Coz I’m getting my karaoke groove on
Editor’s Note: We asked our splainer fam for the best, easiest and most fun songs to karaoke to—whether at your local bar or just in the shower! The responses are an eclectic mix of retro hits, new age pop, Bollywood and rock ditties. You can check out the full playlist over on our Spotify account!
- ‘In the End’ by Linkin Park: This was one of the first English songs Karun Nair ever heard and it remains his karaoke favourite. Karun knows all the lyrics memorised–plus the nostalgia value makes it a winner.
- ‘Living Next Door to Alice’ by Smokie: Akanksha loves this one “cause everyone can shout out after each chorus, Who The F*ck is Alice? :P” College habits die hard and we couldn’t agree more:)
- ‘Kryptonite’ by Three Doors Down: Insiyah recommends because “it’s got easy lyrics and is fun to sing”--which is pretty much all you need from a solid karaoke song.
- ‘You Belong With Me’ or ‘Love Story’ by Taylor Swift: Swetha likes these Swiftie staples ‘cause “it gets the crowd going every single time.”
- ‘Aap Jaisa Koi’ by Nazia Hassan from ‘Qurbani’: Vagda loves this desi disco number because “it's fun, groovy and always makes for a great party song. It's not particularly hard to sing either, and my scale matches hers, unlike Shreya Ghoshal or Lata Mangeshkar songs. It's also an old one so you expect most Indian karaoke hosts to have it.”
- ‘Top of the World’ by the Carpenters: Two splainer fam members recommend this oldie but goldie. Anjali Varma says it is easy to sing and “very uplifting.” Tresa Fernandez says it’s impossible not to sing along to this gem from the 70s.
- ‘Chura Liya Hai Tumne Jo Dil Ko’ from ‘Yaadon Ki Baarat’: This is Manju’s pick–which has an added benefit of being a duet–that you can sing with your bae.
- ‘Gimme! Gimme! Gimme! (A Man After Midnight)’ by ABBA: What’s karaoke without a li’l Swedish goodness in the mix? Anisha loves this one because it’s “fast paced, usually at a scale that's easy and has a few nice moments to show off your voice!”
- ‘Someone You Loved’ by Lewis Calpadi: Dhananajay Chandriani appreciates this ballad for its raw emotion and variation in vocals: “It's a song you just wanna sing out so loud.”
- ‘O Meri Jaan’ from ‘Life In A Metro’: This Hindi track is recommended by an unnamed reader: “Everybody always sings this song with a lot of feel, especially the first line of the chorus.” Reminder: The chorus’ first line goes ‘O meri jaan.. oho oho’.
The splainer team’s picks: Arunima recommends ‘I Will Survive’ by Gloria Gaynor because “it gets everyone charged up, which is what karaoke is about.” Also: Madonna’s ‘La Isla Bonita’ because it’s an easy-impress choice. Aarthi likes to belt out ‘Somebody to Love’ by Queen as “the dynamics of the song lends itself to a fun and dramatic sing along.”
PS: Check out the splainer fam’s other recommended playlists—tunes to feel your zen, their favourite cover versions of songs, music for your next travel trip, songs you’d want to sing in the rain and songs to dance to in your underwear.
