This Is Christmas (EP)

Acclaimed BEC Recordings hitmaker Tasha Layton has released her first holiday offering, This Is Christmas. Produced by Layton’s husband, GRAMMY and Dove Award winner Keith Everette Smith, the six-song EP features four original selections co-penned by Layton, as well as two Christmas classics. Kicking off with a carefree cover of comedian Heywood Banks’ “Diddly Squat”—a big-band sendup on the watchful eye of Ol’ Saint Nick—This Is Christmas encompasses a range of seasonal sentiments, from lighthearted merriment to reverent moments of worship. Highlights of the EP include the title-cut, an anthem of praise celebrating the eternal impact of Christ’s humble birth in a Bethlehem stable; Layton’s soaring arrangement of the timeless favorite “O Holy Night”; and the poignant closing track, “Comfort and Joy,” a reminder of Christ’s promise of peace to a hurting world.