John Lewis advert song 2022: who is Christmas ad singer Mike Geier - who sang All The Small Things originally?

For many, it marks the true start of the holiday season, the moment from which it is socially acceptable to dig out the Christmas decorations and crank up the festive Spotify playlists: the reveal of the John Lewis Xmas ad.

This year’s department store commercial tells the story of a middle-aged man learning to skateboard before welcoming a young teenager into the family home.

John Lewis said this year’s Christmas ad hopes to raise awareness of children in care. This year’s short film is slightly reigned in in scale compared to previous efforts, as companies try to respect the financial burdens placed upon a large swathe of the population by the cost of living crisis.

As usual, the musical accompaniment of the advert is a major talking point, another soft cover of a pop-classic delivered by an as-yet under-the-radar star who is sure to see a boost in sales from their involvement.

But who provides the song for this year’s John Lewis Christmas advert? Here is everything you need to know.

What happens in the 2022 John Lewis Christmas advert?

The 90-second commercial, named ‘The Beginner’, depicts a man struggling painfully to perfect his skateboarding skills in the run-up to Christmas.

Viewers are left wondering why he persists with the seemingly thankless task until the final scene, when a social worker arrives at his door with young teenager Ellie.

It turns out the man is the head of Ellie’s new foster family, and as the young girl arrives with a skateboard of her own, we see the man has been trying to master new talents in an effort to welcome her in.

It’s another sentimental short story designed to tug at the heartstrings as much as it is designed to persuade you to part with your cash on kitchen appliances, and John Lewis has said the ad aims to raise awareness of children in care.

John Lewis acknowledged that not all foster carers had the luxury of knowing who they would be caring for ahead of time, and that its broader Building Happier Futures charity partnership campaign - which aims to help young people with care system experience transition into the workforce - includes “authentic voices of carers” and “young people with different experiences of a complex care system”.

But it said that “in a challenging year, we felt it was important to demonstrate that it’s what we do that matters most”, and that it was proud to use its Christmas ad to “generate conversation and action around an often overlooked issue”.

Who sings on the new advert?

As always, the advert’s backing track has generated as much discussion as its visuals, and this year the Christmas commercial is set to a cover of Blink-182’s ‘All The Small Things’ - originally released by the pop-punk band in 1999 - by US artist, Mike Geier.

Geier, a Philadelphia, Pennsylvania-based entertainer, joins UK music stars such as Ellie Goulding, Lily Allen, and Tom Odell in participating in the retailer’s annual holiday campaign.

Geier is actually one of a handful of artists to perform as part of a coveted Las Vegas residency at Caesars Palace, although it is not necessarily music for which he was previously known.

Despite his Pennsylvanian background, Geier now resides in Atlanta, Georgia, and has achieved international notoriety for his most highly lauded act: a Pagliacci-style clown alter ego known as Puddles Pity Party.

The 58-year-old is noted for his irreverent, melancholy style of performance, combining humour, mime and audience interaction with baritone song renditions.

He has had some past successes in the music sphere: he rose to prominence in 2013 after collaborating with Postmodern Jukebox on a cover of Lorde’s ‘Royals.’ The clip has been viewed over 32 million times as of October 2022, with Lorde reportedly citing it as her favourite cover of the song.