She was the executive producer of Merry Christmas II You and worked with various record producers, including Bryan-Michael Cox, Jermaine Dupri, Randy Jackson, James Poyser, Marc Shaiman, James "Big Jim" Wright and Johnny "Sev" Severin of RedOne.

It is composed of original songs and covers, ballads and uptempo tracks, incorporating R&B, soul, and house music in its composition.

The album received mixed reviews from music critics, who complimented its relaxed yet lively and contemporary feel, while others felt it was predictable and too overproduced in places.

Elsewhere, however, the album was a moderate success, reaching the top-ten in South Korea and Taiwan; the top-twenty in Canada and Hong Kong; the top-thirty in Australia, Hungary and Japan; and the top-forty in Sweden.

[5] Carey revealed that she intended to re-release Memoirs of an Imperfect Angel as a remix album in early 2010, titled Angels Advocate, which would consist of remixes of the standard songs with new featured artists, including Mary J. Blige, Snoop Dogg, Trey Songz, R. Kelly, T-Pain, Gucci Mane and OJ da Juiceman.

[12] On May 5, Dupri confirmed that he and Carey were in the early stages of production for the album, that Bryan-Michael Cox and Johntá Austin were involved in the project and that they hoped to release a single by the end of the year.

[13] On September 1, 2010, Rap-Up exclusively revealed the title of the album, Merry Christmas II You, and that it would be released on November 2 with original songs as well as covers.

"The First Noel" section is a soulful down-tempo song which consists of Carey delivering a piano-and-voice epilogue backed by an 808 drum machine, while "Born Is the King" is a piece of "pure baby-making magic", according to Juzwiak.

[19][22] "When Christmas Comes" is a soul song with elements of R&B;[23][24] the instrumental consists of horns, including the trumpet performed by Rick Baptist and Greg Adams, and the trombone by Nick Lane.

Guerra noted that Carey adds some "club bounce" to "Here Comes Santa Claus (Right Down Santa Claus Lane)",[19] while Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine thought that the "Housetop Celebration" part of the medley "recycles the monolithic beat from Kurtis Blow’s instructive "Christmas Rappin'.

[19][20] According to Bill Lamb of About.com, "Here Mariah Carey is at her best as she threatens to take everything too far sonically with operatic tones, impossibly high notes, and melisma in full force, but somehow it all holds together in exhilarating fashion.

[19][22][29] The final track is a rewrite of "Auld Lang Syne" by Scottish poet and lyricist Robert Burns,[16] which was written in 1788 and published in James Johnson's Scots Musical Museum in 1796.

[30] Produced by Carey, Randy Jackson and Johnny "Sev" Severin of RedOne, they re-titled it "Auld Lang Syne (The New Year's Anthem)".

[35] "Auld Lang Syne (The New Year's Anthem)" was released as the album's second single with a nine-song remix EP on December 14, 2010.

[36] It garnered a negative response from critics, all of whom disapproved of how Carey had re-composed the traditional poem by Burns into a house music song.

[46] On October 20, 2010, Carey appeared on the Home Shopping Network (HSN) where she was interviewed about the album and previewed six tracks, including "The First Noel" / "Born Is the King", "O Little Town of Bethlehem" / "Little Drummer Boy" and "O Come All Ye Faithful" / "Hallelujah Chorus", the last featuring her mother Patricia Carey.

[48] Merry Christmas II You was released in Canada and the United States for digital download and as a CD on November 2.

[52] A collector's edition containing a golden gift box, a forty-page hardcover photo album, a sticker tag sheet and a collectible butterfly ornament was released on November 16 via Amazon.com for $60.31.

[55] A pre-recorded ABC television special called Mariah Carey: Merry Christmas to You aired on December 13.

"[27] Joey Guerra of the Houston Chronicle echoed Lamb's sentiments, adding that the album ought to boost Carey's career.

"[19] Stephen Thomas Erlewine of AllMusic noted that the four new original compositions gave it "a lively modern feel," and highlighted "Oh Santa!"

[29] Rolling Stone writer Caryn Ganz disliked the two original ballads, "Christmas Time Is In the Air Again" and "One Child", describing them "both thick with gooey orchestration", but praised "Oh Santa!"

However, she was confused by the re-recording of "All I Want for Christmas Is You", saying that "It's hard to figure out what's 'extra festive'", and quipped that it is "far easier to determine what's wrong with 'Auld Lang Syne' (an awkward dance beat)".

"[20] Eric Henderson of Slant Magazine gave the album two and a half stars out of five, writing "Everything about Carey’s sequel to 1994’s buoyant, if, in retrospect, safe, Merry Christmas is as desperate and habitual as it is reassuringly predictable."

He felt that Merry Christmas II You was not a sequel, or a remake, but rather an attempt at rewinding time on Carey's part.

[22] In the United States, Merry Christmas II You debuted at number four on the Billboard 200 album chart, with first week sales of 55,000 copies.

[65] It was certified Gold denoting shipments exceeding 500,000 copies by the Recording Industry Association of America (RIAA) on January 11, 2011.