Ashley Cooke opens her first Christmas EP by asking Santa for a dream date. A few songs later, she’s singing “silent night” with her family. That move from a private wish to a shared ritual gives wrapped its shape. The five-song EP arrived November 6, 2026, through Big Loud Records and Back Blocks Music, and mixes two originals with three holiday standards.
The story behind wrapped
Cooke introduced the title track on October 16, while touring behind her self-titled sophomore album. The label announcement identifies the project as her first holiday EP. At roughly 13 minutes, it has just enough room to move from flirtation to nostalgia to a family performance without turning any one idea into the whole project.
Two originals with different ideas about Christmas
“secret santa” starts with a wish
Apple Music’s editorial notes describe “secret santa” as a playful request for a partner. The premise makes a good opening because it treats the season as an opportunity for something that hasn’t happened yet. Cooke has a character to play and a specific person to imagine, which gives the song a reason to use its Christmas setting beyond the title.
“wrapped” makes the hook about closeness
The title track starts from the opposite situation. The couple is already together, and snow gives them a reason to stay put. Cooke and her co-writers turn gift wrapping into a metaphor for two people holding on to each other. The detail of a drink in a mug brings the idea down to the scale of an ordinary evening. It’s a more convincing image of closeness than the grand holiday fantasy the narrator also invokes.
Big Loud credits Jacob Durrett as the title track’s producer and points to sleigh bells, warm guitar and Dobro. Today’s Country Magazine describes Cooke’s delivery as unforced. The arrangement and vocal approach suit a song that wants the listener to picture two people alone in a room. The bells locate it in December, and the Dobro gives it a country texture that can work after the decorations come down.
Three standards, three different jobs
Apple Music describes “have yourself a merry little christmas” as a faithful reading with pedal steel. That’s a small change with a clear purpose. It lets Cooke bring a recognizable country sound to the song without disturbing the melody that makes the standard so durable. The conservative approach gives the new songs room to supply the project’s more distinctive writing.
“silent night (with the cooke family)” is the strongest idea among the covers. Apple Music describes group harmonies over gently strummed acoustic guitar. Cooke’s relatives bring a connection to the song that a guest star couldn’t supply just by showing up. It’s also the point where the project’s idea of closeness moves beyond romance. The final “jingle bell rock” shifts the mood again. Apple Music identifies rockabilly guitar, an apt choice for a short closer that sends the EP out with movement after the stillness of the carol.
Complete wrapped tracklist and credits
The order below follows Cooke’s official streaming hub. Big Loud confirms the title track’s writers and producer. The other writing names below are the original composition credits for the three standards.
- secret santa — Original song. Full songwriting and production credits have yet to be verified.
- have yourself a merry little christmas — Hugh Martin and Ralph Blane.
- wrapped — Ashley Cooke, Lauren Hungate, Jimmy Robbins, Alysa Vanderheym and Ben Williams. Produced by Jacob Durrett.
- silent night (with the cooke family) — Joseph Mohr wrote the original words and Franz Xaver Gruber composed the melody. Cooke’s family joins her on vocals.
- jingle bell rock — Joseph Carleton Beal and James Ross Boothe.
The available label announcement credits Durrett specifically on “wrapped.” It doesn’t specify who produced the remaining tracks or name each participating relative.
How it compares with shot in the dark and ace
Cooke’s “your place,” from shot in the dark, takes a relationship boundary and makes it the organizing idea of a song. “wrapped” uses the same economy for a warmer subject. A single image does the work of explaining why the singer wants the rest of the world to stay outside. On ace, Cooke uses romantic detail to work through uncertainty. Here the title song lets her write from the other side of that feeling, while “secret santa” keeps a trace of the old uncertainty in the form of a joke.
Final assessment
The title song and the family performance of “silent night” make the best case for returning to wrapped. One gives Cooke a new song with a metaphor that earns its place in a crowded Christmas repertoire. The other puts people she knows at the center of a song everybody knows. The covers lean on familiar material, and listeners looking for a more radical reinvention will find the originals more rewarding. The production and performance descriptions here draw on the label, Apple Music and attributed coverage.
Listen to wrapped through Ashley Cooke’s official streaming hub.