space for that. And we’ve heard that advice from so many people that your parental instincts are typically always right. If you’re feeling a certain way, it’s probably for a reason. So yeah, just leaving room for that and trying to keep the stress levels down.”
Stream or purchase “Christmas at 60 MPH (with Nick Wayne)” HERE.
