Nathaniel Rateliff and Elle King have released a surprise holiday tune, “Xmas to Forget.” Rateliff and King the holiday tune, which has a a little bit of a 2020 twist, a week ago Denver with Rateliff’s group The Night Sweats.

“Elle and I had been talking about working on a couple of tunes and doing a version of one of the Dolly Parton and Kenny Rogers Christmas songs,” Rateliff said in a statement. “But as we were working on it we decided it would be fun to write our own. Joseph (of the Night Sweats) said we should write a Christmas to forget in reference to how hard this year has been for everyone so we ran with the idea.”

King added in the same statement: “Well, considering it’s been a pretty tough year and the big ‘togetherness’ theme of the holidays is less than ideal, we thought the best way to communicate that was through song. And if we’re all ending out the year in flames, let’s do it laughing. Here’s to a Christmas to forget.”

Proceeds generated by the single will benefit The Marigold Project, Rateliff’s foundation, which supports community and nonprofit organizations that are working for economic and social justice. In particular, The Marigold Project is now raising awareness for the Food Research & Action Center, the leading national nonprofit organization working to eradicate poverty-related hunger and undernutrition in the United States.

The Marigold Singles series has also featured collaborations with John Prine, Willie Nelson and Kevin Morby.